Actual Intelligence with Steve Pearlman

Special guest Anton Tolman, the lead editor of the book, Why Students Resist Learning: A Practical Model for Understanding and Helping Students, joins Steve and Dave in a discussion of how to convert the "signal" of student resistance into a force for educational growth.  Tolman discusses why student resistance is natural, his research on its causes, and strategies for addressing it, including metacognition.   This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pearlmanactualintelligence.substack.com

Dave and Steve tackle the controversial "Sokel Squared" hoax by academics who got fabricated articles published in academic journals. Join us for spirited commentary on what this hoax accomplishes, why it is dangerous, and how it possibly emerges from an erroneous conception of constructivism. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pearlmanactualintelligence.substack.com

Exploring the power of writing to learn, the podcast discusses practical exercises for better learning outcomes and deeper critical engagement. It emphasizes quality over quantity in writing exercises, highlighting the cognitive benefits of writing for learning. Strategies for enhancing critical thinking skills through writing assignments are also explored, offering innovative approaches to engage students in deep learning experiences.

Steve and Dave welcome Dr. Marianne Fallon for a fascinating discussion about the power of a growth mindset for students' educational performance. Marianne speaks to research on growth vs. fixed mindsets, how even high-performing students can still suffer from a fixed mindset, common mistakes educators make in reinforcing fixed mindsets, and easy measures any educator can use in any class, such as short reflective assignments, to foster "growthy" students! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pearlmanactualintelligence.substack.com

By popular demand, Steve and Dave respond to some of the backlog of listener questions.  One listener asks about whether or not critical thinking based on evidence undervalues creativity.  A second listener asks about how to maintain standards for critical thinking while also ensuring a cultural diverse classroom in which all perspectives are valued.  Can we be creative and critical at the same time?  Can we value diverse opinions yet hold students to logical standards of evidence?  Tune in to find out! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pearlmanactualintelligence.substack.com

Some high stakes assessments of student writing are currently being done by computers. Steve and Dave tackle the question of whether or not cutting-edge artificial "intelligence" successfully evaluates papers for critical thinking, or anything else. Will your job as an educator soon be replaced by a computer? Tune in to find out. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pearlmanactualintelligence.substack.com

Many educators are frustrated by student writing, frustrated by the time they devote to responding to student writing, and frustrated by the lack of revision, if not improvement, between drafts.  In this episode, Dave and Steve not only dispel myths about what constitutes an effective response to a student paper, they also offer a step-by-step process for responding in a way that produces meaningful growth. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pearlmanactualintelligence.substack.com

What happens when someone creates a dialogue between west coast liberals and southern Trump supporters?  Find out in this episode!  Steve and Dave are joined by Spaceship Media founders and journalism activists, Eve Pearlman and Jeremy Hay.  Spaceship Media's "dialogue journalism" is fostering constructive discourse between people who hold conflicting viewpoints, and striving to restore the populace's faith in journalists.  This reinforces the pressing need for education to create thinking citizens. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pearlmanactualintelligence.substack.com

Dave and Steve tackle one of the more over- and misused terms in education, Problem-Based Learning (PBL).  Learn the research behind PBL, what it is, for what it works well and for what it doesn't work well.  In news of the week: How Artificial Intelligence is going to force educational change, and how critical thinking might just offer hope for the world in terms of climate change.  Maybe.  (This episode contains minor technical difficulties that were out of our control.  Apologies in advance.) This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pearlmanactualintelligence.substack.com

Having blamed all the world's problems on the 5-paragraph essay in the previous episode, Steve and Dave offer three alternatives to the 5-paragraph form.  These are tested, easily implemented essay structures that emphasize critical thinking and foster stronger content acquisition.  News of the week explains why critical thinking can't be taught (but it can) and covers a letter to educators from subject matter itself! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pearlmanactualintelligence.substack.com