reeducated

Goutham Yegappan

Conversations reimagining, rethinking, and reinventing modern education.

  1. 1D AGO

    Why Good Education Policy Is So Hard | Nancy Kendall | Professor of Educational Policy Studies at the University of Wisconsin–Madison | Season 12 Episode 25 | #200

    In this episode, I sit down with Nancy Kendall to explore why education policy so often fails to produce the outcomes its designers intend. We examine how reforms that appear rational and evidence-based can unravel when they meet political realities, local contexts, and competing interests. Nancy brings a global perspective to the conversation, drawing from her work in international education policy and development to show how large-scale reform efforts are shaped as much by ideology and power as by research. We discuss how international organizations, governments, and advocacy groups construct narratives about what counts as educational success. Nancy challenges the assumption that policy is neutral, arguing that every reform reflects particular values about knowledge, citizenship, and economic development. A key thread in our discussion is the tension between global reform agendas and the lived realities of schools and communities. What stood out to me most is the reminder that policy is not simply about technical solutions. It is about negotiation, compromise, and political strategy. If we want better education systems, we must grapple with the forces that shape reform long before it reaches the classroom. Chapters: 00:00 – Introduction 02:12 – Path into Education Policy and International Research 08:45 – How Global Education Agendas Are Formed 15:30 – The Role of Ideology in Policy Design 22:18 – When Reform Leaves the Policy Paper 29:40 – Power, Funding, and Political Incentives 37:05 – International Development and Local Realities 44:22 – Standardization, Accountability, and Their Limits 52:10 – Unintended Consequences of Well-Meaning Reform 59:48 – Whose Knowledge Counts in Policy Decisions 01:06:30 – Rethinking Evidence and Implementation 01:12:40 – What Sustainable Education Reform Requires

    1h 18m

  2. 2D AGO

    Why Reading Reform Keeps Failing | Michael Kamil | Literacy Researcher and Professor Emeritus of Education at Stanford University | Season 12 Episode 24 | #199

    In this episode, I sit down with Michael Kamil to unpack one of the most debated topics in education today: the science of reading. Rather than treating literacy reform as a slogan, we explore what decades of research actually say about how children learn to read and why translating research into classroom practice remains so difficult. Michael reflects on his work in large-scale literacy studies and national panels, offering a grounded perspective on how evidence is generated, interpreted, and sometimes oversimplified in public discourse. We discuss the history of the reading wars, the tension between phonics and broader comprehension instruction, and the political forces that shape curriculum mandates. Michael emphasizes that research rarely produces simple silver bullets. Instead, it offers nuanced findings that require professional judgment, context awareness, and sustained implementation. A recurring theme in our conversation is the gap between what researchers know and what systems are prepared to support. What stayed with me most is the idea that evidence alone does not change schools. Change depends on incentives, teacher preparation, and long-term alignment between research and policy. If we want literacy reform to succeed, we need more than mandates. We need systems that respect both science and the complexity of teaching. Chapters: 00:00 – Introduction 01:48 – Entering Literacy Research 06:22 – The Origins of the Reading Wars 12:05 – What the Research Actually Shows 18:44 – Phonics, Comprehension, and Balance 25:10 – National Panels and Policy Influence 32:36 – Why Research Gets Simplified 39:14 – Teacher Preparation and Implementation 45:50 – Evidence vs. Mandates 52:03 – What Sustainable Literacy Reform Requires 58:17 – Looking Ahead: The Future of Reading Instruction 01:01:40 – Closing Reflections

    1h 7m

  3. 3D AGO

    The Hidden Architecture of School Reform | Michael Kirst | Professor Emeritus of Education and Public Policy at Stanford University | Season 12 Episode 23 | #198

