What's the Big Idea?

In which Dan chats with Michael Wagner, Professor and Department Head of Digital Media at the Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts & Design at Drexel University, about the implications for AI in education.  Back in July Michael posted a piece to his Substack with the provocative title, "The End of Cheating as We Know It." He posits that, yes, AI has the power to disrupt everything in education, but, ironically, it has also created the conditions for ancient practices  of teaching and learning to ascend, methods like socratic and oral examination, as well as design cycle iteration. Mentioned in the show: The End of Cheating As We Know It [https://substack.com/@michaelgwagner/p-168211941] by Michael Wagner Michael Wagner's Substack [https://substack.com/@michaelgwagner] Alpha School [https://alpha.school/] Music: Inspired by Lakey

In which Dan talks with education thinker and writer Jennifer Berkshire. Jennifer is the co-author of the recent release The Education Wars: A Citizen’s Guide and Defense Manual and co-host of the outstanding podcast Have You Heard? Dan and Jennifer talk about some of the biggest issues facing education in 2025, namely the culture wars, local activism, and the snake oil salesman of educational technology.  As always, I welcome comments and questions on Bluesky (@dankearney) and Instagram (@_dankearney_) Mentioned in the episode: Have You Heard? [https://www.haveyouheardpodcast.com/] - a podcast by Jennifer Berkshire and Jack Schneider The Education Wars: A Citizen’s Guide and Defense Manual [https://www.amazon.com/Education-Wars-Citizens-Defense-Manual/dp/1620978547] by Jennifer Berkshire and Jack Schneider Alpha Schools [https://alpha.school/] Private school vouchers are now law in Texas [https://www.texastribune.org/2025/05/03/texas-school-vouchers-greg-abbott-signs/] from the Texas Tribune The Wire [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0306414/], a television show by David Simon Music by Lakey Inspired

In which Dan chats with Jesse Hagopian about the urgent need to teach truthful history in America's classrooms. Jesse is the author of the excellent book Teach Truth: The Struggle for Antiracist Education and he's an eloquent speaker on the need to push back against right-wing whitewashing. Jesse and Dan talk about the return of colorblindness, the gentrification of history, and why grassroots action is the only way out.  As always I welcome comments and questions on BlueSky @dankearney and on Instagram @_dankearney_ If you're in or near Los Angeles this summer, check out Learning Adventures Workshop [https://learning.constructingmodernknowledge.com/la/] with Dr. Gary Stager on June 30. New podcast alert! Tune into But I Won't Do That [https://open.spotify.com/show/3G0d163PbUqI8TwFjWGcF4?si=417f85b505c348a1], an irreverent look at the music, lyrics, and videos of some favorite pop hits. Mentioned in the episode: Teach Truth: The Struggle for Antiracist Education [https://www.amazon.com/Teach-Truth-Struggle-Antiracist-Education/dp/B0CT83DSR3/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0] by Jesse Hagopian "Oklahoma education standards say students must identify 2020 election 'discrepancies'" [https://www.npr.org/2025/05/14/nx-s1-5384282/oklahoma-education-standards-2020-election], NPR, May 14, 2025 Zinn Education Project [https://www.zinnedproject.org/] -- lots of incredible resources and lessons for teaching truth Music: "Sunflower" by Soyb (Youtube Audio Library)

