State of Ed Podcast

42 minutes 51 seconds

Ep. 90: Unlocking Genius with Mathematics

Marc and Nick sit down with Dr. Kristopher J. Childs, Chief Academics, Equity and Social Justice Officer at Open Up Resources, founder of K Childs Solutions, and author of Teaching Mathematics for Social Justice, Grades K-12: A Guide for Moving from Mindset to Action. This conversation covers what it actually means to teach math as a tool for sense-making rather than a system of rules to memorize, and why Dr. Childs believes every child who walks into a classroom is already a math person.

Dr. Childs makes the case against the gradual release of responsibility model in math instruction, explains why the answer is the least interesting part of any math lesson, and introduces his popcorn analogy for understanding how and when students develop mathematical understanding. The conversation also covers what it means to be married to the content but never to the context, how mathematics for social justice starts not with controversy but with community gardens and credit scores, and why in-class teaching demonstrations are where Dr. Childs does his most important work. Marc and Nick also go deep on the calculator debate, grouping students in math, and why failing at a standardized test might actually be the least of anyone's problems. If you have ever been told your math department is the one place engagement strategies don't apply, start here.

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14 June 2026, 5:13 pm

46 minutes 33 seconds

Ep. 89: Mastering the Game of Writing

Marc and Nick sit down with Daniel Senn and Erlend Klouman Høiner, co-founders of We Will Write, the fast-paced, anonymous, team-based writing game already used by more than a million students worldwide. This conversation covers how two childhood friends from Oslo built a platform that is making students beg to write instead of avoiding it, and why the most important thing happening in the room might be the silence right after the timer starts.

Daniel and Erlend walk through the design decisions behind We Will Write: the timed challenges that level the playing field for every writer in the room, the visual prompts that eliminate the blank-page barrier, and why anonymity unlocks student voice in ways traditional writing instruction never could. The conversation also covers the unexpected classroom culture benefits teachers are reporting, what the teacher dashboard reveals about individual student confidence, and the surprising finding that students who use the platform start calling themselves writers.

If you are still trying to get students to care about writing, this one is for you.

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30 May 2026, 12:47 am

1 hour 4 seconds

Ep. 88: Designing Schools of the Future... Today

Marc and Nick sit down with Dr. Sabba Quidwai, CEO and founder of Designing Schools, former education executive at Apple, lecturer at UC Irvine, and author of Designing Schools: How Design Thinking Makes You Irreplaceable in the Age of AI. This conversation covers what it actually means to lead schools through the current moment in AI, and why the fear of being replaced may be pointed in entirely the wrong direction.

Dr. Quidwai reframes the AI replacement conversation from the ground up, makes the case that we are not facing a critical thinking crisis but an agency crisis, and explains what the schools getting AI right all have in common. The conversation also covers why AI should be understood as a teammate and not a tool, what happens to people who never learn the language of AI, why educators are the most natural design thinkers in any room, and why the pockets of excellence we celebrate need to be scaled, not just celebrated. If you are a school leader trying to figure out where to put your energy right now, start here.

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23 May 2026, 1:58 am

44 minutes 18 seconds

Ep. 87: Telling Isn't Teaching

Marc and Nick, joined by guest co-host Kate Crimmins, high school English chairperson, sit down with Kristina Smekens, president and lead consultant at Smekens Education and one of the most in-demand literacy consultants in the country. Kristina has spent the better part of two decades helping K-12 teachers master reading and writing instruction, and this conversation zeroes in on a distinction that changes everything: the difference between modeling what to do and the think-aloud that makes invisible thinking visible.

Kristina walks through the free throw analogy that stopped a room full of new teachers cold, explains why students can repeat every step of a skill and still fail the moment the context shifts, and unpacks what gradual release actually looks like when it is done with intention. The conversation also covers the planning that makes a 15-minute mini lesson look effortless, and why slowing down in September almost always produces faster, more independent learners by spring. If you have ever shown students exactly what to do and then watched them not be able to do it, this one is for you.

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16 May 2026, 1:38 pm

50 minutes 5 seconds

Ep. 86: Rewriting the Rules of Student Engagement

Marc and Nick sit down with Stephanie Clinise, a ninth-grade English teacher at Hatboro-Horsham High School in suburban Philadelphia, to talk about what happens when a teacher leads with the hook every single time. Stephanie found We Will Write, a gamified writing platform out of Norway, got her students engaged in meaningful writing on their first try, and ended up on the floor at FETC 2026 sharing the story with anyone who would listen.

