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unMASKing with Male Educators: Creating Emotionally Safe Classrooms & Schools for Male Students
unMASKing with Male Educators: Creating Emotionally Safe Classrooms & Schools for Male Students episodes
- #11 | Project 2025, Donald Trump’s next term, and how it will affect your life as an educator - w/ Jason Biehl
Will the Department of Education really be dissolved with Donald Trump set to take office? It’s been a whirlwind of emotions and struggle for educators these past few years, between distance learning, deteriorating attention spans, Chat GPT, inflation, the politicization of every piece of curriculum… - am I missing anything? This episode is a reflection on the past election and upcoming presidency, with Jason Biehl - history teacher and antiracist educator. What is it all going to mean for your school? Your classroom? Your standing as a teacher/educator in America?
We cover:
Why embracing discomfort is vital to the education of our students and the effectiveness of our teachers
How is Project 2025 going to affect your life as a teacher? And how education is the practice of freedom.
Acts of kindness, belonging, and activism we’re seeing from students that can provide teachers with hope in these difficult times
(0:00) Class in session
(2:00) Some unfiltered grappling with the upcoming Trump presidency - in particular the censoring of education
(11:00) Jason introduces himself
(17:00) Reflecting on our “teaching personas” or “teacher masks”
(21:00) “Being present” with students is more difficult and more complicated than it sounds
(25:00) The financial challenges of being a teacher
(29:30) Project 2025, the Department of Education, and the censorship of curriculum
(34:00) Anything to keep you optimistic about public schools? And helping students feel seen - through a sense of belonging or a sense of purpose via social justice organizing
(43:00) Building a bigger coalition across differences to fight the elite and put the interests of educators and students first
---
Connect with Jason Biehl:
changethenarrative.me
www.educatorsforracialjustice.com
Look out for his upcoming book, “Unicorns: A Graphic Memoir for Young White Men”
Join our Skool Community: https://www.skool.com/efc-young-mens-advocates-2345
Email us questions and comments at [email protected]
Create your own mask anonymously at https://millionmask.org/
---
Connect with Ashanti Branch:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/branchspeaks/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BranchSpeaks
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BranchSpeaks
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashantibranch/
Website: https://www.branchspeaks.com/
---
Support the podcast and the work of the Ever Forward Club: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/branch-speaks/support
---
Connect with Ever Forward Club:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everforwardclub
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/everforwardclub
Twitter: https://twitter.com/everforwardclub
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-ever-forward-club/
49 min - #10 | How to ADVOCATE for yourself as an educator so that the stakeholders don't tune you out
There are countless times as an educator where you have to communicate your vision to an outsider. What comes to mind when you read this? Are you a teacher communicating with a parent? A principal making your case to district leaders? A literacy coach presenting to major stakeholders in your school community?
I recently went to Exchange 24, a conference in DC with all the movers and shakers, hosted by the XQ Institute and the Carnegie Foundation. What stuck out to me the most from this conference was a presentation by Dr. Frank Luntz, about the “words to use” and “words to lose” when talking about education.
Here’s what you’re going to learn today:
(0:00) Class in session
(4:35) The differences between Democrats and Republicans when describing education issues
(12:40) “Words to use” and “words to lose” as as an educator/principal/education advocate/advocate for your school community
(16:00) The middle school matriculation problem in America
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Join our Skool Community: https://www.skool.com/efc-young-mens-advocates-2345
Email us questions and comments at [email protected]
Create your own mask anonymously at https://millionmask.org/
---
Connect with Ashanti Branch:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/branchspeaks/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BranchSpeaks
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BranchSpeaks
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashantibranch/
Website: https://www.branchspeaks.com/
---
Support the podcast and the work of the Ever Forward Club: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/branch-speaks/support
---
Connect with Ever Forward Club:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everforwardclub
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/everforwardclub
Twitter: https://twitter.com/everforwardclub
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-ever-forward-club/
29 min - #9 | Before I became a Teacher, I wish I knew this…
The secret to teaching is… There is no secret? That’s a common cliche these days that I disagree with. Secrets are real. But I think the main idea of this cliche is that secrets often don’t unlock the superpower you think they will. Sometimes the secret is that teaching is a lot harder than you think it will be going into it. It’s harder, more complicated, and it thrives in the gray areas of life.
This episode believes that in looking back, we can go forward. In understanding our origins, our humanity more than we can possibly conceive, it will help us understand the art of teaching.
Check the conversation that sparked these reflections, episode 4 with Vladimir Puvača.
(0:00) Class in session
(3:00) The things I wish someone told me earlier as an educator
(12:40) My origin story as an educator. How did I get into this?