    In this episode, I sit down with Michael Kirst to unpack the machinery behind public education reform. While many conversations focus on classrooms, curriculum, or teachers, Michael pulls back the curtain to show how governance structures, political incentives, and institutional design quietly shape what is possible inside schools. We discuss why reform efforts often look promising on paper but falter in implementation, and how fragmented authority across states, districts, and higher education systems creates misalignment that students ultimately pay for. Michael shares insights from decades of experience working at the intersection of policy and practice, including his time advising governors and shaping statewide reforms. We examine the evolution of standards-based reform, the role of school boards, and why policy continuity is rare in an environment driven by election cycles. A central theme that emerges is the difficulty of sustaining long-term change in systems that are politically vulnerable and structurally complex. What I found most compelling is the reminder that education reform is not just about ideas, but about incentives, power, and governance. If we want better schools, we must understand the architecture that governs them. This conversation pushes us to think less about isolated interventions and more about systemic alignment across K–12 and higher education. Chapters: 00:00 – Introduction 02:05 – Entering the World of Education Policy 07:40 – Governance and the Structure of Public Education 13:12 – The Rise of Standards-Based Reform 19:50 – Why Implementation Is So Difficult 26:30 – Political Cycles and Policy Instability 33:15 – Aligning K–12 and Higher Education 39:42 – The Role of State Boards and Governors 45:18 – Accountability and Its Limits 52:06 – Lessons from Decades of Reform 58:21 – The Future of Education Policy 01:02:10 – Closing Reflections

    1h 6m

  4. 5D AGO

    Literacy Beyond the Classroom | Gerald Campano | Professor of Education at the University of Pennsylvania | Season 12 Episode 22 | #197

    In this episode, I sit down with Gerald Campano to explore a deceptively simple question: what is literacy actually for? We move beyond the idea of reading and writing as neutral technical skills and examine how literacy is deeply tied to identity, power, culture, and justice. Gerald challenges the assumption that literacy is merely about decoding text. Instead, he frames it as a social and political practice that shapes who is heard, who is valued, and who gets to participate fully in civic life. We discuss how schools often narrow literacy into standardized measures that flatten students’ cultural and linguistic resources. Gerald argues that students bring rich knowledge from their homes and communities, and that effective literacy education must honor those experiences rather than erase them. He shares examples of community-based and participatory approaches to teaching that reposition students as knowledge producers rather than passive recipients. What stayed with me most is the idea that literacy is about reading the world as much as reading the word. When students learn to critically interpret their surroundings, their histories, and the systems that shape their lives, education becomes humanizing rather than sorting. This conversation pushes us to reconsider what counts as success in literacy education and who ultimately benefits from how we define it. Chapters : 00:00 – Introduction 02:14 – What Is Literacy, Really? 07:32 – Literacy as Social and Political Practice 12:05 – Schools, Standardization, and Narrow Definitions 18:47 – Students as Knowledge Producers 24:10 – Community-Based Literacy 30:36 – Identity, Culture, and Language 37:22 – Reading the World 43:15 – Justice and Educational Equity 49:40 – Rethinking Success in Literacy Education

    59 min

  5. FEB 19

    The 29 Decisions of a Great Thinker | Carl Wieman | Nobel Prize–Winning Physicist and Science Education Researcher | Season 12 Episode 21 | #196

    In this episode, I sit down with Nobel Prize–winning physicist turned education reformer Carl Wieman to explore one fundamental question: what does it actually mean to think like a scientist? We begin with his origin story at MIT, where he discovered that real physics happened not in the classroom, but in the research lab. That experience shaped his entire career. What struck me most was his observation that students who excel in coursework often struggle to “do physics” in authentic contexts. That puzzle led him to treat learning itself as a scientific problem. Carl shares his research identifying 29 core decisions that experts across science and engineering consistently make when solving real problems. These decisions, which range from evaluating evidence to reflecting on assumptions, appear across disciplines. This reframes science not as memorizing equations, but as developing judgment under uncertainty. We discuss deliberate practice, why music teachers and athletic coaches often train expertise better than traditional instructors, and how active learning can replace passive lectures. His argument is clear: education should cultivate ways of thinking, not just the accumulation of facts. We also explore science as a social enterprise. Carl argues that what counts as “good science” is ultimately defined by communities of experts, and that public trust depends on understanding science as a process for establishing knowledge, not just a set of conclusions. If the future of science education shifts from memorization toward reflection, problem-solving, and structured decision-making, we might not only produce better scientists but better thinkers across every field. Chapters 00:00 – Introduction 01:23 – Finding Physics in the Research Lab 03:42 – Learning the Instructor vs. Learning the Subject 07:16 – Riding the Wave of Laser Technology 12:00 – Why Education Became the Real Question 16:04 – Memorization vs. Thinking Like a Scientist 18:33 – The 29 Decisions of Expert Problem Solvers 26:27 – Reflection and Thinking About Thinking 29:28 – Deliberate Practice and the Nature of Expertise 37:00 – Science as a Social Enterprise 42:49 – Trust, Experts, and Public Perception 48:04 – Depth Over Breadth in Science Education 50:00 – Resistance to Change in Teaching Culture 54:15 – The Social Contract of Science 58:37 – The Future of Science Education

