The Constructing Modern Knowledge Podcast

The Constructing Modern Knowledge Podcast

By Gary Stager, Ph.D.Education
Download on the App Store

The Constructing Modern Knowledge Podcast episodes

  • Episode 10 - with Alfie Kohn

    The July 16, 2020 Constructing Modern Knowledge Online Celebration culminated with an Ask Me Anything conversation with education author, researcher, and popular speaker, Alfie Kohn. Here is a recording of that session.

    Watch the conversation

    Alfie Kohn bio, books, and resoucres

    The post Episode 10 – with Alfie Kohn appeared first on Constructing Modern Knowledge Online.

    1 hr 19 min
  • Episode 9 - Virtual Maker Ed Keynote

     

    On June 30, 2020, Gary S. Stager, Ph.D. was the closing keynote speaker for the Virtual Maker Ed Unconference. Dr. Stager’s presentation and ensuing conversation was entitled, “Summer Camp Computing or Nostalgia for the Future.”

    The post Episode 9 – Virtual Maker Ed Keynote appeared first on Constructing Modern Knowledge Online.

    46 min
  • Episode 8 - CMK Reunion
    Session #2 of the Constructing Modern Knowledge Celebration Day on July 16, 2020 assembled alumni from twelve years of Constructing Modern Knowledge to reminisce and recount their learning adventures.
    About Gary Stager
    In addition to being a popular keynote speaker at some of the world’s most prestigious education conferences, Gary Stager is a journalist, teacher educator, consultant, professor, software developer, publisher, and school administrator. An elementary teacher by training, he has taught students from preschool through doctoral studies. In 1990, Dr. Stager led professional development in the world’s first laptop schools and played a major role in the early days of online education. Gary is the founder of the Constructing Modern Knowledge summer institute for educators.
    Dr. Stager is co-author of Invent To Learn – Making, Tinkering, and Engineering in the Classroom, called the “bible of the maker movement in schools,” by Larry Magid of CBS and The San Jose Mercury News.
    When Jean Piaget wanted to better understand how children learn mathematics, he hired Seymour Papert. When Dr. Papert wanted to create a high-tech alternative learning environment for incarcerated at-risk teens, he hired Gary Stager. This work was the basis for Gary’s doctoral dissertation and documented Papert’s most-recent institutional research project.
    Dr. Stager’s work has earned a Ph.D. in Science and Mathematics Education and he collaborated on a project that won a Grammy Award. Recently, Gary was invited by Fondazione Reggio Children to lead a public seminar on education in Reggio Emilia, Italy.
    Gary was on the advisory board of the NSF-funded project, BJC4NYC: Bringing a Rigorous Computer Science Principles Course to the Largest School System in the US. Dr. Stager also maintains the world’s largest archive of text and multimedia by Seymour Papert at The Daily Papert.
    About Constructing Modern Knowledge
    Constructing Modern Knowledge, July 9-12, 2024 is a minds-on institute for educators committed to creativity, collaboration and computing. Participant have the opportunity to engage in intensive computer-rich project development with peers and a world-class faculty. Inspirational guest speakers and social events round out the fantastic event.
    While our outstanding faculty is comprised of educational pioneers, bestselling authors and inventors of educational technologies we depend on, the real power of Constructing Modern Knowledge emerges from the collaborative project development of participants.Rather than spend days listening to a series of speakers, CMK 2024 is about action. Attendees work on personally meaningful projects and interact with educational experts concerned with maximizing the potential of each learner. Animation, robotics, engineering, film-making, music composition, 3D printing, programming, wearable computing, Arduino, BBC micro:bits, microcontrollers, storytelling, and photography are all part of the CMK 2024 mix. The learning environment is filled with stimulating “objects to think with,” including a library, art supplies, and a mountain of tools & materials for tinkering. Constructing Modern Knowledge, now in its 15th year, is a minds-on institute for educators committed to creativity, collaboration, and computing. Inspirational guest speakers and social events round out a fantastic event.
    See what makes Constructing Modern Knowledge unique by checking out the CMK wrap-up.

    The post Episode 8 – CMK Reunion appeared first on Constructing Modern Knowledge Online.