(19:30) Something you should know about your students’ winter break
---
Join our Skool Community: https://www.skool.com/efc-young-mens-advocates-2345
Email us questions and comments at [email protected]
Create your own mask anonymously at https://millionmask.org/
---
Connect with Ashanti Branch:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/branchspeaks/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BranchSpeaks
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BranchSpeaks
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashantibranch/
Website: https://www.branchspeaks.com/
---
Support the podcast and the work of the Ever Forward Club: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/branch-speaks/support
---
Connect with Ever Forward Club:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everforwardclub
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/everforwardclub
Twitter: https://twitter.com/everforwardclub
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-ever-forward-club/
29 min - #8 | My TED Talk: Teach me how to be a better teacher - Data from my student body and faculty that will open your heart
What percentage of your student body claims they are in a good place, but deep down, they feel like they can’t share their true feelings? My TED Talk answers this question - using data from the school site where I began my teaching career - and talks about a time when I went to get a gun. If I had pulled the trigger, I would have thrown my entire life away...
(0:00) Class in session; my history with the TED organization
(3:00) Videos about masks, masculinity, teaching, and education that I never post online
(6:50) TED Talk at TEDx Marin
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Join our Skool Community: https://www.skool.com/efc-young-mens-advocates-2345
Email us questions and comments at [email protected]
Create your own mask anonymously at https://millionmask.org/
---
Connect with Ashanti Branch:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/branchspeaks/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BranchSpeaks
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BranchSpeaks
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashantibranch/
Website: https://www.branchspeaks.com/
---
Support the podcast and the work of the Ever Forward Club: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/branch-speaks/support
---
Connect with Ever Forward Club:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everforwardclub
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/everforwardclub
Twitter: https://twitter.com/everforwardclub
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-ever-forward-club/
17 min - #7 | Your LESSON PLANS will only work if you have THIS in your classroom
We’ve all had that amazing lesson plan that we were so excited to teach. And when we finally got to teach it, it fell apart within the first 30 seconds. So what went wrong? I'm riding solo today, with my individual takeaways from a conversation with educator, administrator, headmaster, director… Dr. Ray Swann. Check out my conversation with this veteran educator in episode 3.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
Why safety is more important than your most amazing lesson plan
How teachers make the weather in obvious and subtle ways
I’m going to answer this question - Where do I find the soul of teaching? And I’m curious to hear your answers to this question as well…
(0:00) Class in session
(2:10) Takeaway 1 - a story about letting students know you have their back, even when it means disagreeing with another educator
(12:10) Takeaway 2 - how teachers make metaphorical waves as they move about the classroom
(14:55) Takeaway 3 - reconnecting to the soul of teaching before you start your winter break
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Join our Skool Community: https://www.skool.com/efc-young-mens-advocates-2345
Email us questions and comments at [email protected]
Create your own mask anonymously at https://millionmask.org/
---
Connect with Ashanti Branch:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/branchspeaks/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BranchSpeaks
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BranchSpeaks
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashantibranch/
Website: https://www.branchspeaks.com/
---
Support the podcast and the work of the Ever Forward Club: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/branch-speaks/support
---
Connect with Ever Forward Club:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everforwardclub
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/everforwardclub
Twitter: https://twitter.com/everforwardclub
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-ever-forward-club/
22 min - #6 | Three simple practices to give your students ZEN and improve your CLASSROOM culture, climate, and belonging
Teachers, tell me if this sounds familiar: When you first start teaching, it’s survival mode. Next thing you know you’re barking orders, becoming the disciplinarian. It’s natural, instinctual, understandable. But in order to avoid the trap we all fall for, especially with this new generation of students, we need to do what’s counterintuitive - what some would call “wasting units and falling behind on the curriculum.”
