Nick Covington and Kate McAllister on Restoring Humanity to Education

What does it mean to restore humanity to education?

In this rich and wide-ranging three-way conversation, James is joined by Kate McAllister – co-founder of The Human Hive and lead educator at The Hive in the Dominican Republic – and Nick Covington, co-founder of the Human Restoration Project in the US.

Together, we explore:

The dehumanising effects of traditional schooling models

What human-centred education looks like in practice – both inside and outside the mainstream

Self-regulation, executive function and building trust with students

The role of flow in learning, and why it's missing from most education policy discussions

The Third Coast Learning Collaborative – a US-wide, government-funded project using project-based learning, portfolio assessment, and student-led exhibition

The power of authentic audience and interdisciplinary learning

How progressive educators can embrace data to strengthen their case for change

The importance of courageous school leaders and communities of practice

We also talk about Ozzy Osbourne's funeral procession, mangled chicken coops, flow states, poetry circles, grant funding, and catapults launching frisbees across middle school campuses.

Education doesn’t have to be this way. Across the world, a quiet revolution is taking place – one built on trust, flow, curiosity and care. This episode offers a glimpse of what’s possible when we restore humanity to learning.

LINKS

Follow Nick - https://www.linkedin.com/in/nick-covington/

Follow Kate - https://www.linkedin.com/in/misskatemcallister/

Follow James - https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-mannion/

Human Restoration Project - https://www.humanrestorationproject.org/

The Hive – Dominican Republic - https://www.thehiveadventure.com/

The Third Coast Learning Collaborative - https://www.thirdcoastlearning.org/

Ron Berger on 20 years of 'An ethic of excellence' - and ending the trad-prog debate! - https://www.rethinking-ed.org/ron-berger

Gallup Student Poll data on engagement, hope and belonging: https://msnpro1.gallup.com/report-generator/GSP/1.3/En-US?districtId=229403046&schoolId=229403048&cohortId=231774178

Outro track: ‘How it is and how it should be’ by Grit Control: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1ud69RIV1eOV9poMR7AORI

DON'T BE A STRANGER

The Rethinking Education podcast is brought to you by Crown House Publishing. It is hosted by Dr James Mannion and David Cameron, and produced by Sophie Dean. Drop us a line at https://www.rethinking-ed.org/contact.

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