Coconut Thinking

In this episode of the Meaningful Learning podcast, I speak with Michael Bunce. Michael is Curriculum Development and Enhancement Lead for Music and Performance, and Course Leader for the Masters in Global Learning Futures at the University of East London. He is engaged in practice and research as a teacher and curriculum innovator, educational technology developer, composer and music producer, and interdisciplinary arts practitioner. Michael is also the Founder of the Metapraxis Project, which facilitates the design, development and implementation of reflexive interdisciplinary learning projects in primary, secondary and tertiary contexts. In this episode, Michael and I discuss: How learning is a transformation process that occurs within a context.How learning is an experience this takes place in the moment and is oscillating.How agency and metacognition feed off each other.Join us for another episode of the Meaningful Learning podcast by Coconut Thinking. We hope you enjoy this episode and please let us have your thoughts and feedback.

In this episode of the Meaningful Learning podcast, I speak with Tanya Sheckley, Social Entrepreneur and Founder of UP Academy, an elementary school in San Mateo, California, which is the first school in the world where kids who are able bodied and kids with physical disabilities learn together in the same classrooms. UP Academy focuses heavily on Project Based Learning, showing that elementary school students aren't too young to engage in authentic experiences. In this podcast, Tanya and I discuss:How to develop core academic skills through student agencyHow to build a school culture that promotes and sustains joy in learning and teachingHow to model lifelong learning to the students and adults alike.Join us for another episode of the Meaningful Learning podcast by Coconut Thinking. We hope you enjoy this episode and please let us have your thoughts and feedback. 

In this episode of the Meaningful Learning podcast, I speak with Will Richardson. Will is a former public school educator of 22 years and has spent the last 15 years developing an international reputation as a leading thinker and writer about the intersection of social online learning networks, education, and systemic change. Most recently, Will is a co-founder of The Big Questions Institute, which was created to help educators use "fearless inquiry" to make sense of this complex moment and an uncertain future. In 2017, Will was named one of 100 global "Changemakers in Education" by the Finnish site HundrED, and was named one of the Top 5 "Edupreneurs to Follow" by Forbes. He has given keynote speeches, lead breakout sessions, and provided coaching services in over 30 countries on 6 continents. (Come on Antartica!) He has also authored six books, and given TEDx Talks in New York, Melbourne, and Vancouver. In this podcast, Will and I discuss:Why we so seldom ask "What do you mean by learning?" and other existential questionsHow change in education may come from mini-schools or schools on the fringesHow we can turn the COVID situation into opportunities to foster curiosity and creativity in all learnersJoin us for another episode of the Meaningful Learning podcast by Coconut Thinking. We hope you enjoy this episode and please let us have your thoughts and feedback. 

In this episode of the Meaningful Learning podcast, I speak with Tim Logan, long-time educator and consultant and strong advocate of bringing Agile into education. Tim explains how Agile principles and values guide us to respond to change and avoid ineffective rigidity, helping to meet student and group learning needs as they arise. Agile is about collaboration and personal interactions, bringing the human element to learning through doing. In this podcast, Tim and I discuss:The value of going beyond quantitative measures as means to understanding learners and their potentialHow Agile allows us to connect action and learning by having the tools to make good decisions for our students and our schoolsPractical ways to implement Agile in your classroomJoin us for another episode of the Meaningful Learning podcast by Coconut Thinking. We hope you enjoy this episode and please let us have your thoughts and feedback. 

In this episode of the Meaningful Learning podcast, I speak with Karl Millsom, Founder of the Rebel Teacher Network. Karl is a thought agitator who is not afraid to pose questions and frame issues in ways that force us to stop and re-consider why and how we do things in education. Karl helps and leads teachers to transform their practice to make learning experiences deeper by placing the student and the center of learning, but in ways that are fulfilling for the teacher as well. We discuss:How we can find space to transform the curriculum to make it matter to all learnersHow assessment connects to learning... or fails to in many casesHow the community can and should be involved in teaching to bring expertiseJoin us for another episode of the Meaningful Learning podcast by Coconut Thinking. We hope you enjoy this episode and please let us have your thoughts and feedback. 

In this episode of the Meaningful Learning podcast, I speak with Kyle Wagner, Learning Experience Co-Designer who uses PBL as a vehicle for deeper learning. Kyle has global experience leading transformation of schools and their cultures. In this episode, we discuss Micro-Schools—schools within schools that drive innovation and buy-in from all stakeholders. We also talk about:Why authentic products and assessments provide opportunities for creativity and meaning for students and teachers alikeHow to avoid the traps in setting up Micro-Schools and maximize momentum toward successHow to students can tell their stories to stand out from the crowd of university applicants.Join us for another episode of the Meaningful Learning podcast by Coconut Thinking. We hope you enjoy this episode and please let us have your thoughts and feedback. 

In this episode of the Meaningful Learning podcast, I speak with Mark Barnett, Learning Experience Designer, PBL consultant, maker space leader, machine learning scholar... a renaissance man in the world of education. In this episode we discuss:Project-Based Learning as way to cultivate deeper learningGoing beyond traditional assessment to reframe our thinking about learningHow technology should be used to create, not just replicate what already existsMark's work pushes us to think in ways that challenges the traditional system so that all learners can find more meaning in what they do and learn. Join us for another episode of the Meaningful Learning podcast by Coconut Thinking. We hope you enjoy this episode and please let us have your thoughts and feedback. 

In this episode of the Meaningful Learning podcast, I speak with Dwayne Matthews, one of the broadest and deepest thinkers I've met in a while. In this episode we discuss:Learning Labs as an emerging innovation that allows students to break away from the traditional curriculum in order to explore their strengths and passions while developing authentic productsThe importance outcomes to replace traditional assessment (including grades)The role of technology as a tool, not an end.Dwayne disrupts our traditional thinking about what learning is and how learning is demonstrated and applied in these changing times. Join us for another episode of the Meaningful Learning podcast by Coconut Thinking. We hope you enjoy this episode and please let us have your thoughts and feedback. 

In this podcast, I speak with Dr. Dan Kreiness, instructional leader and host of The Leader of Learning podcast. Through his coaching, podcast, blog, and research, Dan is an influencer and expert in transformational leadership as a way to create the contexts for more effective learning and innovation in schools. Throughout our talk, Dan provides strategies and insights into:How transformational leadership is about making sure everyone has the chance to be a leader in a school.How we can adapt as educators to meet student needs.Pushing ourselves to be risk-takers inside and outside the classroomJoin us for another episode of the Meaningful Learning podcast by Coconut Thinking.

In this podcast I speak with Dr. Trevor Soponis, Founder and Chief Learning Officer of the Sustainable Learning Projects. Trevor is dedicated to developing project-based learning opportunities addressing the fundamental environmental challenges of our time for students around the world. Trevor has moved my thinking as we discuss:How we should trust students to take charge of their learning and solve the problems of their community.The power of connections to the environment to drive learning, in the future, yes, but also right now.The opportunities COVID and Black Lives Matter may provide to create a better world if we make the right choices.Join us for another episode of the Meaningful Learning podcast by Coconut Thinking, which may be the last one from Saudi Arabia as new adventures await.