In this episode, you’ll learn:
How taking a mindful minute with your class every day goes a long way
Why building academic stamina is key to a safe and rigorous school environment
What it means to integrate community into the curriculum and why it leads to high achieving students
Check out episode 2
(0:00) Class in session
(2:55) Learning meditation practices in India and bringing Sri Sri Ravi Shankar to high schoolers in Oakland, CA - and how to get successful buy-in
(9:20) Building academic stamina as a math teacher
(14:20) Getting interdisciplinary with social-emotional learning and math, and bringing the community into the curriculum
The Masks, Emotions, and Math Program: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tXtA5Pg6wUc
Join our Skool Community: https://www.skool.com/efc-young-mens-advocates-2345
Attend our Young Men’s Conference: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdw6tfn3lZrkBxZRqSqHjTTeygRNIgwk0KKgHRcwlclaS1xag/viewform
Create your own mask anonymously at https://millionmask.org/
Email us questions and comments at [email protected]
---
Connect with Ashanti Branch:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/branchspeaks/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BranchSpeaks
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BranchSpeaks
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashantibranch/
Website: https://www.branchspeaks.com/
---
Support the podcast and the work of the Ever Forward Club: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/branch-speaks/support
---
Connect with Ever Forward Club:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everforwardclub
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/everforwardclub
Twitter: https://twitter.com/everforwardclub
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-ever-forward-club/
21 min - #5 | PREVENT BULLYING in your SCHOOL/your CLASSROOM, and the MENTALITY required of Educators to do so
All it took was three months… I haven’t been able to shake the story of freshman Jose Zamora, of Santa Clara High School. What happened to him is exactly what this podcast seeks to prevent.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
What do statistics about bullying and suicide say about our male students
Specific routines and systems you can implement to make students feel more welcome at school and in your classroom
Personal stories from me (Ashanti Branch) about bullying
(0:00) Class in session.
(2:50) Some background on Jose Zamora and statistics on bullying and suicide.
(11:00) Ashanti’s perspective on bullying as an educator
(11:30) Important things to ask yourself as a teacher in order to prevent bullying
(15:30) Teachers need to demonstrate to students that they are aware of the undercurrent of behaviors so that students know they can trust a teacher to have their back
(22:30) What the statistics about bullying and suicide say about our male students
(25:00) Bullying is strictly about power
Join our Skool Community: https://www.skool.com/efc-young-mens-advocates-2345Create your own mask anonymously at https://millionmask.org/
Email us questions and comments at [email protected]
---
Connect with Ashanti Branch:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/branchspeaks/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BranchSpeaks
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BranchSpeaks
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashantibranch/
Website: https://www.branchspeaks.com/
---
Support the podcast and the work of the Ever Forward Club: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/branch-speaks/support
---
Connect with Ever Forward Club:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everforwardclub
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/everforwardclub
Twitter: https://twitter.com/everforwardclub
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-ever-forward-club/
36 min - #4 | Finding your WHY as an Educator: Triumphs, failures, and getting caught waiting tables outside of school
This is the story of a man who sacrificed two-thirds of his annual salary to become a teacher… You might be the ONLY male educator at your school site, quite an isolating experience. So in order to keep the classroom as invigorating as you imagined it would be when you first answered the call to teach, we need to share stories and reconnect with our why. We present to you, Vladimir Puvača. Listen to Vladimir’s story and apply these takeaways to your class tomorrow:
The things I wish someone had told me earlier as a teacher, and the things you CAN achieve that first-year teachers would call IMPOSSIBLE
How to have empathy but still set boundaries as an educator
The age-old question that never goes away: “Why’d I become a teacher again?”
A story about a teacher getting caught waiting tables after school
(0:00) Class in session
(4:00) Vladimir introduces himself and what he learned about setting boundaries as a first-year high school teacher and how to get buy-in from students as a leader
(11:00) Closing your classroom door between periods
(15:00) Ashanti reflects on all the mistakes he’s made as an educator
(17:20) Ashanti and Vladimir share their “teacher persona” masks
(20:00) Waiting tables at Chili’s after teaching all day, and what happens when your faculty shows up
(23:00) Why Vladimir became a teacher, what he left behind at his corporate job, and why psychology and therapy are very important to him
(31:00) Vladimir fired himself instead of following his CEO’s mandate to fire 100 workers. This moment led him to teaching.
(34:00) Vladimir’s salary in his corporate job was 3 times more than his new job as an educator. He’s still an educator today :) How did he not go back?
(37:45) Finding time to do more for students and the community outside of the classroom, and being motivated by and gifted with empathy and the ability to understand student’s pain
(41:55) Vladimir’s message to youth on uprising, revolution, defiance, and finding oneself
Connect with Vladimir Puvača:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vladimirpuvaca/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vladimir-puvaca/
Join our Skool Community: https://www.skool.com/efc-young-mens-advocates-2345
Create your own mask anonymously at https://millionmask.org/
Email us questions and comments at [email protected]
---
Connect with Ashanti Branch:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/branchspeaks/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BranchSpeaks
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BranchSpeaks
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashantibranch/
Website: https://www.branchspeaks.com/
---
Support the podcast and the work of the Ever Forward Club: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/branch-speaks/support
---
Connect with Ever Forward Club:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everforwardclub
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/everforwardclub
Twitter: https://twitter.com/everforwardclub
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-ever-forward-club/
46 min - #3 | How to avoid teacher burnout and fall in love with being in the classroom - w/ Ray Swann
This is essential listening, especially for first-year educators. To be honest, the first year will have you questioning your career choices. So this episode is packed with advice and tips to keep you connected with your male students in ways that make teaching sustainable. In Ray’s words, BEFORE you do anything, tend to the soil, the garden that is your classroom. AND tend to your own personal garden - your personal well-being. Build trust and safety through gameplay.