In which Dan chats with Dr. Gary Stager, teacher, professor, author, and consultant (among other things) and a true constructivist. Gary is the founder of the Constructing Modern Knowledge summer institute for educators and the co-author of Invent To Learn – Making, Tinkering, and Engineering in the Classroom. Dan and Gary talk about Gary's dear friend, the late Seymour Papert, and the meaning of a computer in a classroom, phones in schools, Gary's experience teaching in a prison in Maine, and why reading from actual books is so vital. As always I welcome comments and questions on BlueSky @dankearney and on Instagram @BigIdeaEd Mentioned in the episode: Invent to Learn: Making, Tinkering, and Engineering in the Classroom [https://www.amazon.com/Invent-Learn-Tinkering-Engineering-Classroom-ebook/dp/B07MSGRDWX?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=hum7w&content-id=amzn1.sym.cf86ec3a-68a6-43e9-8115-04171136930a&pf_rd_p=cf86ec3a-68a6-43e9-8115-04171136930a&pf_rd_r=141-2782339-9218521&pd_rd_wg=gKBZn&pd_rd_r=354c3bd3-7217-4c27-b784-a4a324dd987c&linkCode=sl1&tag=garysocialmedia-20&linkId=6c9edf687c01de69464dc2f6d933bb6b&language=en_US&ref_=as_li_ss_tl] by Gary Stager Twenty Things to Do with a Computer Forward 50 [https://www.amazon.com/Twenty-Things-Computer-Forward-Education/dp/1955604002?crid=2LY4HEIV6PASW&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.EGQz190DbVIcgjkh7TiPYgC9N2tj8UJ4uISbxNUKueY2SiS7MW8eMzjg_vibs8pFa3Y98MDsj0y8hBalwC5WBw.5BlxzVVC1jZlfYnc6yief9ImpiMHPy-ogpYNNkfzS9Y&dib_tag=se&keywords=gary+stager&qid=1705019646&sprefix=gary+stager,aps,140&sr=8-2&linkCode=sl1&tag=garysocialmedia-20&linkId=1c10783213cf6f7653846de6e7bc8f0f&language=en_US&ref_=as_li_ss_tl] by Gary Stager The Children's Machine: Rethinking School in the Age of the Computer [https://lcl.media.mit.edu/resources/readings/childrens-machine.pdf] by Seymour Papert Seymour Papert Obituary [https://news.mit.edu/2016/seymour-papert-pioneer-of-constructionist-learning-dies-0801] from MIT News Torture in a Maine Prison [https://www.prisonlegalnews.org/news/2006/jun/15/torture-in-maines-prison/] from Prison Legal News Mathworlds [https://danmeyer.substack.com/], the Substack from Dan Meyer From Lunchboxes to Laptops: How Maine Went One-to-One [https://hackeducation.com/2015/03/02/maine-laptops] by Audrey Waters The Anxious Generation [https://www.amazon.com/Anxious-Generation-Rewiring-Childhood-Epidemic/dp/0593655036] by Jonathan Haidt The Most Compelling Argument Against Tech in Schools [https://www.afterbabel.com/p/sophie-winkleman-tech-schools] from Haidt's After Babel Substack Music:  SPEAKEASY STRUT royalty free Music by Giorgio Di Campo for @FreeSound Music http://freesoundmusic.eu [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqa3kza2FaR0tud1FDUlg5THhBdjQ4dG5BQnhCUXxBQ3Jtc0trOGh4bl9TVWg3TWVSRmJIU2hUYVlwU2tzajdjY3dfVE5WQjNLN1pFMkhtZkd1SzFyUWFGb0g0d3dqNTVuQkRiTTI2enROMFotVzB0Y3hFQllaR1VjYVBlcWhqOWh0R1J5cWFGSE9hUGxBMDRSaXRxMA&q=http%3A%2F%2Ffreesoundmusic.eu%2F&v=x0cJaKVcpxo]

In which Dan chats with Anya Kamenetz, an author, speaker, and reporter who's done lots of big thinking on the most important issues facing our world. Anya writes The Golden Hour Substack; she covered education for many years for NPR; and her newest book is The Stolen Year: How Covid Changed Children’s Lives, And Where We Go Now. Dan and Anya talk discuss capitalism, measurement in education, climate change as school curriculum, Wikipedia, AI, and more.  As always, I welcome comments and feedback on Bluesky (@dankearney) and Instagram (@BigIdeaEd). Mentioned in the episode: The Golden Hour [https://thegoldenhour.substack.com/] on Substack The Stolen Year: How COVID Changed Children's Lives, and Where We Go Now [https://www.amazon.com/dp/1541700988/?bestFormat=true&k=the%20stolen%20year%20how%20covid&ref_=nb_sb_ss_w_scx-ent-pd-bk-d_de_k0_1_15&crid=3T4BU9F6OYXRI&sprefix=the%20stolen%20year] by Anya Kamenetz The Test: Why Our Schools are Obsessed with Standardized Testing–But You Don't Have to Be [https://www.amazon.com/Test-Schools-Obsessed-Standardized-Testing-ebook/dp/B00N02RB2K/?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=BfQkB&content-id=amzn1.sym.bc3ba8d1-5076-4ab7-9ba8-a5c6211e002d&pf_rd_p=bc3ba8d1-5076-4ab7-9ba8-a5c6211e002d&pf_rd_r=144-1572506-4404106&pd_rd_wg=uz3SJ&pd_rd_r=aecbd4b0-70c0-4501-bdf0-1c6ff05e144d&ref_=aufs_ap_sc_dsk] by Anya Kamenetz The U.S. Economy Is Racing Ahead. Almost Everything Else Is Falling Behind [https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/04/briefing/the-us-economy-is-racing-ahead-almost-everything-else-is-falling-behind.html?searchResultPosition=1] by David Leonhardt, NY Times How to Raise Kids to Identify Misinformation [https://www.tipaz.org/latest-news/jmnt3t2rfk5mkha-n7g56-n9z3l-g3b8g-79dss-zyj8b-cxgm9-4f4r5-dwm4c-2k59k-kpjmy-3fmx9-wepb9-k3jlr-gp5nk-3w8fy-fkaaa-bk2zb-wwn9s-m7tw2-sm5bm-3jmj9-wz276-rdtal-7r78s] by Anya Kamentez, The Integrity Project NJ Climate Change Education Resources [https://www.nj.gov/education/climate/learning/gradeband/] An Educator's Guide to Climate Emotions [https://www.climatepsychology.us/educators-guide-climate-emotions] Tech Won't Save Us [https://techwontsave.us/], a podcast from Paris Marx The Generative AI Con [https://www.wheresyoured.at/longcon/] by Ed Zitron