Trending In Ed with Mike Palmer

In this episode of Trending in Education, host Mike Palmer sits down with Sunanna Chand, Executive Director of the Reinvention Lab at Teach For America (TFA). As the leader of TFA’s future-of-learning R&D engine, Chand is tasked with a formidable challenge: bridging the gap between a 19th-century education system and the demands of the 21st-century world. The conversation explores the Lab’s "Radical Departures" framework, a mental model designed to shift the paradigm of how we define the why, what, where, and how of learning. Chand challenges the false dichotomy between academic rigor and student engagement, arguing for a "both/and" approach that prioritizes community achievement over individualized test scores. From exploring "credit flexibility" policies that allow students to learn outside school walls to reimagining the role of the educator in an AI-driven landscape, Chand offers a hopeful vision for a profession rooted in human connection and the "care economy". Key Takeaways Moving Beyond the "Banking Theory": Why the traditional model of a teacher delivering information to passive students is insufficient for a world where information is ubiquitous. Reimagining Chronic Absenteeism: How "present to learning by being absent from school" models allow students to gain graduation credit for interests pursued in their communities. The AI-Proof Profession: Why teaching remains a "smart bet" for the next generation, as neurobiological learning depends on human belonging and relational intelligence. The Educator as Orchestrator: A vision for the future where educators manage ecosystems of human support and AI agents rather than just delivering a curriculum. Why You Should Listen: If you are concerned about the current state of teacher burnout and student disengagement, this episode provides more than just a critique; it offers a roadmap for structural change. Sunanna Chand explains how the Reinvention Lab uses research and development to find the "future educator" and why the most valuable skills in an automated world—judgment, ethics, and care—are precisely those honed in the classroom. It is a deep dive into how we can use technology to reinvent rather than merely optimize an outdated system. Subscribe to ⁠Trending in Education⁠ wherever you get your podcasts to stay ahead of the curve on the future of learning. Time Stamps 00:00 - Intro and Sunanna’s background in Cleveland and Pittsburgh 05:45 - The Mission of the Reinvention Lab at Teach For America 07:55 - Radical Departures: Redefining the "Why" and "What" of learning 12:45 - Credit Flexibility: Learning outside the four walls of the classroom 15:35 - Breaking the false dichotomy of rigor vs. relevance 19:40 - The "With Whom": Reimagining the role of the educator in the age of AI 24:30 - Why teaching is a smart career bet for Gen Z 27:45 - Combatting burnout through human connection and "Ignite" tutoring 31:45 - Closing thoughts: Building an ecosystem of reinvention

Host Mike Palmer interviews Joshua Jones, CEO and Founder of QuantHub, an AI company focused on education and skills development. Jones, who previously co-founded the data science consulting firm StrategyWise, explains that QuantHub originated as an internal tool before spinning out to focus on delivering micro-learning chunks that target individual learners' specific needs. Jones offers sharp insights into the AI revolution: he argues that the focus has shifted from data science to tech literacy, including AI literacy, and understanding the "art of the possible." He emphasizes that successful AI implementation requires human factors and change management, noting that smart models will fail without proper "boots in the ground" support. Delving into the accelerating pace of change, Jones cites World Economic Forum data showing that critical thinking and creativity are increasing in importance for employers, while foundational skills like reading, writing, and math are decreasing. This suggests that understanding why you're using a tool is more critical than knowing the tool itself. The report also indicates that the structural job churn rate has jumped from an estimated 1% to about 4.5% per year, making continuous learning a necessity. Jones also tracks emerging technologies like quantum computing and robotics, predicting a significant market impact from 3D environment technologies around 2028. Here are the slides Josh references during the episode. Key Takeaways: - Skills Evolution: Critical thinking and tech literacy (including AI literacy) are becoming more valuable than specific technology skills as tools constantly change. - AI Implementation: Successful AI integration requires human support and change management; smart models can fail if people feeding them data don't understand the value of the technology. - Pace of Change: The speed of change in industry is quickening. The structural job churn rate has jumped from about 1% to about 4.5% per year, making continuous learning a necessity to keep up. - Learning Progression: Foundational data skills should be introduced in middle school, creating a path that extends through K-12, higher education, and professional development. Subscribe to Trending in Ed wherever you get your podcasts so you never miss an insightful conversation like this one. Time Stamps: 00:00 - Introduction to Josh Jones, CEO of QuantHub 07:54 - Leading QuantHub through Disruption and the Importance of Human Factors 16:40 - World Economic Forum: Shifting Importance of Skills 27:48 - Emerging Technologies: Quantum Computing and Robotics 38:00 - Closing Thoughts: The Compounding Effect of Continuous Learning