    1 hr 42 min
  • Episode 7 - Constructing Modern Knowledge Celebration Day Faculty Meeting
    Session #1 of the Constructing Modern Knowledge Celebration Day on July 16, 2020 featured a virtual faculty meeting in which the educators who make Constructing Modern Knowledge happen shared their favorite memories and projects.
    About Gary Stager
    In addition to being a popular keynote speaker at some of the world’s most prestigious education conferences, Gary Stager is a journalist, teacher educator, consultant, professor, software developer, publisher, and school administrator. An elementary teacher by training, he has taught students from preschool through doctoral studies. In 1990, Dr. Stager led professional development in the world’s first laptop schools and played a major role in the early days of online education. Gary is the founder of the Constructing Modern Knowledge summer institute for educators.
    Dr. Stager is co-author of Invent To Learn – Making, Tinkering, and Engineering in the Classroom, called the “bible of the maker movement in schools,” by Larry Magid of CBS and The San Jose Mercury News.
    When Jean Piaget wanted to better understand how children learn mathematics, he hired Seymour Papert. When Dr. Papert wanted to create a high-tech alternative learning environment for incarcerated at-risk teens, he hired Gary Stager. This work was the basis for Gary’s doctoral dissertation and documented Papert’s most-recent institutional research project.
    Dr. Stager’s work has earned a Ph.D. in Science and Mathematics Education and he collaborated on a project that won a Grammy Award. Recently, Gary was invited by Fondazione Reggio Children to lead a public seminar on education in Reggio Emilia, Italy.
    Gary was on the advisory board of the NSF-funded project, BJC4NYC: Bringing a Rigorous Computer Science Principles Course to the Largest School System in the US. Dr. Stager also maintains the world’s largest archive of text and multimedia by Seymour Papert at The Daily Papert.
    About Constructing Modern Knowledge
    Constructing Modern Knowledge, July 9-12, 2024 is a minds-on institute for educators committed to creativity, collaboration and computing. Participant have the opportunity to engage in intensive computer-rich project development with peers and a world-class faculty. Inspirational guest speakers and social events round out the fantastic event.
    While our outstanding faculty is comprised of educational pioneers, bestselling authors and inventors of educational technologies we depend on, the real power of Constructing Modern Knowledge emerges from the collaborative project development of participants.Rather than spend days listening to a series of speakers, CMK 2024 is about action. Attendees work on personally meaningful projects and interact with educational experts concerned with maximizing the potential of each learner. Animation, robotics, engineering, film-making, music composition, 3D printing, programming, wearable computing, Arduino, BBC micro:bits, microcontrollers, storytelling, and photography are all part of the CMK 2024 mix. The learning environment is filled with stimulating “objects to think with,” including a library, art supplies, and a mountain of tools & materials for tinkering. Constructing Modern Knowledge, now in its 15th year, is a minds-on institute for educators committed to creativity, collaboration, and computing. Inspirational guest speakers and social events round out a fantastic event.
    See what makes Constructing Modern Knowledge unique by checking out the CMK wrap-up.

    The post Episode 7 – Constructing Modern Knowledge Celebration Day Faculty Meeting appeared first on Constructing Modern Knowledge Online.

    1 hr 37 min
  • Episode 6 with Conrad Wolfram

    June 30th Ask Me Anything session with Conrad Wolfram

    Conrad Wolfram, physicist, mathematician and technologist, is Strategic Director and European Co-Founder/CEO of Wolfram – the “math company” behind Mathematica, Wolfram Language and Wolfram|Alpha (which powers knowledge answers for Apple’s Siri) for over 30 years.

    Wolfram pioneers new approaches to data science and computation-based development, with technology and consulting solutions that drive innovation in analytics, software development and modelling. Working with start-ups to Fortune 500 companies, it spans industries as diverse as medicine, finance and telecoms.

    Conrad is recognised as a thought leader in AI, data science and computation, pioneering a multiparadigm data science approach.

    Conrad is also a leading advocate for a fundamental shift of math education to become computer-based or alternatively introduce a new core subject of computational thinking. He founded computerbasedmath.org and computationalthinking.org to fundamentally fix math education for the AI age – rebuilding the curriculum assuming computers exist. The movement is now a worldwide force in re-engineering the STEM curriculum. His groundbreaking book, The Math(s) Fix – an education blueprint for the AI age,  was released on 10th June 2020

    Conrad regularly appears in the media to talk about subjects ranging from decisions and data science to 21st century education. He attended Eton College and holds degrees in Natural Sciences and Math from the University of Cambridge.

    Click to see book on Amazon

    THE MATH(s) FIX IS THE ONLY BOOK TO:
    • Explain why being “bad at maths” may be as much the subject’s fault as the learner’s.
    • Show how a stuck educational ecosystem has students, parents, teachers, schools, employers and policymakers running in the wrong direction to catch up with real-world requirements.
    • Set out a completely alternative vision for a core computational school subject to fix the problem and seed more general reformation of education for the AI age.

