Rebel Educator®

Raheen Fatima is a 13-year-old stand-up comedian, actress, social entrepreneur, Sustainable Development Goals Youth Ambassador and so much more. She is a professional humanitarian interviewer and during the pandemic she has conducted over 500 interviews and sessions to foster global peace and achievements of SDGs.

When her brother was diagnosed with cancer in 2018, she realized that one is never too young or old to die. She embarked on her journey with a passion to empower people around her and bring peace to this world.

Join us for this encouraging and wide-ranging interview where we discuss Raheen’s experience interviewing hundreds of people, SDGs, socratic schools, the Kardashians, and His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

IN THIS EPISODE, WE COVER:

• Raheen’s experience interviewing hundreds of people and seeking a deeper connection
• What school has been like for Raheen and why she chose to leave her current school
• Why teenagers and younger generations are well equipped to assess online information.
• What it was like to meet and interview His Holiness the Dalai Lama

RESOURCES AND LINKS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

• Connect with Raheen on LinkedIn, Instagram, and Twitter
• Learn more about Rebel Educator, explore our professional development opportunities for educators and students, and check out our project library
• Visit us at UP Academy to learn more about our personalized and inclusive learning environment
• Connect with Tanya and UP Academy on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram and learn more about her journey here

MORE ABOUT THE REBEL EDUCATOR PODCAST:

In each episode of the Rebel Educator podcast, I deconstruct world-class educators, students, and thought leaders in education to extract the tactics, tools, and routines that you can use as teachers and parents. Join me as we discuss how to shift the classroom, the learning environment, the mindset, and the pedagogy, to resist tradition, reignite wonder, and re-imagine the future of education.

This podcast is dedicated to all of the educators who work thankless hours to make our next generation the best it can be.  It was designed to begin conversations on how we can redesign education for the future of work and the success of our students.  It is meant for teachers, students, administrators, home schoolers and anyone who interacts with and teaches youth.

Daniel Bauer is an unorthodox Ruckus Maker who has mentored thousands of school leaders through his Better Leaders Better Schools blog, books, podcasts, and powerful coaching experiences. 

Daniel’s book, Mastermind: Unlocking Talent Within Every School Leader, reimagines what professional development for school administrators looks like in order to meet the needs of all school leaders who currently feel isolated and overwhelmed.

Join us for this conversation about the struggles that school leaders are currently facing, the importance of mindfulness and changing perspectives, and how school leaders can work towards minimizing the socio-economic gaps that exist.

IN THIS EPISODE, WE COVER:

• Struggles that school leaders are currently grappling with
• Daniel’s vision for connecting school leaders
• Why mindfulness is so important in leadership
• How changing perspectives can help reinvent what’s possible in education
• What an ideal education looks like for Daniel
• How school leaders can work towards minimizing the socio-economic gap while teaching consciously within it’s current existence

RESOURCES AND LINKS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

• Connect with Daniel on LinkedIn and Twitter
• You can also reach Daniel at [email protected] or 312-788-7595
• Get Daniel’s book,  Mastermind: Unlocking Talent Within Every School Leader (use the code ‘RUCKUS’ for 20% off the cover price + free shipping!)
• Visit Better Leaders Better Schools to find Daniel’s podcasts, join a Mastermind, and get resources to build your leadership skills
• Learn more about Rebel Educator, explore our professional development opportunities for educators and students, and check out our project library
• Visit us at UP Academy to learn more about our personalized and inclusive learning environment
• Connect with Tanya and UP Academy on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram and learn more about her journey here

MORE ABOUT THE REBEL EDUCATOR PODCAST:

In each episode of the Rebel Educator podcast, I deconstruct world-class educators, students, and thought leaders in education to extract the tactics, tools, and routines that you can use as teachers and parents. Join me as we discuss how to shift the classroom, the learning environment, the mindset, and the pedagogy, to resist tradition, reignite wonder, and re-imagine the future of education.

This podcast is dedicated to all of the educators who work thankless hours to make our next generation the best it can be.  It was designed to begin conversations on how we can redesign education for the future of work and the success of our students.  It is meant for teachers, students, administrators, home schoolers and anyone who interacts with and teaches youth.

Dr. Jennifer Preschern, CCC-SLP is a USA born speech-language pathologist/learning disabilities teacher. She has spent most of her professional life working in diverse USA public school settings with students from ages 3-15 with various additional needs such as dyslexia, autism, ADHD, and speech/language difficulties.  While serving as a pre-school SLP for a school district outside of Chicago, she obtained grant funding to start the first-ever public school LENA program, which has been proven to be a successful method for increasing child language skills and preventing future academic problems.

7 years ago, Jennifer had the opportunity to move to Linz, Austria where she was hired at an International Baccalaureate school as an English teacher. Upon arrival, she was surprised to see that the school had no additional support teachers, making it difficult to include all students. This sparked Jennifer's interest in how or if other IB schools were including students with additional needs. As a result, Jennifer went back to school, obtaining a PhD in literacy from St. Johns University. Her dissertation analyzed International Baccalaureate Primary Years teachers perceptions of dyslexia.

