Podagogy

It's been fun, everybody, but summer is upon us – it's time to say goodbye to season 1 of Podagogy! Before we head off, though, tune in for our final thoughts on what this project has meant to us, what topics we still want to cover, and also some exciting news about our plans for next year. Thanks for listening, everybody!

This week, after your hosts both reveal some past indiscretions, we dive into the topic of academic integrity: why is it that so many students are driven to cheat? How rigorously do we as teachers search out moments when our students have cheated? And what do we do when we find those moments?

This week, we give an argument for one of our favorite texts to read with high-schoolers: Curtis Sittenfeld's novel "Prep". It may not seem like it fits in with "The Odyssey" or "Romeo and Juliet", but we love the conversations it generates in class, and we love the self-reflection it encourages in our students. Listen in for our thoughts on this non-traditional choice – it's become a staple in our syllabi!

Sometimes, students say that they feel "stuck" at a certain grade – no matter how hard they work on a given assignment, they claim, they'll still end up with the same grade as they always get. This week on Podagogy, we investigate this phenomenon: are there things we do that can make students feel stuck? How fair are our grading practices, really? Get ready for some vulnerable moments, folks!

This week, your Podagogy hosts take a field trip to our school's new i.d.Lab, our very own MakerSpace. We'll give you a virtual tour of the lab, and then we'll brainstorm some ways to use such a space in our English classes. How much of a difference does location really make in the kind of learning that happens? And why, according to one of your hosts, is foam core an extremely important teaching tool?

This week, Laura and Austin debate the merits of homework. How much should we be giving? What kinds of work should we be asking our students to complete on our own? And the risky question: is homework even necessary at all?

This week, we are so excited to welcome Michael Godsey as our special guest! Michael teaches English in San Luis Obispo, CA, and he's written several articles on education for The Atlantic. We were so inspired by his latest article, "The Value of Using Podcasts in Class," that we reached out and asked if he would call in as a guest on Podagogy. Read his article first (http://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2016/03/the-benefits-of-podcasts-in-class/473925/), and then take a listen! And thanks so much to Michael for joining us this week – you can find more information about him on his website, www.mrgodsey.com. Stay tuned through the very end of the episode... you won't want to miss the last few seconds!

We're back from our spring hiatus! In this episode, we welcome longtime Podagogy fan Tom White as our guest. In his role as our school's Director of Faculty Development, Tom's been thinking a lot about what faculty members can be working on outside the classroom to improve what happens inside the classroom. Give us a listen!