The Cult of Pedagogy Podcast

Retrieval practice is the act of trying to recall something you learned from memory by doing things like taking a test or using flashcards instead of just looking at, rereading, or reviewing the information. When we study with retrieval, we learn and remember things much better than we do by other review methods. So how do we add more to our classrooms? In this episode, I'm joined by Dr. Pooja Agarwal, editor of the book Smart Teaching Stronger Learning, and two of the book's authors, Dr. Janell Blunt and Dr. Michelle Rivers, to learn nine simple, easy, and fun retrieval strategies that can be added to any lesson. Thanks to Zearn [https://zearn.org/] and EVERFI [https://cultofpedagogy.com/everfi] for sponsoring this episode. To read a full transcript of this episode and find links to more retrieval practice resources, visit cultofpedagogy.com/retrieval-in-action [https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/retrieval-in-action/].

We talk a lot about differentiating instruction, measuring growth, and preparing students for the real world, but how do you actually do that in a system still driven by grades? Maybe you need a new model altogether. In this episode, we're exploring an approach to school called competency-based learning. I’m joined by three educators — Susie Bell, Heather Messer, and Beth Blankenship — who show us what this model actually looks like in classrooms. They share real teaching examples, how they assess growth over time, and how the Mastery Transcript Consortium [https://mastery.org/] supports this work. Thanks to Zearn [https://zearn.org/] and EVERFI [https://cultofpedagogy.com/everfi] for sponsoring this episode. To read a full transcript of this episode and get more resources on competency-based learning, visit cultofpedagogy.com/competency-based-learning [https://cultofpedagogy.com/competency-based-learning/].

Grammar has never been an especially popular area of study, and teaching it has frustrated many English teachers throughout time. It seems like no matter how hard we try, the concepts just don't stick as well as we'd like them to. In this episode, I'm talking to Matthew Johnson, author of the new book Good Grammar: Joyful and Affirming Language Lessons That Work for More Students, about some truly fresh approaches he takes to grammar instruction (I definitely never tried them!). They have worked so well that his students now say grammar is their favorite part of his class — definitely worth a listen!  Thanks to Zearn [https://zearn.org] and EVERFI [https://cultofpedagogy.com/everfi] for sponsoring this episode. And to learn more about Grammar Gap Fillers, go to cultofpedagogy.com/grammar [https://cultofpedagogy.com/grammar]. To read Matt's article and get links to his book, visit cultofpedagogy.com/grammar-stinks/ [https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/grammar-stinks/].

Research shows that adding physical or hand gestures to a learning experience, especially ones that have some meaning to them, can significantly boost how well students understand and remember the content.  ------------------- Thanks to Class Composer [https://cultofpedagogy.com/classcomposer] for sponsoring this tip. You can find written and video versions of these at cultofpedagogy.com/edutips [https://cultofpedagogy.com/edutips].

This episode is for everyone and anyone. In it, I'll share five techniques that will encourage any person you’re talking to to go a little more in-depth, share a little bit more, and most importantly, feel seen, heard, and understood.  Thanks to Boclips Classroom [https://cultofpedagogy.com/bcc] and EVERFI [https://cultofpedagogy.com/everfi] for sponsoring this episode. For a written version of this episode, visit cultofpedagogy.com/listening-skills [https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/listening-skills/].