The Cult of Pedagogy Podcast

107: The Best Ways to Use Leveled Texts

21 Oct 2018

Contributed by Lukas

There's a lot of confusion about how to use leveled texts in the classroom. In this episode, I interview literacy expert Jen Serravallo about the mist...

106: The Danger of Teacher Nostalgia

07 Oct 2018

Contributed by Lukas

When we blame our teaching problems on the collective inferiority of a generation, we only make things worse. In this episode, we explore the problem ...

105: Voice of Witness: Bring the Power of Oral History to Your Classroom

23 Sep 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Voice of Witness is an organization that curates oral histories, stories told by people whose voices are rarely heard: Migrant workers. Refugees. Pris...

104: What the Research Says About Note-Taking

09 Sep 2018

Contributed by Lukas

In classrooms all over the world, students take notes every day. What does academic research tell us about the best ways to use note-taking in our cla...

103: Deeper Class Discussions with the TQE Method

26 Aug 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Want your students to have rich, complex discussions about the texts they read? In this episode, high school English teacher Marisa Thompson shares a ...

102: A Look Inside a Teacher Fellowship Program

12 Aug 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Imagine a professional development scenario where you are given funding, choice, and time to collaborate with others in your specialty area who energi...

101: A Step-by-Step Plan for Teaching Narrative Writing

29 Jul 2018

Contributed by Lukas

The ability to tell a good story is one of the things that makes human beings extraordinary. Here's the process I used to teach my own students how to...

100: Lessons in Personhood

22 Jul 2018

Contributed by Lukas

To mark the milestone of 100 episodes, I'm sharing one of my favorite posts, Lessons in Personhood: 10 Ways to Truly Lead in Your Classroom. Thank yo...

99: Quality-Check Your Tech: 6 Strategies

15 Jul 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Is your tech tool doing the work you think it is? Or could it actually be widening the same gaps you're trying to close? In this episode we explore t...

98: Improving the Way We Teach About Slavery

17 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

American Slavery is a difficult topic to teach, and for decades, we haven't been doing a very good job of teaching it. In this episode, I interview hi...

97: The Principal's Pet: A Cautionary Tale

03 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

No one likes it when an administrator plays favorites. But what if the favorite is you? In this episode, I share a story about one of the most difficu...

96: What's the Point of a Makerspace?

20 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

If you're like me, you've been a little slow to warm up to the idea of makerspaces in the classroom. In this episode, John Spencer helps me understand...

95: Twelve Ways Teachers Can Build Their Emotional Resilience

06 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

To do this work and stick with it long enough to get good at it, you need a level of emotional resilience most other jobs will never require. In this ...

94: How accurate are your grades?

22 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Grades impact everything from college admissions to whether students get to go on certain field trips. With so much at stake, how can we make sure our...

93: Eight Things I Know for Sure About Middle School Kids

08 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Middle school students are a special breed, and I was lucky to teach them for years. In this episode, I'll share my own advice about what makes them t...

92: Frickin' Packets

27 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Are your worksheets contributing to meaningful learning, or just keeping students busy?

91: Twelve Ways to Upgrade Your Classroom Design

18 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Money and space are nice, but they are NOT prerequisites for learning-friendly design. In this interview with learning space expert Bob Dillon, we exp...

90: OMG Becky. PD is Getting SO MUCH BETTER.

04 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

The sit-and-get, one-size-fits-all model is disappearing. Taking its place are these 9 alternative models for teacher professional development.

90: OMG Becky. PD has gotten SO MUCH BETTER.

04 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

The sit-and-get, one-size-fits-all model is disappearing. Taking its place are these 9 alternative models for teacher professional development.

89: Restorative Justice in School: An Overview

18 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

With its focus on building relationships and repairing harm, rather than simply punishing students for misbehavior, restorative justice is being adopt...

88: Are you a curator or a dumper?

04 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

You have so much good stuff to share, but to get anyone to actually look at it, you need to give it some polish. In this episode, we look at why the ...

