Families’ choice of school for their children is not the only kind of choice that matters educationally. It may well not be the most important kind, either. We heard from parents in Episode 4 who were concerned with whether or not their kids learned to think and act for themselves, and in the process, to take responsibility for who they were in the world. What do educators think about this?

When educators wrestle with questions of student choice and responsibility, the differences revolve around when and how much -- and almost never about whether choice and responsibility matter. But the broad strokes of what we know are clear in research and in our discussion here: choice motivates student interest and effort, choice forms the ground for taking responsibility, and choice is both ground for and marker of shared life in a democratic community.

00:00 Introduction to the Second Season Dr. Barbara Stengel

01:24 Choice generates motivation, responsibility, and democracy Stengel

03:51 Introductions Anna Bernstein, middle level English teacher/coach; Sara Sjerven, independent school English teacher/coach; Liz Self, high school English teacher

08:11 So what about choice? Links to teachers’ autonomy, curricular constraints and self-censorship Bernstein, Stengel, Sjerven

17:07 Choice as simple respect for students Self

21:50 Choice is both challenging and necessary for learning Bernstein, Sjerven

26:18 Why choice? Community of learners Stengel, Sjerven

30:10 Why choice? Other people in all their glory! Self

33:30 Why choice? The purpose of public school in a democracy Bernstein, Stengel

36:55 Bring on responsibility (gender, time, desire, perspective) Self, Stengel, Sjerven

41:35 Whose choices? Whose agency? Whose responsibility? Sjerven, Stengel

44:30 Disillusionment is understandable; is response possible? Bernstein

46:55 What’s privilege got to do with it? Students’ economic value Sjerven, Stengel,

50:03 Does responsibility precede choice? Sjerven, Bernstein

53:16 The continuous enlargement of the space of the possible Self

56:40 Supports for teachers who design for choice? Stengel, Bernstein, Sjerven,

63:39 Community, creativity and trust for teachers Stengel

66:20 This is the end of Season 2. Join us in the fall for Season 3!

Many thanks to the committed and accomplished teachers who agreed to inform our thinking for this episode! These include Anna Bernstein, Sara Sjerven, and Liz Self.

As usual, there are references to a variety of social, educational and historical news and commentary. You can pursue our sources and find out more about these issues at our website:

www.chasingbaileypod.com.

Folks have been debating how to teach reading at least since 1985. At that time, the issue was framed as top-down vs. bottom-up.

This makes the debate seem “tidy,” just two sides with clear delineation. You were FOR phonics (bottom up) or you were FOR textual understanding (top down), but you couldn’t be for both. In truth, there were no teachers then or now who don’t value both, who don’t tailor their teaching to the instructional moment of their students, individually and collectively.

Well, we’re at the reading wars again, but the slogan now is “the science of reading” and all the educational reformers are hopping on the bandwagon. In this episode, we ask teachers to make sense of the science of reading and what it has to do with the real challenges and real joys in helping youngsters become readers.

00:00 Introduction to the Second Season Dr. Barbara Stengel

01:24 The “Reading Wars” are back!! Stengel

04:24 DC teacher Katie Mazenko on complexity and challenge Mazenko; Stengel

07:42 Is balance bad?? How to get skill, will and thrill. Stengel; Sara Abu Rumman, IN public school literacy coach

11:49 A new teacher faces the challenge Maddie Bernards, 1st grade teacher in CA; Stengel

14:14 What’s developmentally “normal” in reading development? Stengel; Mazenko; Sarah Ockenhouse, 3rd grade Nashville teacher

19:08 Joy in skill development and watching kids become readers Stengel; Ockenhouse

21:10 And why test scores don’t reflect actual development? Stengel; Ockenhouse

22:20 What do reading researchers think? Don’t legislate! Stengel

23:25 Understanding the value of phonics in learning to read Stengel; Cara Furman, Hunter College

30:10 Juggling the different needs of youngsters learning to read Stengel; Furman

33:04 The important of teacher autonomy in teaching reading Stengel; Krystal Dillard, co-Director,

38:41 Curriculum and materials that encourage reading and readers Stengel; Dillard

40:54 Structured literacy is back! In a context of external controls Stengel; Ocheze Joseph, Director of Teacher Education, American University

45:20 (How) Are novice teachers prepared to take this on? Stengel; Ockenhouse; Bernards

48:50 Can the system shift to make first rate reading instruction possible for all? Stengel, Bernards; Abu Rumman;

55:01 What motivates the slogan “science of reading”? Maybe money, maybe politics Stengel; Dillard

56:28 Relationships and teacher judgment in the face of a “manufactured crisis”: the Chasing Bailey touchstone Stengel

59:16 Join us next time to think about choice as it impacts concrete interactions between teachers and students (and yes, parents too!)

Many thanks to the guests who agreed to inform our thinking for this episode! These include Katelyn Mazenko, Sara Abu Rumman, Maddie Bernards, Dr. Cara Furman, Krystal Dillard, Sarah Ockenhouse, and Dr. Ocheze Joseph.

As usual, there are references to a variety of social, educational and historical news and commentary. You can pursue our sources and find out more about these issues at our website:

www.chasingbaileypod.com.

Today we don’t talk enough about John Dewey’s call to educational equity and its impact on democracy. Instead, small groups of parents (most notably Moms for Liberty) are prompting battles in local school boards to ban books, to fight racially inclusive curriculum, and to limit the rights and constrain the very existence of transgender and questioning youth.

But some other parents – the majority it seems -- are fighting back to say clearly that these are not concerns they care about. What DO they care about? If this episode’s guests are taken seriously, families care about their children’s happiness, curiosity, safety, diversity, relationships – and recess!! It’s not that they don’t want academic learning for their youngsters, but they seem to understand … as most educators do, that happiness, curiosity, etc. will ensure the right academic achievement to power both economic capacity and living well.

00:00 Introduction to the Second Season Dr. Barbara Stengel

01:24 What do we mean when we invoke parents rights? Stengel

04:29 Grandmas for Love challenge Moms for Liberty Stengel; Dr. Shirley Showalter, former President of Goshen College

11:57 Do other parents agree with Grandmas for Love? It seems so! Stengel

12:15 The special view of parents in rural areas Amanda West, expectant mother and Bailey resident; Stengel

18:04 Supporting the Bailey grad who now has adult responsibilities Ithaca Black, Bailey parent and mother of Maia; Stengel

22:40 Committing to the “neediest” neighborhood school Christiane Buggs, President of the MNPS School Board and mother of Christopher; Stengel

29:50 What to do about school when your kids need very different things? Liz Self, educator and mother of Oliver, Emme, and Zola; Stengel

39:32 How a child with multiple disabilities shapes everybody’s experience Becky Peterson, educator and mother of Finn, Hawk, and Lucy; Stengel

47:44 Use the PTA as an entrée to care for your kids Jess Houde, educator and mother of three enrolled in the same district; Stengel

53:33 What do dads want? Stu Smith, father of Stuie and Alana and Johnny Benson, father of Bailey and Jojo; Stengel

1:01.58 What parents want … no surprise Stengel

1:03:00 The link between love and success/achievement Showalter, Stengel

1:04:40 Taking an alternate look at the whys and wherefores of parental choice

1:06:15 Join us next time to dive into “the science of reading.”

Many thanks to the guests who agreed to inform our thinking for this episode! These include Shirley Showalter, Amanda West, Ithaca Black, Christiane Buggs, Liz Self, Becky Peterson, Johnny Benson, and Stu Smith.

As usual, there are references to a variety of social, educational and historical news and commentary. You can pursue our sources and find out more about these issues at our website:

www.chasingbaileypod.com.