    1 hr

  6. FEB 17

    Meaning Is Made, Not Given | Anne Pomerantz | Professor of Practice in Educational Linguistics at the University of Pennsylvania | Season 12 Episode 20 | #195

    In this conversation, I sit down with Anne Pomerantz, Professor of Practice in Educational Linguistics at the University of Pennsylvania, to rethink what language actually is. We begin with her multilingual upbringing and how growing up in a household filled with Yiddish, Spanish, Russian, Arabic, and English shaped her curiosity about how language works. From there, we move into a powerful critique of how language is typically taught in schools. Instead of treating language as something alive and constantly evolving, we often reduce it to prescriptive rules, right and wrong answers, and hierarchies that privilege certain forms of speech over others. We explore how language becomes a regulating force in society, shaping identity and reinforcing power structures. Why is pronunciation so emotionally loaded? Why do we assume some forms of speech are “better” than others? And what happens when we shift from a prescriptive mindset to one rooted in noticing, inquiry, and reflection? Anne shares how collaborative meaning-making works in real time, how conversations synchronize our bodies and minds, and how communication is always multimodal, involving gesture, tone, rhythm, and technology alongside words. The episode ultimately turns toward uncertainty. What would education look like if we created spaces not for mastery of the right answer, but for curiosity and reflection? Anne argues that one of the most powerful things we can teach students is how to notice language in the world and ask deeper questions about it. Meaning is never fixed. It is constructed, revised, and reshaped through interaction. And when we learn to see language that way, we begin to live more attentively, more richly, and with greater openness to difference. Chapters: 00:00 – Introduction and Multilingual Origins03:00 – From Classics to Applied Linguistics07:00 – Prescriptive vs Descriptive Views of Language12:00 – Swearing, Play, and Inquiry as Gateways to Language16:00 – Language, Hierarchy, and Social Power20:00 – Multimodality: Gesture, Voice, and Technology24:00 – Zoom, Synchrony, and the Physics of Conversation30:00 – What Makes a Good Conversation?36:00 – Classroom Hierarchy and Inquiry Spaces41:00 – Living with Uncertainty in Education45:00 – Pronunciation, Identity, and Emotional Stakes50:00 – Meaning as Emergent and Iterative54:00 – Noticing Language in the Wild

    1h 3m

  7. FEB 16

    The Myth of Progress and the Power of Uncertainty | Caroline Winterer | Courtesy Professor at Stanford University | Season 12 Episode 19 | #194