      • Conrad Wolfram Resources:

      • Order the new Math(s) Fix book
      • Math(s) Fix web site
      • Computer Based Math web site
      • What are the Modern Areas of Maths?


        • The post Episode 6 with Conrad Wolfram appeared first on Constructing Modern Knowledge Online.

        1 hr 30 min
      • Episode 5 with Dennis Littky

        Veteran school inventor Dennis Littky joined Gary Stager for an Ask Me Anything session on June 23, 2020.


        Dennis Littky is the co-founder and co-director of The Met School, co-founder of Big Picture Learning and founder and President of College Unbound. He is nationally known for his extensive work in secondary education in urban, suburban, and rural settings, spanning over 40 years. As an educator, Dennis has a reputation for working up against the edge of convention and out of the box, turning tradition on its head and delivering concrete results. From 2000-2010 The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation gave Big Picture Learning 20 million dollars to replicate The Met School nationally and internationally. Currently there is a network of 113 schools, 52 across the country, 40 in Australia and 21 in the Netherlands.

        Presently, Dennis’s focus has been to expand the Big Picture Learning design to include a college, College Unbound, for adults, that allows them to earn a Bachelors Degree while creating a project around their interest and working full time. The innovative college is rethinking how we educate the 37 million adults who started college but didn’t finish.

        Dr. Littky holds a double Ph.D. in psychology and education from the University of Michigan. His work as a principal at Thayer Junior/Senior High School in Winchester, N.H. is featured in an NBC movie, A Town Torn Apart based on the book Doc: The Story of Dennis Littky and His Fight for a Better School. In 2004, he wrote  (along with Samantha Grabelle) The Big Picture: Education is Everyone’s Business, which went on to win the Association of Educational Publishers’ top award for nonfiction in 2005. In 2003, Dennis was recognized as a leader in education and awarded the Harold W. McGraw Jr. Prize in Education. Fast Company ranked Littky #4 among the top 50 Innovators of 2004, and the George Lucas Educational Foundation recently selected Dennis as part of their Daring Dozen. Locally,  Dennis was awarded the Local Hero Award by Bank of America in 2008 and  College Unbound was awarded The Innovative and Creative Program Award by UPCEA, New England. Most recently, Dennis was awarded the New England Higher Education Excellence Award in 2011.

        Books
          • 2004 The Big Picture: Education Is Everyone’s Business
            • by Dennis Littky & Sam Grabelle
          • 2002 One Kid at a Time: Big Lessons from a Small Schooll
            • by Eliot Levine (Afterword by Dennis Littky & Elliot Washor)
          • 1989 & 2005 Doc: The Story of Dennis Littky and His Fight for a Better School
            • by Susan Kammeraad-Campbell

             

            The post Episode 5 with Dennis Littky appeared first on Constructing Modern Knowledge Online.

            1 hr 5 min
          • Episode 4 with Deborah Meier

             

            June 11th Ask Me Anything session with MacArthur Genius and veteran educator, Deborah Meier.

            Deborah Meier & Ted Sizer Resources

            Here is a collection of resources (books, articles, web sites, and video) related to the work of Deborah Meier and the late Ted Sizer.

            The post Episode 4 with Deborah Meier appeared first on Constructing Modern Knowledge Online.

            1 hr 23 min
          • Episode 3 with Dr. Sugata Mitra

            Gary Stager’s Ask Me Anything session with TED Prize recipient, Dr. Sugata Mitra, recorded on May 21, 2020.

            Books and Videos by Sugata Mitra

            Latest Book
            The School in the Cloud: The Emerging Future of Learning

            From TED
            Beyond the Hole in the Wall: Discover the Power of Self-Organized Learning

            Kindle

            The Future of Learning

            DVD

            One Peace at a Time (featured)

            Videos from TED and elsewhere by Sugata Mitra presenting his Hole-in-the-Wall project and Self Organizing Learning Environment research

             

             

            The post Episode 3 with Dr. Sugata Mitra appeared first on Constructing Modern Knowledge Online.

            1 hr 14 min
          • Episode 2 - Ask Me Anything with Gary Stager

            Gary Stager’s second Ask Me Anything session was held on May 12th. 

            Ask Me Anything #2 resources

            The following are resources mentioned by Gary or participants in the chat window during the May 12th Ask Me Anything session.

            The multimedia archives of the 1st and 2nd AMA sessions follow the resources.

