MindShift Podcast

This season, we investigate the intangible, and often overlooked, elements of academic success: emotional safety, trust, and relationships. You’ll hear how teacher home visits can help parents see themselves as a valued a partner in their child’s education; how far a public high school goes to develop an inclusive experience for the crucial transition to ninth grade; how parents and schools can address childhood trauma so it doesn’t become an obstacle to learning, and what parents and communities can do to help kids grow. Join us for new episodes beginning August 28, or catch up on earlier ones that are still relevant today.

The KIPP charter school network has made a name for itself preparing kids from low-income communities for college. Its early years were marked by strict and controversial discipline policies meant to hold students to a rigorous standard of behavior. But KIPP Bay Area Schools are leading the network away from this model in favor of restorative discipline practices that build a school culture of understanding, trust and respect.

High School English teacher Michael Godsey found the Serial podcast so compelling, he stopped teaching his favorite work of Shakespeare to teach the wildly popular podcast instead. What does audio have to do with learning traditional English skills? Godsey’s students helped him discover a new side of literacy.

Catlin Tucker and Marika Neto hoped that by redesigning the classroom experience they could shift what students value about learning. Instead of being focused on grades and points, they're pushing students to see the value in self-reflection, self-assessment, and creative thinking. At Windsor High School, Tucker and Neto created a program in which they share sixty students, a mix of freshman and sophomores, every other day. The interdisciplinary program blends science, English and technology learning standards into projects, and students are given more choice and independence over how and what they learn.

Parents are essential to a child’s development. But when parents get too involved in helping and directing a child’s every move, they can end up doing more harm than good. Former Stanford dean of freshman Julie Lythcott-Haims saw first-hand how parents were interfering with the lives of their college-aged children and keeping them from maturing into self-reliant adults.

When Principal Michael Essien arrived at Martin Luther King Jr. Academic Middle School in San Francisco, he knew his first order of business would be helping teachers struggling to handle routine disruptions to class. But rather than kicking students out of class, he’s trying to a new approach—bringing counselors inside classrooms to help teachers de-escalate conflicts.

We’re back! MindShift is back with a new season of podcast episodes featuring educators, parents and students who are developing effective ways to teach and learn. Listen to this preview of what’s next.

Teachers Alex Fernandez and Al Julius set up their students for an April Fool’s Day prank that ultimately landed Mr. Julius in handcuffs. Once the prank was over, the teachers learned about their students’ character in ways they didn't anticipate.

Great teachers are constantly evaluating what works to help their students learn. But teachers don’t often hear what impact they have made on students. In a rare treat, we hear from one former student reading from a journal he kept during middle school. Patrick Don wrote several journal entries about his favorite teacher, Mr. Albert, who grew to become his friend. Don read some of these entries on stage at a Mortified Live event in Baltimore, and this reading was turned into a Mortified podcast episode, “Tribute To Teachers’ Pets.” Don spent many years looking for Mr. Albert online and on social media but was unable to locate him. We here at MindShift also searched for Mr. Albert, found him, and brought Mr. Albert and Pat together via Skype to listen to the Mortified podcast episode together and talk nearly 17 years after those original journal entries. What we discovered was delightful.

For high school science teacher and basketball coach Jim Clark, coaching went beyond the classroom and the court. More than ten years later, he’s still a big support for one of his former athletes, Marcus Williams, who wouldn’t let go of his dream of becoming a doctor.

For boys, the world of puberty is often a silent one when it comes to meaningful conversations with their dads and adult caregivers. Health educator Dr. Rob Lehman empowers dads and demonstrates helpful ways to answer a boy’s wide-ranging concerns about puberty, including myths about masturbation. He teaches in the Seattle area through his company, "Great Conversations."

Sex education is supposed to be for the kids, but Julie Metzger, known as "The Puberty Lady," also targets her message to moms who are often the ones feeling awkward talking about puberty. A mother and daughter open up about their journey of feeling empowered to talk about sex.

The first year of teaching can be so tough, a teacher can't help but cry on Sundays. Sadie Guthrie recalls her first year of teaching special education and surviving with the help of her mom, boyfriend, and the inspiration she found in her incredible students.

When English teacher Alexa Schlechter gave an assignment to her high school students asking them to think about their personal memoirs, she received details about a student’s life that stunned her.