Future Learning Design Podcast Tim Logan

With the recent release of her book 'Every Child Can: Riverside School's Design-Led Approach to Empower Children', the wonderful Kiran Bir Sethi is joining us again on the podcast this week.

Kiran Bir Sethi⁠ is a designer who became a teacher, a principal who grew into an education reformer and subsequently morphed into a social entrepreneur. A trained graphic designer from the National Institute of Design, she comfortably uses the language of design – iteration, prototype, design specs – to develop not only curriculum innovation, but also community-based social programmes.

Kiran founded the award winning ⁠Riverside School⁠ in Ahmedabad, India, in 2001. Riverside, is viewed as a laboratory to prototype design processes that uses a systems approach to build a culture of empowerment, graduating young citizen leaders with an ‘I CAN Mindset’ – using their agency for the greater good. Riverside won the T4 Education 'World's Best School Prize' for innovation in 2023: https://t4.education/worlds-best-school-prizes/the-five-prizes/innovation/.

In 2009, Kiran launched ⁠Design for Change⁠ which uses a simple 4 step design framework – FIDS (Feel, Imagine, Do, Share) to cultivate the I CAN mind-set in all children. Today, DFC is the world's largest movement of change - of and by children, and is in 60+ countries—impacting over 2.2 million children and 65,000 Teachers.

Kiran is a judge for the prestigious YIDAN Prize and a Visiting Global Fellow at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. In 2019, she was awarded the Earth Prize in Luino, Italy, the Lexus Design Award for 2019, in Pune, India, and DFC has been recognised man times as one of the 100 most innovative educational programmes in the world by HundrED.org.

Social Links

Instagram: @kiranbirsethi - https://www.instagram.com/kiranbirsethi/

Twitter: ⁠@kiranbirsethi⁠ - https://twitter.com/kiranbirsethi

LinkedIn: ⁠@kiranbirsethi - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kiranbirsethi/

This episode will hopefully give you a sense of where the most promising organisations in the world who are innovating around assessment are at, and what the prospects are looking forward for significant assessment change.

You can also check out Episode #72 with Sandra Milligan.

I am joined by Prof. Sandra Milligan from Melbourne Metrics, Bill Lucas from Rethinking Assessment and Mike Flanagan and Patricia Russell from Mastery Transcript Consortium.



Melbourne Metrics Website: https://education.unimelb.edu.au/melbourne-assessment New Metrics Partner Schools: https://education.unimelb.edu.au/melbourne-assessment/our-research/new-metrics#aboutThe International Big Picture Learning Credential: https://www.bigpicture.org.au/what-international-big-picture-learning-credential Sandra's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sandra-milligan-223b384a?miniProfileUrn=urn%3Ali%3Afs_miniProfile%3AACoAAAp9jjsB5xVeP0Ygvbn2XC33I-bcL0ACsCY&lipi=urn%3Ali%3Apage%3Ad_flagship3_search_srp_all%3BOaCWQPVdS%2BKv0N3bE64NYw%3D%3D Melbourne Metrics on X: https://twitter.com/MelbMetrics 



Rethinking Assessment

Website: https://rethinkingassessment.com/

Rethinking Assessment in Education - The Case for Change: https://rethinkingassessment.com/assessment-around-the-world/

Blueprint for Change: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1NoyUc3P-wFi_LCJS0SlzzUrQxkLC2WsG/view?usp=sharing



Mastery Transcript Consortium (MTC)

Website: https://mastery.org/

ETS and Mastery Transcript Consortium (MTC) Join Forces to Scale Skills Transcript: https://www.ets.org/news/press-releases/ets-mastery-transcript-consortium-mtc-join-forces-scale-skills-transcript.html

MTC on X: https://twitter.com/MastTranscript

MTC on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/masterytranscript/

Kevin Simpson is one of those rare special people who thrive on connecting others And bringing people together around shared causes and visions of a different kind of education system free from injustice and discrimination.

Kevin is founder of the Association of International Educators and Leaders of Color (⁠https://aieloc.org/), and through AIELOC, one initiating partners of the International School Anti-Discrimination Taskforce (https://isadtf.org/). Alongside ECIS, Ecolint and IB, their collective aim is to "make schools truly diverse, inclusive, safe, equitable and welcoming for all students, staff and families".

