Episodes

Anthony Mackay is joined by Arne Duncan, former Secretary of Education during the Obama administration. Duncan highlights the power of education and its role in strengthening our nation’s democracy. Duncan identifies what he calls “nation-building goals” that the U.S. should focus on that include: improving access to high-quality pre-K; increasing the national high school graduation rate to 90 percent and incrementally working toward 100 percent; and boosting the rate of college completion. He also details the critical importance of providing equitable supports in U.S. schools, saying that the students most affected by the coronavirus pandemic should be given the time, technology, and talent they need to thrive.

For the first Global Ed Talks interview of 2021, Anthony Mackay is joined by James Pellegrino, founding co-director of the University of Illinois at Chicago’s (UIC) interdisciplinary Learning Sciences Research Institute, and member of NCEE’s Board of Trustees. Pellegrino’s research and development interests focus on children’s and adult’s thinking and learning and the implications of cognitive research and theory for assessment and instructional practice. During the interview, Pellegrino and Mackay discuss how people learn and the “deep learning debate.” Pellegrino also shares his views on the future of assessment of student learning in the U.S. and associated policy implications.

In the final Global Ed Talks of 2020, Anthony Mackay is joined by John White, co-founder and board chairman of Propel America and member of NCEE’s Board of Trustees. Mackay and White reflect on the unprecedented year that was 2020, make predictions for 2021, and discuss how the incoming Biden administration can create a positive, lasting impact on education in the US for years to come. During the interview, White, who previously served as the Louisiana State Superintendent of Education as well as Deputy Chancellor for the New York City Department of Education, details what he views as the highest priority items of an education change agenda that responds to the initial crisis caused by the pandemic but also has a long-term system-wide focus.

Dr. Aaron Thompson is president of the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education (CPE) and a member of NCEE’s Board of Trustees. A first-generation college student, Dr. Thompson works to ensure all Kentuckians have an equal opportunity to improve their lives through postsecondary education. During this interview, Dr. Thompson shares insights from his recently released co-authored book, Implementing Innovative Leadership in an Inclusive Learning Environment, that provides educational leaders with ­effective, research-based strategies for delivering culturally competent, responsive, and inclusive school leadership. Dr. Thompson also highlights a four-step process to be used to implement and assess culturally competent leadership: awareness, acknowledgement, acceptance and action, which he refers to as “A4th.”

The Honourable Patricia HEKIA Parata, former Minister of Education for New Zealand and member of NCEE’s International Advisory Board, discusses the politics of education in a pre- and post-COVID world and the importance of equity in education. She also highlights the important roles differentiation and personalization will play in teaching and learning in post-COVID schooling. Parata’s previous experience as a policy analyst and politician, and her current roles, amongst others, as an International Advisor to the Supreme Council for Education, Development and Training Kingdom of Bahrain and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, allow her multiple perspectives on education reform.

James Spillane is Professor in Learning and Organizational Change at the School of Education and Social Policy at Northwestern University. His work explores the education policy formulation and implementation process at the state, district, school, and classroom levels, focusing on intergovernmental and policy-practice relations. During the interview, Spillane proposes a multilevel framing of educational leadership, arguing for more expansive notions about leadership in the educational sector that reach beyond person and place to embrace a system-wide outlook.

Recognized as an international authority on educational reform and co-director of the New Pedagogies for Deep Learning global initiative, Michael Fullan discusses the intersection of system leadership, deep learning and equity. During the interview, Fullan, the former dean of the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) and professor emeritus of the University of Toronto, shares insights from his recent book, The Devil Is in the Details: System Solutions for Equity, Excellence, and Student Well-being, and highlights opportunities for deeper learning presented by the coronavirus pandemic.

Andreas Schleicher, director of Education and Skills at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and former member of CIEB’s International Advisory Board, on how education systems across the globe are responding to the coronavirus and how the pandemic may impact the future of teaching and learning. Schleicher also talks about redesigning education systems for a future AI world and explore how AI can be used to more productively support 21st century learners.