Lifelong Kindergarten with Mitch Resnick

Gwyn and Syl: Creative Learning in the Scratch Community

At a time when many people are expressing concerns about screen time and social interactions online, the Scratch online community serves as a counter-example, providing opportunities for young people to develop as creative, curious, caring, and collaborative learners. In this episode of the Lifelong Kindergarten podcast, former Scratchers Gwyn Chilcoat and Syl Foisy, now both PhD students, discuss how their childhood experiences with Scratch continue to influence their work and their lives. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mitchresnick.substack.com [https://mitchresnick.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Randi Weingarten: Educating for Democracy

Randi Weingarten, author of the book “Why Fascists Fear Teachers,” joins the Lifelong Kindergarten podcast to discuss how teachers and schools must help students prepare for active participation in a pluralistic, democratic society. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mitchresnick.substack.com [https://mitchresnick.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Lizette Valles: Microschools

Want to learn more about microschools? These intentionally small schools serve as experimental testbeds for new approaches to education and learning. In this episode, I talk with Lizette Valles, who started a microschool in Los Angeles, and then started the California Microschool Collective to connect and share ideas with founders of other microschools. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mitchresnick.substack.com [https://mitchresnick.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Jaleesa Trapp: Leveraging Lived Experience

Too often, young people from marginalized communities are viewed in terms of their deficiencies instead of their strengths. Jaleesa Trapp discusses how young people can leverage their often-overlooked skills, creativity, and lived experience to create new opportunities for themselves and their communities. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mitchresnick.substack.com [https://mitchresnick.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Peter Gray: The Decline of Play and the Rise of Teen Anxiety

Fueled by the book The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt, many people blame mobile phones and social media for the rise in teen anxiety. But Peter Gray, a leading authority on the role of play in children’s lives, has a different explanation. His research shows that reduced opportunities for self-directed play and rising pressures at school are the most important factors underlying the increase in anxiety and other mental-health issues among teens. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mitchresnick.substack.com [https://mitchresnick.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]