Discover How Natural Patterns Can Transform Teaching & Student Growth with Gwyneth Hagan
Schoolutions: Curious Educators. Evidence-Based Strategies. Classrooms Where Every Child Thrives.
01/20/25
•42m
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In this episode, I speak with educator, designer, and facilitator Gwyneth Hagan about transforming education from a traditional factory model to what she beautifully describes as a forest model. Drawing on patterns found in nature, Gwyneth shares powerful insights about creating more organic, interconnected learning systems that honor both educators' and students' natural growth processes.
Key Topics Discussed:
- Moving beyond the factory model of education to embrace a more ecosystem-based approach
- How natural patterns like spirals, waves, and fractals can inform better learning design
- Why educators need to experience the same wonder-filled, permission-free learning they want to create for students
Gwyneth also shares her personal journey of incorporating poetry and natural observation into her professional work, challenging traditional boundaries between artistic and educational practices. The episode concludes with her moving poem "Small Things," which beautifully encapsulates her philosophy of taking time to notice and appreciate the smaller moments in learning and life.
Gwyneth's Substack, Starting Small & Recommendations:
- Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer
- Design for Belonging by Susie Wise
- Emergent Strategy by adrienne maree brown
- Letters from the Future (of Learning) by Sam Chaltain
When coaches, teachers, administrators, and families work hand in hand, it fosters a school atmosphere where everyone is inspired and every student is fully engaged in their learning journey.
Previous Episode
In this bonus episode of Schoolutions: Coaching and Teaching Strategies, I follow up on my conversation with Leah Mermelstein and Dr. Jennifer Gioia (S4E19) to explore critical aspects of educational support systems. The episode breaks down three main areas:
✨Recent developments in tutoring programs, including insights from a 2024 New York Times article (With Speech to Teachers, Harris Waded into a Fiery Education Debate) about Kamala Harris's education stance and challenges highlighted in The Hechinger Report (Students aren’t benefiting much from tutoring, one new study shows) about scaling tutoring effectively.
➡️P-3 Literacy Instructional best practices guide
✨An in-depth exploration of John Sweller's Cognitive Load Theory and its practical classroom applications (Cognitive Load Theory: A Practical Guide And Tips For Teachers), including:
➡️The relationship between sensory, short-term, and long-term memory
➡️Understanding working memory's limited capacity (5-9 pieces of information for ~30 seconds)
➡️Practical tips for teachers to reduce cognitive load
➡️Strategies for students to optimize their learning environment
✨ An introduction to MagicSchool, a free AI tool for educators that offers:
➡️Rubric generation
➡️Automated feedback assistance
➡️Text-dependent question creation
➡️AI-resistant assignment development
➡️Creation of exemplar and non-exemplar responses
#EducatorPodcast #LiteracyEducation #StudentSupport #TeacherPD #ReadingInstruction #SchoolPsychologist #EquitableEducation #TeacherCollaboration #LearningSupport #OrthographicMapping #EducationalTeams #FamilyEngagement #InclusiveEducation #LiteracyCoach #ReadingSpecialist #StudentSuccess #SchoolLeadership #InterventionStrategies #teamworkmakesthedreamwork
👉Check out my episode with Leah and Jen here: (https://youtu.be/Yc-Gkq2zwhw)!
New episodes are released every Monday, with a bonus solo episode on Fridays featuring research-backed coaching and teaching strategies you can apply right away to better serve the children in your care.
When coaches, teachers, administrators, and families work hand in hand, it fosters a school atmosphere where everyone is inspired and every student is fully engaged in their learning journey.
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When coaches, teachers, administrators, and families work hand in hand, it fosters a school atmosphere where everyone is inspired and every student is fully engaged in their learning journey.
Next Episode
BONUS: Why Nature is the FUTURE of Education
January 24, 2025
•22m
A bonus episode where I read selected entries from Gwyneth Hagan's Substack microblog Starting Small. The episode explores how natural patterns like bubbles, chaos, and flow can serve as metaphors for transforming education from a factory model to a forest model.
Gwyneth's work combines poetry, educational theory, and observations of nature to envision more organic, interconnected learning systems. The readings include reflections on finding joy in learning, embracing uncertainty, and accepting periods of withdrawal (what Hagan calls "snail mode") as natural parts of growth and change in education.
- The Joy of Learning from Bubbles
- In Chaos & Flow
- How to start small when you are scared
- Snail Mode Acceptance and Emergence
#EducationTransformation #NatureBasedLearning #ForestModel #TeacherGrowth #ProfessionalLearning #PatternsinNature #SustainableEducation #CollectiveLearning #EdLeadership #TeacherWellbeing #OrganicLearning #EducationEcosystem #TeacherPoetry #MindfulTeaching #LearningDesign #EducationalChange #TeacherReflection #HolisticEducation #SystemicChange #TeacherAgency
When coaches, teachers, administrators, and families work hand in hand, it fosters a school atmosphere where everyone is inspired and every student is fully engaged in their learning journey.
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