AI permeates K-12 education, but the rush to adopt new tools often bypasses critical questions about equity, bias, and human connection. On this episode of Trending in Education, host Mike Palmer sits down with Stephanie Smith Budhai and Marie K. Heath, co-authors of the new book Critical AI in K-12 Classrooms: A Practical Guide for Cultivating Justice and Joy. Together, they dismantle the "myth of inevitability" surrounding EdTech and explore how educators can reclaim agency in the face of rapid technological change with AI. From the historical resistance of Sojourner Truth to the concept of the classroom as a "Home Place," the conversation offers a refreshing, techno-skeptical framework that prioritizes student flourishing over big tech's framing. Key Takeaways: - Reframing the Narrative: Why "Justice and Joy" must remain central to education, ensuring schools are spaces of affirmation rather than just sites of data extraction. - The "Home Place" Concept: How bell hooks’ notion of a "Home Place" helps teachers create safe harbors where students can critically interrogate harmful AI outputs and resist standardized bias. - Sojourner Truth as Metaphor: A look at how Sojourner Truth co-opted and subverted the cartes de visites photography of her day to fund abolition—and how modern students and educators can similarly "sell the shadow to support the substance". - Pedagogies of Resistance: An overview of culturally sustaining, fugitive, and abolitionist pedagogies that equip teachers to challenge oppressive structures within AI and educational technology. - The Four Ps of Action: Practical steps for moving forward through Personal, Professional, Pedagogical, and Participatory action. Why You Should Listen: This conversation moves beyond the basic "how-to" of generative AI tools. Instead, it tackles the moral and ethical dimensions of bringing powerful, often biased technologies into the classroom. If you are an educator, administrator, or parent looking for a way to navigate the AI hype with your values intact, this episode provides the historical context and practical strategies needed to foster true digital agency. Like, Share, and Follow wherever you get your podcasts to stay ahead of the curve on the future of learning. Visit us at TrendinginEd.com for more. Time Stamps: [00:00] Intro: Criticality in the Age of AI [01:58] Stephanie’s Origin Story: From Nursing to EdTech [04:58] Marie’s Origin Story: Reluctant Teacher to Critical Scholar [09:25] Writing the Book: Centering Justice in Tech [11:20] Why Justice and Joy Matter [16:00] Bell Hooks and the Classroom as "Home Place" [20:30] Confronting AI Bias: The "High School Boy" Example [23:00] Sojourner Truth and Co-opting Biased Tech [29:00] The Myth of Inevitability: Do We Have to Use AI? [33:00] Culturally Sustaining, Fugitive, and Abolitionist Pedagogies [41:40] The 4 Ps: Taking Action Towards Just AI [44:00] Conclusion