87: Moving from Feedback to Feedforward

21 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Traditional feedback looks back on a past that can't be changed, and that's one reason it isn't always well-received. But when we shift to a practice ...

86: Six Ed Tech Tools to Try in 2018

07 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

One of them is super trendy. One takes you into the past. Three can be used in a dozen different ways. And one you're going to want to try right away....

85: The Magic of Validation

18 Dec 2017

Contributed by Lukas

In schools, where our work demands constant interaction with other people, conflicts are always waiting to happen. By practicing validation with our s...

84: How to Stop Killing the Love of Reading w/Pernille Ripp

03 Dec 2017

Contributed by Lukas

In an effort to boost test scores and close gaps, too many schools are using more reading "activities and programs" and cutting back on time for actua...

83: What is an Innovation Class?

19 Nov 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Most of us recognize that schools need to change to meet the demands of the information age, but we don't have many models to follow for making that c...

82: Making School a Safe Place for LGBTQ Students

05 Nov 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Discrimination and harassment are still a daily reality for many LGBTQ students. In this episode, I share 9 specific things teachers can do to help th...

81: The Great and Powerful Graphic Organizer

22 Oct 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Graphic organizers can pack a strong instructional punch if you know how to use them. In this episode I review the research on why graphic organizers ...

80: When Students Won't Stop Talking

08 Oct 2017

Contributed by Lukas

One thing they don't teach in our education courses is just how freaking much students talk, and how hard it can be to quiet them down. To tackle thi...

79: Retrieval Practice: The Most Powerful Learning Strategy You're Not Using

24 Sep 2017

Contributed by Lukas

The research is clear: Retrieval practice is one of the most powerful ways to learn. In this episode, I talk to Pooja Agarwal about what retrieval pra...

78: Four Misconceptions About Culturally Responsive Teaching

10 Sep 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Some teachers think they're practicing culturally responsive teaching, when in fact, they're kind of not. In this episode, I interview Zaretta Hammond...

77: What Teachers Want Administrators to Know

05 Sep 2017

Contributed by Lukas

After years of hearing teachers' stories, I have reached the conclusion that there is one element that makes the difference in whether the teachers in...

76: When Your School is Short on Tech

27 Aug 2017

Contributed by Lukas

From work-arounds to fundraising to Wi-Fi on the bus, this episode explores 11 creative ways schools are addressing the digital divide.

75: Making the Most of a 90-Minute Block Class

13 Aug 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Whether you're brand-new to block scheduling or you've been doing it for years, this episode will have you handling those 90 minutes like a boss.

74: How to Deal with Student Grammar Errors

30 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Teaching grammar in isolation is not only ineffective, it can actually make student writing worse. So when students make mistakes, what should teacher...

73: How One Teacher Started an Urban Gardening Revolution

16 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

You thought you knew project-based learning? You haven't seen anything yet. In this episode, I interview Stephen Ritz, a Bronx teacher who has spent t...

72: What is an educator mastermind, and why should you join one?

02 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Educators, especially those in leadership roles, spend far too much time in isolation. An educator mastermind gives us a group of peers to help us pro...

71: Why It's So Hard for Teachers to Take Care of Themselves

19 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Why is it that so many teachers have a hard time taking good care of themselves? In this episode, I interview teacher productivity expert Angela Watso...

70: How HyperDocs Can Transform Your Teaching

11 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

By using HyperDocs, digital lesson plans that pull together all of a lesson's resources into one place, teachers can make room for more interactive, ...

69: Three Surprising Reasons Students Don't Get into Top Colleges

21 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

For many students, getting into a highly competitive college drives most decisions about where to spend their time and energy. But what if some of t...

68: Twelve Ways to Support English Learners in the Mainstream Classroom

07 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

So many teachers have English language learners in class, but the teachers have no training in how to support them. In this episode, I gather tips fro...

67: What to Do on Lame Duck School Days

23 Apr 2017

Contributed by Lukas

The last day before vacation. After-testing days. The day when the fire drill messes up your plans. What do you do when class is in session, but actua...