The conversation digs into the teaching philosophy underneath all of it: why context has to come before content, how a classroom timeline stretching from the Transcontinental Railroad to the birth of Taylor Swift unlocked Shakespeare and Roald Dahl for ninth graders, and how Stephanie is navigating AI in the writing classroom with real structure and genuine optimism. If you believe the lesson has to earn student attention before it can teach them anything, this one is for you.

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9 May 2026, 6:26 pm

50 minutes 55 seconds

Ep. 85: The Power of Play in Serious Learning

Marc Isseks and special guest co-host, Karen Walsh sit down with Dan Thomas, a recently retired STEM teacher who spent his entire 32-year career at the same school he graduated from in Jamestown, New York. Now consulting and speaking under his Coach Thomas Tech brand, Dan brings a hands-on, PBL-driven philosophy to educators looking to make learning visible, meaningful, and yes, actually usable by Tuesday morning.

This conversation covers a lot of ground: why AI has finally moved past the shiny-new-thing phase and into real implementation, how the Tuesday Test reframes professional learning (if you cannot use it tomorrow without hand-holding, what is the point?), and why AI may be the first tool that makes genuine differentiation possible at scale. Dan and Karen, a veteran English teacher known for her commitment to creativity and reinvention, bring decades of classroom experience to a discussion that is as practical as it is forward-looking. The takeaway: the teacher who embraces this moment has more power than at any point in the history of education.

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3 April 2026, 3:51 pm

33 minutes 4 seconds

Ep. 84: Leading Schools With Heart

Nick and Marc sit down with Dr. Rachel Edoho-Eket, elementary school principal, adjunct professor at McDaniel College, TEDx speaker, president of the Maryland Association of Elementary School Principals, and one of the top 100 influencers in education. She is also the author of two bestselling books, The Principal's Journey and Relational Intelligence.

Dr. Edoho-Eket shares the leadership lesson she wishes every aspiring principal understood before stepping into the role, why relationships are the engine of every great school, and how consistency, communication, and presence build the kind of trust that makes the hardest parts of the job possible. She also opens up about navigating imposter syndrome as a new principal, the surprising challenges of moving from assistant principal to principal, and why you don't need all the answers - you just need to know who to ask.

The conversation also tackles one of education's most pressing topics: AI in the classroom. Dr. Edoho-Eket shares her district's pragmatic approach to ethical AI implementation, why "guidance" beats "policy" in a fast-moving landscape, and how schools can build a strong foundation in digital citizenship starting at the elementary level.

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20 March 2026, 1:48 pm

39 minutes 1 second

Ep. 83: Partnering for Equality

Nick and Marc spend time with Dr. Cynthia Taines, a sociologist, associate professor, and author of The Metropolitan Community: Partnering for Equality Across the Educational Divide. They discuss the many inequities facing our nation's schools and the potential solutions that could bridge existing divisions.

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18 March 2026, 4:00 pm

1 hour 9 minutes

Ep. 82: Human-Centered AI

In their ongoing FETC series, Nick and Marc sit down with Jeff Piontek, an education leader, author, and international speaker with more than 25 years of experience advancing early literacy, instructional design, and school leadership. Jeff is the former director of instructional and informational technology for the NYCDOE. His work focuses on protecting the human foundations of learning while thoughtfully integrating emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence.

Jeff is also the creator of the AI, EI, O, and You framework, a practical model designed to help educators and leaders balance innovation with well-being, oral language development, and human agency.

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14 March 2026, 12:05 am

45 minutes 25 seconds

Ep. 81: Using AI to Grow MEGA Minds

In their ongoing FETC series, Nick and Marc sit down with Austin Levinson, Director of Learning at MEGAMINDS. They discuss the shifting landscape of edtech and how MegaMinds is leveraging artificial intelligence to create more meaningful learning experiences for students in schools.

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8 March 2026, 2:51 pm

11 minutes 10 seconds

Ep. 80: Champion of Teachers

First-timers at the FETC Annual Conference in Orlando, Nick and Marc got to meet many incredible educators from across the country. In this episode, they sit down with the incomparable Barbara Bray, who gushes about her love of teachers and addresses the importance of remembering your "why."

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18 February 2026, 6:31 pm