Dr. Adam Gamwell returns to Trending in Education to explore the evolving collision of anthropology, artificial intelligence, and the human experience. Since his last appearance in 2019, the technological landscape has seen seismic transformations—from the pandemic to the explosion of generative AI. Host Mike Palmer and Adam discuss why the anthropological imagination is more critical than ever for navigating these changes. Adam details his transition from predicting trends to actively building AI tools with his organizations, Anthrocurious and Clueful. He argues that anthropologists must move beyond critique and become makers to ensure human context remains central to technological development. The conversation spans the fragmentation of modern culture, the "Prometheus moment" of AI adoption, and the challenge of maintaining epistemic security in an era of digital exhaust and "AI slop." Mike and Adam also tackle the personal side of the equation: parenting and education. They discuss the atrophy of critical thinking skills, the insights Western parents can learn from Maya and Inuit child-rearing practices, and the importance of designing "socio-petal" technologies that bring people together rather than driving them apart. Key Takeaways: - Anthropologists as Builders: Adam emphasizes the need for social scientists to get their hands dirty with code. By moving from pure critique to "vibe coding" and software development, anthropologists can bake human context and ethics into AI tools from the ground up. - The Fragmentation of Culture: The internet and algorithmic feeds have fractured the monoculture into isolated microcultures. Understanding this landscape requires using the very tools—AI and large-scale data analysis—that helped create the fragmentation in the first place. - Critical Thinking as Muscle Memory: Just as language acquisition changes after age five, critical thinking is a skill that can atrophy without practice. Over-reliance on generative AI in education risks weakening the cognitive muscles students need to evaluate truth and context. - Ancient Wisdom for Modern Parenting: Adam and Mike discuss the book Hunt, Gather, Parent and how indigenous practices of patience and autonomy offer a counter-narrative to the high-control, high-anxiety style of Western parenting in a digital age. Why You Should Listen: This episode offers a refreshing departure from the standard "robots will take our jobs" narrative. Instead, it provides a grounded, human-centric framework for understanding how we co-evolve with our tools. Whether you are an educator worried about AI plagiarism, a parent navigating screen time, or a tech enthusiast interested in how "thick data" can improve large language models, Adam’s insights bridge the gap between high-level academic theory and the practical realities of daily life. If you enjoy this conversation, please like, follow, and share Trending in Education wherever you get your podcasts. Timestamps: [00:00] Intro and welcome back to Dr. Adam Gamwell. [02:40] From predicting the future to building software: Anthropology meets AI. [07:45] Robots, agentic AI, and keeping humans in the loop. [11:00] Taste, community, and the human elements AI cannot automate. [13:30] Cultural fragmentation and the challenge of sensemaking. [21:10] The atrophy of critical thinking and the "training wheels" problem. [27:00] Parenting in the digital age: Lessons from Hunt, Gather, Parent. [34:00] "Socio-petal" vs. "Socio-fugal" technologies: Designing for connection. [36:00] Mindshare and Klu: Making academic research accessible to business. [41:00] Conclusion and takeaways.

In this special on-location episode, Mike Palmer visits the headquarters of The Urban Assembly (UA) in New York City’s Financial District to sit down with David Adams, CEO of The Urban Assembly and host of the Innovations in Education podcast. We explore how David and his team have evolved from designing 22 high-performing schools in NYC to "designing tools" that solve critical constraints in public education. David breaks down his "Theory of Constraints"—analyzing how barriers like time, knowledge, and resources limit school outcomes—and how UA is using Artificial Intelligence to dismantle them. The centerpiece of this innovation is Project CAFE (Classroom Automated Feedback Environment). David explains how this AI-powered tool acts as an "instant replay" for educators, allowing them to view 10-second clips of their own practice—such as questioning techniques or student talk time—without the high cost or pressure of traditional observation. By reducing the cost of feedback to roughly $150 per teacher, CAFE is flipping the script on professional development, moving from an "avalanche of evaluation" to a "drip, drip, drip of professional development". We also touch on the Urban Assembly’s impressive results, including a record-breaking 92.4% graduation rate, and how their focus on social-emotional learning (SEL) and workforce readiness is reshaping economic mobility for students. Key Takeaways: - From Schools to Tools: How UA supports its network of 22 schools while building scalable solutions for the broader education system. - Project CAFE: An inside look at the AI tool that automates observation, offering private, low-stakes feedback for teachers to improve their "game tape". - The Theory of Constraints: Using AI to reduce the "time tax" on learning outcomes and instructional coaching. - Workforce Readiness: How "CounselorGPT" and Career and Technical Education (CTE) pathways are moving students from "guessing to guidance" regarding the labor market. - Record-Breaking Outcomes: Discussing the 92.4% graduation rate and the 100% success rate at the Urban Assembly Institute for Math and Science for Young Women. Next Step for You: Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. Visit us at TrendinginEd.com for more.