66: Why Curation Should be Your Next Class Project

15 Apr 2017

Contributed by Lukas

A digital curation project is a fast way to engage critical thinking in any content area. In this episode, I explain how it works. For links to all t...

65: Five Ways College Teachers Can Improve Their Instruction

26 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Most people who teach at the college level do so without any formal training. In this episode, Norman Eng, author of Teaching College: The Ultimate Gu...

64: Four Ways Teachers Can Support Students of Color

12 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

In far too many cases, schools do not support students of color in ways that help them grow to their full potential. My guest, Dena Simmons, shares fo...

63: Teaching Students to Avoid Plagiarism

26 Feb 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Plagiarism is a serious problem for many teachers, and to beat it, we need to go beyond looking for new ways to threaten, catch, and punish students f...

62: 21st Century Learning at the Apollo School

12 Feb 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Many of us like the idea of personalized learning, but we don't have many models for making it happen. In this episode, I interview the founders of t...

61: Seven Systems that Work for Outside-the-Box Learners

29 Jan 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Most teachers struggle with what they might call lazy, unmotivated, or disorganized students. What really works with these learners? In this episode, ...

60: Six Ed Tech Tools to Try in 2017

22 Jan 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Here they are: My six favorite ed tech tools for this year. They are not all brand-new, but I don't think any of them are getting the attention they d...

59: Runaway Youth: How Teachers Can Help

01 Jan 2017

Contributed by Lukas

How significant is the runaway problem in the U.S.? What resources are out there to prevent running away and help those who do it? I interview Maureen...

58: Six Powerful Learning Strategies You MUST Share with Students

11 Dec 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Can studying be taught? I interview cognitive psychologists Megan Smith and Yana Weinstein about six high-power, research-based learning strategies mo...

57: Nine Simple Solutions for Common Teaching Problems

27 Nov 2016

Contributed by Lukas

This episode is a goody bag for everyone! My buddy Mark Barnes, publisher of the Hack Learning series, shares some of the best ideas from all nine of...

56: Creating a Welcoming Classroom for Special Ed Students

20 Nov 2016

Contributed by Lukas

So many regular ed teachers feel inadequately prepared to serve the needs of students with special needs. In this episode, special educator Jam Gamble...

55: Your Top 10 Genius Hour Questions Answered

06 Nov 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Genius Hour has exploded in classrooms over the last few years, and teachers who want to try it have a lot of questions. In this episode I ask A.J. J...

54: Is Your Lesson a Grecian Urn?

30 Oct 2016

Contributed by Lukas

I've got a bit of a rant to share with you in this episode, and it has something to do with Grecian Urns. Chances are you have one or more of these in...

53: How to Approach Your Teaching Like a Master Chef

16 Oct 2016

Contributed by Lukas

If we want to make our content really relevant to students, we need to design our instruction the way a chef orchestrates a good meal. Rather than giv...

52: Is Your Classroom Academically Safe?

02 Oct 2016

Contributed by Lukas

So much of learning depends on whether your students feel comfortable taking risks. In this episode, I share some suggestions for making your classroo...

51: CommonLit's Online Library of Free Texts

18 Sep 2016

Contributed by Lukas

If you're always looking for short, high-quality informational and literary texts to use in your classroom, you are going to love the free online libr...

50: Using Playlists to Differentiate Instruction

04 Sep 2016

Contributed by Lukas

If you're trying to figure out an easy way to manage differentiated instruction, this episode will be a big help. Teacher Tracy Enos explains how she ...

49: How Dialogue Journals Build Teacher-Student Relationships

21 Aug 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Dialogue journals are a simple but powerful tool for building trust with your students and sustaining that relationship all year long. In this episode...

48: Implementing a Classroom Management Plan that Works

07 Aug 2016

Contributed by Lukas

An interview with Michael Linsin, creator of the Smart Classroom Management website. Michael shares his insights about how to design and implement an...

47: Black Girls and School: We Can Do Better

03 Jul 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Are we meeting the needs of black girls in our schools? In this interview with author Monique Morris, we talk about her book Pushout: The Criminalizat...

