On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, David Griffith talks with Checker Finn about why we should still teach writing in the age of ChatGPT, a new AI-powered bot that can mimic human prose. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber tells us about the challenges of implementing academic Covid recovery interventions.

Recommended content:ChatGPT, the writing bot discussed in this episode“Why learn to write?” —Checker Finn“Artificial intelligence is not the end of high-school English” —Robert Pondiscio “Did a fourth grader write this? or the new chatbot?” —New York TimesThe study that Amber reviewed on the Research Minute: Maria V. Carbonari et al., The Challenges of Implementing Academic COVID Recovery Interventions: Evidence from the Road to Recovery Project, CALDER Working Paper (December 2022)
Feedback Welcome: Have ideas for improving our podcast? Send them to our producer Nathaniel Grossman at ngrossman@fordhaminstitute.org.

Education Gadfly Show #851: The case for teaching writing in the age of ChatGPT, with Checker Finn

For more than 15 years, the Fordham Institute has been hosting a weekly podcast, The Education Gadfly Show. Each week, you’ll get lively, entertaining discussions of recent education news, usually featuring Fordham’s Mike Petrilli and David Griffith. Then the wise Amber Northern will recap a recent research study. For questions or comments on the podcast, contact its producer, Pedro Enamorado, at penamorad@fordhaminstitute.org.

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On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Robert Pondiscio, a senior fellow at Fordham and the American Enterprise Institute, joins Mike and David to discuss the state of curricular reform. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber examines new data from the Institute of Education Sciences’ Condition of Education Report. Recommended content: “40 years after ‘A nation at risk,’ could curriculum reform finally move the needle on academic improvement?” —Robert Pondiscio, The 74“The ‘case for curriculum’ is about reducing teachers’ workload” —Robert Pondiscio, Fordham InstituteVéronique Irwin et. al., “Report on the Condition of Education 2023,” National Center for Education Statistics (August 2023).Feedback Welcome: Have ideas for improving our podcast? Send them to Daniel Buck at dbuck@fordhaminstitute.org.

#916: The case for curriculum reform, with Robert Pondiscio

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Derrell Bradford, the president of 50CAN, joins Mike and David to discuss a new coalition called No More Lines that seeks to end residency requirements for public schools. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber reports on a new study examining whether ESSER funding influenced spending on school personnel. Recommended content: “Coalition Challenges Residency Requirements for Public Schools” —Jo Napolitano, The 74“America’s private public schools” —Michael Petrilli and Janie Scull, Fordham InstituteDan Goldhaber, Grace Falken, and Roddy Theobald, “ESSER funding and school system jobs: Evidence from job posting data,” CALDER (April 2024). Feedback Welcome: Have ideas for improving our podcast? Send them to Daniel Buck at dbuck@fordhaminstitute.org.

#915: Eliminating school boundaries, with Derrell Bradford

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Rick Hess, the director of education policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute, joins Mike and David to discuss his new book, Getting Education Right. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber reports on a new study examining how civics educators taught about and framed the 2020 election. Recommended content: "Getting education right: A conservative vision for improving early childhood, K–12, and college” —Frederick Hess and Michael McShane“Four states are leading the charge for conservative education reform” —Frederick Hess and Michael McShane, Fordham InstitutePaul Fitchett, Brett Levy, & Jeremy Stoddard, “How and Why Teachers Taught About the 2020 U.S. Election: An Analysis of Survey Responses From Twelve States,” American Educational Research Association (March 2024).Feedback Welcome: Have ideas for improving our podcast? Send them to Daniel Buck at dbuck@fordhaminstitute.org.

#914: A comprehensive vision for conservative education reform, with Rick Hess

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Lorén Cox, the policy director for the Education and Society program at the Aspen Institute, and Karen Nussle, the founder and CEO of Ripple Communications, join Mike and David to discuss how cross-partisanship—both sides agreeing on the same conclusion for disparate reasons—benefits education. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber reports on a new study examining how college achievement and retention is affected by “corequisite” remedial classes—meaning those taken at the same time as, not before, the course requiring the remediation. Recommended content: “Crossing the partisan divide in education policy” — Lorén Cox and Karen Nussle, Aspen Institute“A bridge back to bipartisan education reform” —Michael Petrilli, Fordham InstituteFlorence Xiaotao Ran and Hojung Lee, “Does corequisite remediation work for everyone? An exploration of heterogeneous effects and mechanisms,” Annenberg Institute at Brown University (March 2024).Feedback Welcome: Have ideas for improving our podcast? Send them to Daniel Buck at dbuck@fordhaminstitute.org. 

#913: Advancing cross-partisan education policies, with Lorén Cox and Karen Nussle

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Adam Kho, an assistant professor at the Rossier School of Education, and Alex Quigley, the executive director of the Durham Charter School, join Mike and David to discuss whether charter authorizers can determine the quality of prospective charter schools. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber reports on a new study examining the effects of including parental preferences in algorithms that assign students to schools in New York City. Recommended content: “Do authorizer evaluations predict the success of new charter schools?” —Adam Kho, Shelby Leigh Smith, and Douglas Lee Lauen, Fordham Institute“Three signs that a proposed charter school is at risk of failing” —Anna Nicotera & David Stuit, Fordham InstituteRebecca J. Shmoys, Sierra G. McCormick, and Douglas D. Ready, “Constrained Agency and the Architecture of Educational Choice: Evidence from New York City,” Annenberg Institute at Brown University (March 2024).Feedback Welcome: Have ideas for improving our podcast? Send them to Daniel Buck at dbuck@fordhaminstitute.org.

Education Gadfly Show #851: The case for teaching writing in the age of ChatGPT, with Checker Finn

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