            AI experiments for younger students
            • Cognimates
            • Google AI Experiments
            • Machine Learning For Kids
              • Programming Environments for learning
              • Lynx – a new Logo-like browser-based coding language
              • Snap
              • Scratch
              • Microsoft MakeCode
              • Turtle Art
              • Turtle Blocks
                • Recent Gary Stager articles mentioned
                • What’s your Hurry?
                • This is Our Moment
                • Time for Optimism
                • Planning for the Best Case Scenario
                • Program Your Own Gameboy
                • Scratch and the Negligent Homicide of Mathland
                  • Books Discussed
                  • She Would Not Be Moved: How We Tell the Story of Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott by Herb Kohl
                  • Painting Chinese by Herb Kohl
                  • Making Learning Whole – David Perkins
                  • Teaching What Really Happened: How to Avoid the Tyranny of Textbooks and Get Students Excited About Doing History – James Loewen
                  • Books by Donald Graves (on process writing)
                  • Books by Marilyn Burns (about elementary school math)
                  • In the Middle, A Lifetime of Learning About Writing, Reading, and Adolescents By Nancie Atwell
                  • The Loose Parts series (four volumes) by Lisa Daley & Miriam Beloglovsky
                  • Wonder Art Workshop: Creative Child-Led Experiences for Nurturing Imagination, Curiosity, and a Love of Learning by Sally Haughey
                  • The Inventions of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick
                    • Film, Hugo, by Martin Scorsese
                    • The Jungle by Upton Sinclair
                    • Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
                    • Books by Deborah Meier
                      • In Schools We Trust: Creating Communities of Learning in an Era of Testing and Standardization
                      • The Power of their Ideas Lessons for America from a Small School in Harlem
                      • These Schools Belong to You and Me: Why We Can’t Afford to Abandon Our Public Schools with Emily Gasoi
                      • The Hundred Languages of Children by Carolyn Edwards, Lella Gandini, and George Forman
                        • Recommended book lists
                        • Gary Stager’s recommendations for faculty-wide summer reading
                        • A hasty list of books Gary Thinks should be the minimum canon for preservice teachers
                        • Essential reading list for school leaders
                          • Participant shared resources
                          • From Bob Kahn : https://s3.amazonaws.com/multunus-website/uploads/2016/01/Training-a-fish-to-climb-a-tree-e1454337520508.jpg
                          • From Michael Werner : great article for rapid iteration – with T for Transparency https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/with-goals-fast-beats-smart/
                          • From Michael Walker : @Diane Agreed about AP and College Board. Our district gives the most AP exams in the upper Midwest. Yet, we have moved the needle on more student pathways and choice. Here is what our seniors are doing this spring: https://www.edinaschools.org/Page/5798
                          • From Michael Walker : The Playful Learning Lab at the University of St. Thomas here in MN is doing some pretty cool stuff: https://www.playfullearninglab.org/
                          • From Diane Brancazio : @Garth Consider doing Maker projects – i.e. using technology as alternative ways to express annd share learrning.  Its not all about robots!  Check out our site http://k12maker.mit.edu/
                          • From Garth @garthholman : VR on Medieval Pilgrimage https://www.teachersfortomorrow.net/home/tour-creator-engage-your-students-in-remote-learning
                          • From Garth @garthholman : We show it here: Legacy wall https://www.teachersfortomorrow.net/home/google-earth-adds-tourbuilder-student-creations-of-awesomeness
                          • From Elizabeth Eckel : https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/04/liberia-takes-classes-airwaves-covid-19-pandemic-200415203012448.html
                          • From Sylvia Martinez : https://fairydustteaching.com
                          • From Ray Mercer : https://wordpress.oise.utoronto.ca/naturalcuriosity/
                          • From Kate Yourke : I am sending out Color Science kits for the International Day of Light on May 16, click the link to order a kit mailed via USPS https://tinyurl.com/Color-Science-Kit

                            • The post Episode 2 – Ask Me Anything with Gary Stager appeared first on Constructing Modern Knowledge Online.

                            1 hr 50 min
                          • Episode 1 - Ask Me Anything with Gary Stager

                            On April 28th, 2020, Gary Stager held his first Ask Me Anything session in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. This is a recording of that conversation.

                             

                            The post Episode 1 – Ask Me Anything with Gary Stager appeared first on Constructing Modern Knowledge Online.

                            1 hr 10 min

                          About The Constructing Modern Knowledge Podcast

                          From the publisher's feed

                          Inspiration for Creative Educators