46: The Gut-Level Teacher Reflection

05 Jun 2016

Contributed by Lukas

If you're trying to figure out exactly what you need to improve about your teaching, it helps to listen to your body. In this episode, I walk you thr...

45: Ten Ways to Sabotage Your Classroom Management

26 May 2016

Contributed by Lukas

If you're finding that your classroom management seems to be a problem no matter what you do, there's a good chance you might be doing something to ge...

44: Bring Podcasts Into Your Classroom with Listen Current

15 May 2016

Contributed by Lukas

If you've ever thought about using podcasts as classroom texts, but didn't have time to find the right ones, you're going to be blown away by Liste...

43: How to Make Better Use of Twitter

01 May 2016

Contributed by Lukas

For educators, Twitter is part of an essential 21st century toolkit, but so many people don't know how to use it well. In this episode, I share si...

42: Kindergarten Redshirting

24 Apr 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Many parents opt to "redshirt" or delay their child's entrance into kindergarten. This practice is generally seen as beneficial to a child's success ...

41: Student-Made E-Books

11 Apr 2016

Contributed by Lukas

When choosing end-of-unit or end-of-year assessments, we often fall back on essays, presentations, or tests. In this episode, I'll teach you how your...

40: How to Stop Yelling at Your Students

03 Apr 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Do you yell at your students (or your own children) more often than you want to? I'll share some techniques that can help you stop yelling, and the r...

39: How to Plan Outstanding Tech Training for Teachers

20 Mar 2016

Contributed by Lukas

What are the best practices in tech training for teachers? In this episode, I interview three technology integration specialists to hear what they'v...

38: The Library that Increased Student Use by 1,000 Percent

06 Mar 2016

Contributed by Lukas

To adapt to changing student needs, some school libraries are reinventing themselves as makerspaces. But the principal of one Ohio middle school had s...

37: How to Motivate Students: Five Questions for Teachers

20 Feb 2016

Contributed by Lukas

If we know what works to motivate students, why are so many students still unmotivated? These five questions will help you determine if your practice ...

36: How I Teach Argumentative Writing

08 Feb 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Hundreds of thousands of teachers are required to teach students the art of argumentative or persuasive writing. As an experienced writing teacher, I ...

35: Six Ed Tech Tools to Try in 2016

25 Jan 2016

Contributed by Lukas

While working on the update of my book, The Teacher's Guide to Tech, I learned about a whole lot of tools that can make your teaching more efficient a...

34: Starting a Teaching Job in the Middle of the School Year

09 Jan 2016

Contributed by Lukas

So you got a new teaching job. Congratulations! The only catch is, you're starting in the middle of the year. This survival guide will help you figure...

33: Five Powerful Ways to Save Time as a Teacher

26 Dec 2015

Contributed by Lukas

Teachers never seem to be able to find enough time to get their work done AND have a healthy, balanced life outside of school. And until now, I had ve...

32: How and Why We Should Let Our Students Fail

12 Dec 2015

Contributed by Lukas

Is it better to rescue our kids every time they make mistakes, or let them experience the consequences of their actions? In this episode, I interview ...

31: The Power of Being a Dork

25 Nov 2015

Contributed by Lukas

Can being more dorky make you a better teacher? Can it make the world a better place? I say yes.

30: How One Teacher Manages a Self-Paced Class

12 Nov 2015

Contributed by Lukas

Is it possible to differentiate instruction so that students truly move at their own pace? My guest, middle school math teacher Natalie McCutchen, exp...

29: Four Things I've Learned About Teaching from CrossFit

29 Oct 2015

Contributed by Lukas

What can CrossFit, a fitness movement that is quickly growing in popularity, teach us about learning and motivation? As a new and very low-level stude...

28: Class Discussion Strategies

15 Oct 2015

Contributed by Lukas

Do you need some fresh ideas for class discussions? When it comes to helping students practice speaking listening skills, are you stuck? In this episo...