Jennifer moved back to Austria where she now works at Johannes Kepler University, teaching English courses. Jennifer has a continued desire to advocate for access to education and currently holds several volunteer positions with global organizations.

In this episode we discuss the barriers that teachers and students face in providing an inclusive language learning environment, disagreements within language learning academia, and why we need more than just content to spark learner’s interest.

IN THIS EPISODE, WE COVER:

• Jennifer’s experience with the lack of actionable inclusivity for students with dyslexia
• The unfair criticism that teacher’s often face
• Major barriers in supporting students with dyslexia
• The battle between phonics and whole language learning
• How the LENA Program helping strengthen early language learning
• Why education should be more than learning content

RESOURCES AND LINKS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

• Connect with Jennifer on LinkedIn or send her an  email
• Read Jennifer’s dissertation  here
• Visit the Speech Language Literacy Lab  for free resources to support speech, language, and literacy development
• Check out jenniferpreschern.com for more information and links to free online courses about teaching all readers
• Visit Lena.org to learn more about the improving child outcomes through early talk
• Learn more about Rebel Educator, explore our professional development opportunities for educators and students, and check out our project library
• Visit us at UP Academy to learn more about our personalized and inclusive learning environment
• Connect with Tanya and UP Academy on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram and learn more about her journey here

MORE ABOUT THE REBEL EDUCATOR PODCAST:

In each episode of the Rebel Educator podcast, I deconstruct world-class educators, students, and thought leaders in education to extract the tactics, tools, and routines that you can use as teachers and parents. Join me as we discuss how to shift the classroom, the learning environment, the mindset, and the pedagogy, to resist tradition, reignite wonder, and re-imagine the future of education.

This podcast is dedicated to all of the educators who work thankless hours to make our next generation the best it can be.  It was designed to begin conversations on how we can redesign education for the future of work and the success of our students.  It is meant for teachers, students, administrators, home schoolers and anyone who interacts with and teaches youth.

SHOW NOTES & LINKS:

https://www.podpage.com/rebel-educator/episode33/

Brett Roer currently serves as Outlier.org’s High School Strategic Partnerships Lead after 16 years empowering high school students in Brooklyn, Queens, and The Bronx. His mission has been to equip high school students with the foundational academic skills needed to graduate from their best-fit colleges and feel both academically and financially supported along the way.

Brett has inspired students and families as a high school principal, college and career advisor, and teacher, always fiercely passionate in providing students access to high-quality education.

Join us for this wonderful discussion about creating pathways for all students to achieve future success without overburdening teachers.

IN THIS EPISODE, WE COVER:

• Brett’s work helping to provide a third pathway for students who were not being reached
• The disconnect between education and what is happening in classroom
• What educators need so that they can find and use the tools they need
• Systematizing accessible and equitable supports for students who need a more individualized pathway without overburdening educators
• Challenges to high-school graduation and what can be done to help more students reach that benchmark for future success
• How being aware of the strengths and struggles of others helps us to better support everyone

  
RESOURCES AND LINKS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:
 

• Connect with Brett on LinkedIn
• Visit outlier.org to learn more about their mission and classes offered
• Learn more about Rebel Educator, explore our professional development opportunities for educators and students, and check out our project library
• Visit us at UP Academy to learn more about our personalized and inclusive learning environment
• Connect with Tanya and UP Academy on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram and learn more about her journey here

MORE ABOUT THE REBEL EDUCATOR PODCAST:

In each episode of the Rebel Educator podcast, I deconstruct world-class educators, students, and thought leaders in education to extract the tactics, tools, and routines that you can use as teachers and parents. Join me as we discuss how to shift the classroom, the learning environment, the mindset, and the pedagogy, to resist tradition, reignite wonder, and re-imagine the future of education.

This podcast is dedicated to all of the educators who work thankless hours to make our next generation the best it can be.  It was designed to begin conversations on how we can redesign education for the future of work and the success of our students.  It is meant for teachers, students, administrators, home schoolers and anyone who interacts with and teaches youth.

SHOW NOTES & LINKS

https://www.podpage.com/rebel-educator/episode32

Kelly Smith is the founder and CEO of Prenda, an education company that helps parents and teachers operate world-class micro schools by partnering with regulated, state-credentialed educational institutions to engage small groups of students in mastery-focused, project-based learning.

Join us as we discuss Kelly’s journey to founding Prenda, the lengths students will go to in order to avoid learning in a traditional setting, the benefits and functions of microschools, and how the pandemic help to facilitate the exploration of alternative options to to the traditional school environment.

IN THIS EPISODE, WE COVER:

• How starting from a place of curiosity led Kelly to create environments that are optimized for learning
• The way schools incentivize us to avoid learning and what learners really need to be passionate about their learning
• Creating microschools at kitchen tables around the world
• Using the microschool model to support students within the traditional school model
• How the pandemic allowed families to explore alternative approaches to education

RESOURCES AND LINKS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

• Connect with Kelly and Prenda on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter
• Visit prenda.com to learn more about their mission
• Learn more about Rebel Educator, explore our professional development opportunities for educators and students, and check out our project library
• Visit us at UP Academy to learn more about our personalized and inclusive learning environment
• Connect with Tanya and UP Academy on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram and learn more about her journey here

MORE ABOUT THE REBEL EDUCATOR PODCAST:

In each episode of the Rebel Educator podcast, I deconstruct world-class educators, students, and thought leaders in education to extract the tactics, tools, and routines that you can use as teachers and parents. Join me as we discuss how to shift the classroom, the learning environment, the mindset, and the pedagogy, to resist tradition, reignite wonder, and re-imagine the future of education.