Kevin owns and operates KDSL Global (http://kdslglobal.com/), an international education consulting company which launched in 2016 in the US and the UAE. He and his team have served thousands of schools, educators, and leaders worldwide in over 60 countries. He is also the Co-Founder of the UAE Learning Network, leads the ASCD Connected Community for the GCC region, and is Co-Founder of Resourceya. 

Kevin Simpson is a native of Flint, Michigan and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Education and a Master of Education degree in Curriculum and Teaching from Michigan State University (USA).

As we discuss in the podcast, Shwetangna Chakrabarty wrote a great piece about the 'Leadership for Radical Dreaming' at the AIELOC conference: https://www.tieonline.com/article/3674/radical-dreaming-aieloc-conference 

Social Links

LinkedIn: @kevin-simpson-kdslglobal - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-simpson-kdslglobal/

Instagram: @kdslglobal - https://www.instagram.com/kdslglobal/

X: @GlobalKdsl - https://twitter.com/GlobalKdsl

All the talk about systems change in education is great, and a topic we cover lots on the podcast. But the current reality for many educators might feel very removed from such visions. And yet, when you get into the details of what really deep and energised inquiry looks like with curious and questioning young people in classrooms, the two worlds feel a lot closer. And there are few people that know the specifics of what great inquiry-based learning looks like in theory and practice better than Trevor Mackenzie, so it was fantastic to be able to sit down with him this week to chat about it.

We talk about teacher dispositions, question routines, provocations, levels of structure, and also the way that an inquiry stance can show up in all cultures in different ways as humility and curiosity.

Trevor MacKenzie (https://www.trevormackenzie.com/who-i-am) is an experienced teacher, author, keynote speaker and inquiry consultant who has worked in schools throughout Australia, Asia, North America, South Africa and Europe. Trevor’s passion is  supporting schools in implementing inquiry-based learning practices. He is a highly regarded speaker known for his heartfelt storytelling, kind demeanour, and student-first philosophy.  

Trevor’s graduate research focused on identifying and removing the barriers to implementing inquiry-based learning in the K-12  setting. He has three publications: Dive into Inquiry, Inquiry Mindset Elementary Edition, and Inquiry Mindset Assessment Edition all published by Elevate Books Edu. He has vast experience supporting schools across several years in implementation strategies in public schools, international schools, and International Baccalaureate programmes (PYP/MYP/DP).

As a classroom teacher in Victoria, BC, Canada, Trevor brings a unique lens to authorship, consultancy, keynoting, and research. He is in his own classroom working with scholars in inquiry and he visits schools around the world supporting them in their inquiry implementation. This provides rich context and experience, a holistic approach to the work, and authentic and refined resources to be shared.

Trevor is the best selling author of three publications: author of Inquiry Mindset Assessment Edition (2021), co-author of Inquiry Mindset Elementary Edition (2018), and the author of Dive into Inquiry (2016) all published by Elevate Books Edu.

Trevor's new book Inquiry Mindset Questions Edition will be published later this year: https://www.trevormackenzie.com/posts/2024/4/14/announcing-inquiry-mindset-questions-edition

Social Links

LinkedIn: @trevor-mackenzie - https://www.linkedin.com/in/trevor-mackenzie-37103b261/

Instagram: @trev_mackenzie - https://www.instagram.com/trev_mackenzie/

X: @trev_mackenzie - https://twitter.com/trev_mackenzie

Over the last decade, there has been a surge of interest in the evidence and research-backing that support choices that educators and leaders are making in schools. In an effort to prove “what works” they reach for the Cognitive and so-called learning sciences. Personally, I’ve always felt a bit uncomfortable about how narrow these discussions are, focusing only on memory, cognitive load, retrieval and other terms that will be familiar to you if you’ve been involved in these discussions. As you’ll hear in this conversation with Dr Laura Desirèe Di Paolo, our brains are not simply memory machines! In fact, our mind-brain-bodies are incredible production machines performing active inference constantly in order to make sense of and act in the world