In this episode, we cover
Fun and easy things outside of school that will make you a better teacher
How good teaching starts and ends with a five-letter word that starts with T (not “teach”!)
What is the soul of teaching?
(0:00) Class in session
(2:45) Get to know Ray and his teacher mask
(11:00) Being liked as a teacher is the wrong pursuit
(13:00) Early teacher milestones we all hit, and the teacher persona - how students read you
(15:00) Providing self-love as educators
(18:00) Year one burnout; safety is more important than entertainment. Paolo Freire’s power over vs. power with
(21:00) Culture, climate, and belonging - setting the weather in the classroom and how personal wellness/self-care affects this
(29:00) Safety and trust through games, before any curriculum
(33:00) The soul of teaching
(36:00) Smartphones in schools, kids forgetting how to read, and practicing curiosity and getting intel from students
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Connect with Ray Swann:
Website: http://www.positivemasculinity.org.au
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drrayswann/
Theater Company: www.identitytheatre.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ray-swann-6673531b/?originalSubdomain=au
---
Join our Skool Community: https://www.skool.com/efc-young-mens-advocates-2345
Create your own mask anonymously at https://millionmask.org/
Email us questions and comments at [email protected]
---
Connect with Ashanti Branch:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/branchspeaks/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BranchSpeaks
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BranchSpeaks
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashantibranch/
Website: https://www.branchspeaks.com/
---
Support the podcast and the work of the Ever Forward Club: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/branch-speaks/support
---
Connect with Ever Forward Club:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everforwardclub
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/everforwardclub
Twitter: https://twitter.com/everforwardclub
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-ever-forward-club/
57 min - #2 | Ban Phones from Classrooms? Attention Spans, Teachers, & How to Redesign Schools to Reach 21st Century Students - w/ Jerome Hunter
Here’s a dirty little secret: Every educator, even the master teachers, are struggling to keep their students attentive and engaged. And research shows our male students are paying the heaviest price for it.
In the era of the smartphone, how do we combat decreased attention spans? Design.
In this episode, we cover
How to redesign schools to keep pace with a rapidly changing world
How teachers can create enough excitement to match the dopamine hits students are getting from their phones
Some restorative justice practices you can implement in your school
What helicopter parents and phones in schools have in common
Techniques Jerome uses with Black and brown male students that can be applied to all students - now that students are carrying more anxiety than ever before
(0:00) Class in session
(1:50) Get to know Jerome’s teacher mask
(13:40) Phone addiction and dopamine
(17:25) Relationships, and restorative justice/restorative practices in schools
(25:30) Design, architecture, spaces, and reimagining classrooms
(34:00) Academic Stamina/Should we ban phone usage in schools and classrooms?
(46:15) Helicopter parents
(50:30) Techniques Jerome uses with Black and brown male students in the classroom that can be applied to all students
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Connect with Jerome Hunter:
https://www.jeromeleehunter.com/
https://www.instagram.com/seatownstorycollective/
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Join our Skool Community: https://www.skool.com/efc-young-mens-advocates-2345
Attend our Young Men’s Conference: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdw6tfn3lZrkBxZRqSqHjTTeygRNIgwk0KKgHRcwlclaS1xag/viewform
Create your own mask anonymously at https://millionmask.org/
Email us questions and comments at [email protected]
---
Connect with Ashanti Branch:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/branchspeaks/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BranchSpeaks
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BranchSpeaks
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashantibranch/
Website: https://www.branchspeaks.com/
---
Support the podcast and the work of the Ever Forward Club: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/branch-speaks/support
---
Connect with Ever Forward Club:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everforwardclub
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/everforwardclub
Twitter: https://twitter.com/everforwardclub
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-ever-forward-club/
58 min
About unMASKing with Male Educators: Creating Emotionally Safe Classrooms & Schools for Male Students
From the publisher's feed
Only 23% of K-12 educators in America are male, a gender gap that has serious ramifications for male students - who often face DISPROPORTIONATE disciplinary action.
This podcast is for male educators who want to embody a necessary change in schools, via healthy social-emotional outcomes. Come away with actionable lesson plans, relatable stories, and a renewed purpose.
The US Surgeon General says the mental health of our youth is the "crisis of our time." Male educators are uniquely positioned to address this - because real men teach.
Join our community: "Advocates for Young Men" at Skool.com