This podcast is dedicated to all of the educators who work thankless hours to make our next generation the best it can be.  It was designed to begin conversations on how we can redesign education for the future of work and the success of our students.  It is meant for teachers, students, administrators, home schoolers and anyone who interacts with and teaches youth.

SHOW NOTES & LINKS

https://www.podpage.com/rebel-educator/episode31/

Our guest this episode, Jenny Finn, is the co-founder of Springhouse Community School, a vitality-centered school located in rural Appalachia. Jenny, her students, and staff share with us what vitality centered education is and how this method brought to life one semester of algebra.   

In this episode, we cover:

• How the Springhouse Community School creates regenerative culture
• The 5 principles of vitality-centered education
• Why it can be very difficult to integrate math
• How we can re-humanize mathematics and deal with the shame that many have felt when learning math
• The meaning of algebra and how it relates to the real world
• Students’ perspective and thoughts on the algebra project at Springhouse
• How a defense of learning works and what it assesses
• What algebra can look like in the future in order to enhance the life-giving nature of math

SHOW NOTES: https://www.podpage.com/rebel-educator/30

Thom Markham is a Project Based Learning pioneer and founder of PBL Global. As a psychologist, author, speaker, educator, and President of PBL Global, an educational organization focused on innovation and transformation through promoting inquiry-based learning, Thom offers a set of unique services that can help schools and districts envision, design, and implement a successful, sustainable plan for educating 21st century young people.

In this episode, we cover:

• How  project-based learning helps learners build skills for the future
• PBL as a tool to bring the system of life and the system of academics together
• Social-emotional development being supported by project-based learning
• Can individualized learning happen with PBL
• The only way to truly to become a great PBL facilitator and teacher
• How project-based learning allow people to seamlessly enter the workforce with the skills that are necessary
• Thom’s global coalition of PBL educators and hopes for virtual learning

SHOW NOTES: https://www.podpage.com/rebel-educator/29

As a senior advisor in the Obama Administration, Michael Robbins led work for the U.S. Department of Education and the White House on community engagement and digital transformation in education. They have spent the last five years leading District of Learning, a technology-enabled ecosystem for anytime-anywhere learning in Washington, DC launched with the MacArthur Foundation and local partners. When the coronavirus pandemic began, Michael started building a global team of educators, social sector leaders, and technology experts to use everything we've learned to scale solutions to our education crisis and remake the future of learning. Michael and his co-founder, Cecily Darden Adams, have recently launched this new effort as Learning Pathmakers.

In this episode, we cover:

• The role of technology in creating partnerships and building the people-side of the learning ecosystem
• The 4 technologies that will define the way that we interact in school, work, and life
• 7 steps on the pathway to the future of school
• Moving towards the creation of a connected learning eco-verse
• Bridging the gaps between people on all sides of education

SHOW NOTES: https://www.podpage.com/rebel-educator/28

Kyle Wagner is a project-based learning coach and founder of Transform Educational Consulting Limited, helping forward thinking educators create socially, emotionally and globally aware citizens through project-based learning. He has worked with over 1,000 educators in schools across the globe to design and deliver transformative learning experiences for students.

In this episode, we cover:

• Kyle’s introduction to and journey with project-based learning
• Moving PBL from gifted classrooms into a full and inclusive curriculum
• When do project-based learning experiences succeed?
• Challenges with implementing PBL in classrooms
• How getting rid of standardized testing and combining subjects can facilitate a project-based environment
• Using portfolios instead of GPAs for college admission
• Future skills and helping students understand how they learn
• Connect project-based learning and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

SHOW NOTES: https://www.podpage.com/rebel-educator/27

Our guest this episode, Gregg Behr, is the founder and co-chair of Remake Learning and author  of ‘When You Wonder, You’re Learning: Mister Rogers’ Enduring Lessons for Raising Creative, Curious, Caring Kids’. Gregg is also in his 14th year as the executive director of The Grable Foundation where he helps children and youth become independent, caring, contributing members of society by supporting programs critical to a child’s successful development.

In this episode, we cover:

• How do we rethink instruction, the design of learning spaces, children’s experiences, and support parents and caregivers in a new learning landscapes
• The changing ways in which young people are developing and experiencing the world differently
• Harnessing the power of the internet to do good
• How environment drives behavior and why education needs to be an ecosystem
• Why educators need spaces to network, explore, and create opportunities
• Key takeaways from Gregg’s book “When You Wonder, You’re Learning”, inspired by the work of Fred Rogers
• The flexibility and innovative nature of the education profession

SHOW NOTES: https://www.podpage.com/rebel-educator/26