27: Interview with an Instructional Coach, Part 2

01 Oct 2015

Contributed by Lukas

What is it like to be an instructional coach? To learn more about the challenges of instructional coaching, I asked two coaches to explain what they ...

26: Interview with an Instructional Coach, Part 1

01 Oct 2015

Contributed by Lukas

What is it like to be an instructional coach? To learn more about the challenges of instructional coaching, I asked two coaches to explain what they ...

25: When a Student Hates You

16 Sep 2015

Contributed by Lukas

Despite our best intentions, sometimes teachers make decisions that alienate students beyond repair. In this episode, I share stories of mistakes I ma...

24: Five Teaching Practices I'm Kicking to the Curb

03 Sep 2015

Contributed by Lukas

Are any of these ineffective teaching methods still part of your practice? I have done them all, but now I know better. In this episode, I'll explain ...

23: How We Say Our Students' Names...and Why It Matters

19 Aug 2015

Contributed by Lukas

Every teacher has had students whose names are hard to pronounce. Some of us shrug this off, saying we're just no good with names, or we give our stu...

22: Three Hacks that Solve Big School Problems

05 Aug 2015

Contributed by Lukas

When we try to solve school problems with committee meetings, district-wide initiatives and new policies, change can be slow as molasses. But we are ...

21: Make It Stick Author Peter Brown

15 Jul 2015

Contributed by Lukas

Are we taking the wrong approach to learning? The book "Make It Stick" presents new research that shows how some of our most common studying and teach...

20: Dogfooding

10 Jun 2015

Contributed by Lukas

What is dogfooding, and why do teachers need it? In the Season 1 finale, we explore the essential practice of doing your own assignments -- to find ...

19: Goal-Setting for Teachers

27 May 2015

Contributed by Lukas

The list of ways a teacher can improve is a mile long. Since you can't do it all at once, here are eight paths you might take toward professional grow...

18: How Ordinary Teachers Become Activists

09 May 2015

Contributed by Lukas

A lot has changed in education over the last decade, and many teachers will tell you those changes have not been good for anyone, least of all studen...

17: Tools that Help Students Follow their Passions

25 Apr 2015

Contributed by Lukas

Not long ago, if you wanted to record and distribute music, publish a book, produce a film, sell your art, or reach an audience with your voice, you...

16: Job Interview Advice for Teachers

08 Apr 2015

Contributed by Lukas

Are you preparing for a teaching job interview? In this episode, I talk to five experienced administrators about the things prospective teachers shoul...

15: A Teacher's Coming Out Story

25 Mar 2015

Contributed by Lukas

After teaching elementary school for years without revealing that she was gay, Jessica Lifshitz finally decided it was time to come out at school when...

14: Seven Easy Ways to Support Student Writing in Any Content Area

06 Mar 2015

Contributed by Lukas

Helping students improve their writing skills is no longer solely reserved for English language arts teachers; educators in all content areas are expe...

13: Could You Teach Without Grades?

20 Feb 2015

Contributed by Lukas

This year, Starr Sackstein made a drastic change in her high school English and journalism classes: After years of feeling as if students cared more a...

12: How Your Nonverbals Impact Your Teaching

06 Feb 2015

Contributed by Lukas

How important are nonverbals when it comes to your effectiveness as a teacher? In this episode, I talk with Teaching for Success CEO Jack Shrawder a...

11: Avoiding the "Wait 'Till Your Father Gets Home" Trap

25 Jan 2015

Contributed by Lukas

For some teachers, it has become a habit to send the majority of discipline problems elsewhere: Either we write up an office referral, threaten to cal...

10: In Praise of Think-Pair-Share

12 Jan 2015

Contributed by Lukas

Sometimes the simplest techniques are the most effective. Think-Pair-Share is a humble but powerful teaching strategy that's due for some attention. ...

9: How to Connect with Your Students

17 Dec 2014

Contributed by Lukas

How important is the relationship you build with your students, and how can you make that relationship better? James Sturtevant, author of the book Yo...