Episode 1: The Fundamentals of Student-Directed Learning

A conversation with Jody Trapani and Katie Kannokada explores the difficulties of getting students in honors classes to challenge the bad habit of doing school. Since they have been amply rewarded for gaming the system, it can be hard to convince them that there is a better way - to focus on learning and personal growth, and trust that the grades they seek will follow.

Listen in on a working session Larry Geni had with Ryan Murphy, a mathematics teacher at Niles North High School.  The conversation wanders through a range of topics, including:  Fixed vs growth mindset, a refrigerator analogy for the learning process, long term vs short term memory, finding the optimal seating arrangement and other decor issues, and the need for being nonjudgmental when confronted with problematic behavior.

Larry Geni is joined by Carl Brownell, Social Studies Department Chair at Maine East High School. They discuss the damage grades do to student’s internal motivation to learn, and how to minimize that damage. In addition, they discuss the task of eliminating points from the classroom; the proper function of tests; the importance of remediation; the issues of grades and “honors” and “regular” tracked classrooms; and the promise of grade conferences.

In this working session, Larry talks with Gordon Booker about how to deal with a classroom where most of the students are self-directed and motivated to work, and some students aren't. Gordon's  test resubmittal process is also critiqued, and they discuss how to fine-tune the way that students with different needs can all work effectively on remediation.  

In this episode, Larry is joined by Joan Gallagher, the director of the science department at Niles North High School, and the co-author of "Whole-Class Inquiry:  Creating Student-Centered Science Communities".  This conversation explores what it takes to keep your balance, and even thrive, while living with the relentless pace and the ever-increasing pressures placed on teachers.  Topics discussed include liberating oneself from day-to-day stresses, the nature of good management, living honestly while working in institutions, and teaching students how to speak truth to power.

Larry is joined by Ryan Murphy, a math teacher at Niles North High School to discuss how to reframe the purpose of tests so that they become an integral part of the learning process.  We talk about how we can help students see the mistakes they have made on a test as information about what they haven't learned yet, and how we can design a test remediation process that is truly responsive to the individual needs of every student.

The thorny problem of dealing with a student who cheats is discussed in this episode.  In particular, we explore how to replace a reflexive punitive reaction with a response that helps the student grow into a more responsible and trustworthy posture.

In this episode, Larry Geni talks with Gordon Booker, a chemistry teacher, about some of the issues that arise during "open work time", when students are spreading out to work on different things at the same time. In particular, they discuss the question of how to help students find internal motivation to work when they are not being told what to do by the teacher. Additional topics discussed include dealing with inappropriate phone use, and teaching students to take good notes.

In this episode, Larry Geni describes the ideas that form the foundation of this educational approach.  He then joins a conversation with three teachers who over the past two years have implemented that approach in their classrooms.

In this inaugural episode, Larry Geni introduces the educational approach that will be the central topic of this podcast.