Dr Laura Desirèe Di Paolo is a researcher, Philosopher of Cognitive Science at the University of Sussex, UK and in the Moritz-Stern-Institut at the University of Göttingen, Germany. Her research is focused on the   material world in education, development, and evolution and she is currently working in Andy Clark’s team on XScape. Material Minds: Exploring the Interactions between Predictive Brains, Cultural Artifacts, and Embodied Visual Search - https://www.sussex.ac.uk/research/centres/media-arts-humanities-institute/research/project/science/xscape 

Doctor of Philosophy, Philosophy of Life and Cognitive Sciences, “Sapienza” - University of Rome (April, 14th 2014), cum Laude: “Culture Under Construction. The Role of Learning in Reading Others’ Mind and  Building a Cultural Niche”, supervisors: Prof. Elena Gagliasso, Prof. Roberto Cordeschi, Prof. Enrico Alleva; Commettee: Prof. Ines Crispini, Prof. Massimo Dell’Utri, Prof. Francesco Ferretti. (https://sussex.academia.edu/LauraDesir%C3%A9eDiPaolo/CurriculumVitae)

She has an academic background in social learning, the evolution of culture in humans and animals and comparative psychology. She is the co-editor of the book, Evolution of Primate Social Cognition. Most recently, and the thing that brought Laura’s brilliant work to my attention was her paper published in January, ‘Active Inference Goes to School: The Importance of Active Learning in the Age of Large Language Models’. January 2024 by Laura Desirèe Di Paolo, Avel Guénin--Carlut, Axel Constant and Andy Clark - https://www.researchgate.net/publication/377634490_Active_Inference_Goes_to_School_The_Importance_of_Active_Learning_in_the_Age_of_Large_Language_Models 

Other useful resources on Active Inference:

Andy Clark's book 'The Experience Machine: How Our Minds Predict and Shape Reality' - https://www.amazon.fr/Experience-Machine-Minds-Predict-Reality/dp/B0BFGK2KX4

Anil Seth's 2017 TED Talk 'Your brain hallucinates your conscious reality' - https://www.ted.com/talks/anil_seth_your_brain_hallucinates_your_conscious_reality?language=en

And if you're ready for something stronger, check out Karl Friston's co-authored book 'Active Inference: The Free Energy Principle in Mind, Brain, and Behavior' - https://mitpress.mit.edu/9780262045353/active-inference/

Subscribe to the Active Inference Institute channel on Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/@ActiveInference/featured

Social Links

Instagram: @lauraddp - https://www.instagram.com/lauraddp/ 

LinkedIn: @lauradesireedipaolo - https://www.linkedin.com/in/lauradesireedipaolo/

X: @LauraDesiree_DP - https://twitter.com/LauraDesiree_DP 

Eric Dozier (https://www.ericdozier.com/) is not only an incredible musician and, as he calls himself, itinerant blues preacher, but also a cultural activist and anti-racism educator. 

We talk about the power of music as a social force that brings people together to learn, builds community and holds space for transformation, in particular in Eric’s critical work challenging white supremacy culture and racial injustice.

Eric is former musical director for the World Famous Harlem Gospel Choir and the award winning Children’s Theatre Company of NYC, co-founder and former National Director of Arts and Education for One Human Family Music Workshops, Inc., an organization devoted to eradicating discrimination by ‘Uniting the World.. One Song at a Time"; and one-half of the duo Moanin' Sons, which develops a creative context, through music, to address racial inequality. Through his insightful lyrical stylings, soulful melodies, and interactive workshops, he continues to dedicate his musical, spiritual, and intellectual talents to welding the hearts and minds of a divided humanity into one loving fellowship.

Eric is also the co-founder of the Oneness Lab with Homa Tavangar a previous guest on the podcast (https://www.onenesslab.com/). And the co-composer of ‘Henry Box Brown - A Musical' a music about the true story of Henry Box Brown, an 1850’s enslaved Virginia man who shipped himself to freedom in a box with the help of African American and white abolitionists. Hopefully soon to be opening on Broadway!: https://www.henryboxbrownthemusical.com/ In this episode you can hear Eric perform his stunning song 'Cotton and the Cross' that he wrote, with Ketch Secor from Old Crow Medicine Show.



Social Links

Instagram: @ericdozier - https://www.instagram.com/ericdozier/

LinkedIn: @ericdozier - https://www.linkedin.com/in/ericdozier/