    In this conversation, I sit down with Caroline Winterer, a historian of early America and the history of ideas at Stanford University, to rethink what history actually is. We begin with a simple but profound shift: history is not something that lives outside of us in textbooks. It lives within us. The past flows through our cognition, shaping how we see time, progress, identity, and even ourselves. We talk about how historians construct narratives, why events are never self-evident, and how every historical frame is an interpretive lens rather than a neutral structure. From there, we explore the idea of progress. Caroline explains how progress itself is an invention of the Enlightenment, a relatively recent way of organizing time that differs from earlier decline narratives or cyclical views of history. We wrestle with whether humanity is truly moving forward, whether history repeats itself, and whether there are any real “laws” of history at all. What emerges is a powerful idea: the structures we place on the past deeply shape how we imagine the future. The conversation ultimately turns inward. We reflect on uncertainty, on the discomfort of not knowing where things are going, and on how historical thinking can actually expand rather than shrink our imagination. Instead of treating the past as a treasure chest of fixed answers, Caroline invites us to see it as a dark cave we explore together with small flashlights. History becomes not a memorization of facts, but a creative, collaborative act of meaning-making. In a world that craves certainty, this episode is an invitation to sit with uncertainty and let it deepen our understanding of ourselves and our place in time. Chapters:00:00 – Introduction and Falling in Love with History04:00 – What Is History and Why Study It?09:00 – Math, Artifacts, and the History of Everything13:00 – Can We Ever Truly Understand the Past?16:00 – Enlightenment, Romanticism, and Naming Time Periods22:00 – Time Zones, Calendars, and the Human Construction of Reality27:00 – The Invention of Progress31:00 – Are There Laws of History?36:00 – Events, Narratives, and Historical Truth41:00 – Teaching History as Creative Exploration45:00 – Does History Repeat Itself?49:00 – Imagination, Politics, and Framing the Past53:00 – Uncertainty, Meaning, and Living Without a Script

    58 min

  8. FEB 13

    The Ecosystem of Education: Inside the System That Shapes Schools | Andrea M. Kane | Professor of Practice in Educational Leadership at the University of Pennsylvania | Season 12 Episode 18 | #193

    In this episode, I sit down with Andrea Kane, a longtime educator and district leader who has worked at nearly every level of K–12 education, from substitute teacher to superintendent and now professor of practice at the University of Pennsylvania. We trace her journey from banking into elementary classrooms, and then into school and district leadership. Along the way, we unpack what actually changes when your perspective shifts from serving one group of students to overseeing entire ecosystems of schools. She explains what principals really do, how curriculum, instruction, and assessment form an interconnected loop, and what it means to lead within a system that must balance autonomy with accountability. We also explore the tension between philosophical ideas about the purpose of education and the concrete realities of standards, testing, and evaluation. What does it mean to teach “to the test,” and is that always a bad thing? Where do autonomy and creativity fit inside state-mandated standards? We talk about culturally responsive teaching, district-wide strategy, and the challenge of scaling good ideas across 125 schools with very different communities and needs. Andrea reflects on how control in leadership is often an illusion, and how effective systems leave room for teacher innovation while still holding clear expectations for student outcomes. Finally, we discuss the gap between theory and practice. What can practitioners learn from research, and what do academics often misunderstand about implementation? Andrea shares why not every research-backed idea works in every community, and why discernment is one of the most important skills an educational leader can develop. This conversation moves beyond abstract debates about education and into the real complexities of building, sustaining, and improving schools at scale. 00:00 – Introduction and Career Origins03:00 – From Banking to the Classroom06:00 – Moving from Teacher to School Leadership09:00 – The Role of a Principal: Instructional Leadership and Complexity14:00 – Balancing Academic Benchmarks with Human Development19:00 – Understanding Curriculum, Standards, and “Teaching to the Test”25:00 – Autonomy in Schools and Teacher Innovation29:00 – District-Level Leadership and System-Wide Strategy33:00 – Common Core, Change Management, and Community Communication36:00 – The Purpose of Education: Private Good, Public Good, or Stratification41:00 – Standards, Values, and Where Interpretation Enters46:00 – Autonomy, Control, and the Limits of Quantification52:00 – Leadership, Culture, and Culturally Responsive Practice57:00 – Theory vs Practice: What Academia and Schools Can Learn from Each Other1:01:00 – Scaling Ideas and the Realities of Implementation

    1h 2m
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About

Conversations reimagining, rethinking, and reinventing modern education.

Information

  • Creator
    Goutham Yegappan
  • Years Active
    2022 - 2026
  • Episodes
    200
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Goutham Yegappan
  • Show Website
    reeducated