How One New Middle School Model in California Forges Ahead

You all met Theron Cosgrave and Principal Ally Rocco in episodes 67, and 77. Since October of 2019, I’ve been following this group of educators in California’s central valley as they work to build one of the most innovative middle school models I’ve heard anything about in recent decades. MAD Tech characterizes some of the most important questions in education for me. Here’s just one example in my mind: What does it mean to intersect great learning design with great design for physical spaces in this age where we've learned so much about how the two can complement one another?In this episode we’re joined by Laura Quiroz, Dean of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment, to hear more about how the instructional model for MadTech has been forced to flex, and more about what they're learning in relation to the core principles of their design that they've been able to carry over in spite of COVID. One of a few bright spots that the school is leveraging and that came up in our conversation is their use of VDI. We didn't get to come back to this in the conversation, though Allyson and Laura messaged me moments after it came up in our conversation to answer my question about the acronym. VDI stands for Virtual Desktop Infrastructure. I bring it up again here to ask that if you or someone you know are an expert with VDI, I'd love to hear from them on social media. Share resources you may have about case studies that have worked using VDI to extend access to software that may not run easily on a chromebook. I'll share those resources in an upcoming episode. Links:Madera Unified Schools: https://www.madera.k12.ca.us/Desktop Virtualization: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desktop_virtualization Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Om Podcasten

The show is about learning with technology, the realities and exciting potential. Enjoying the show? Please take a moment to rate us, and leave a review wherever you've accessed the podcast. Find our listener survey at facebook.com/nosuchthingpodcast drop a like on the page while you're there.The music in this podcast was produced by Leroy Tindy, a guest in episode zero. You can find him on SoundCloud at AirTindi Beats.The podcast is produced by Marc Lesser. Marc is a specialist in the fields of digital learning and youth development with broad experience designing programming and learning environments in local and national contexts. Marc recently served as Youth Studies Practitioner Fellow at City University of New York, and leads a team of researchers and technologists for NAF (National Academy Foundation).Marc is the co-founder of Emoti-Con NYC, New York's biggest youth digital media and technology festival, and in 2012 was named a National School Boards Association “20-to-Watch” among national leaders in education and technology. Connect with Marc on Twitter @malesser, or LinkedIn.What's with the ice cream truck in the logo? In the 80's, Richard E. Clark at University of Southern California set off a pretty epic debate based on his statement that "media are mere vehicles that deliver instruction but do not influence student achievement any more than the truck that delivers our groceries causes changes in nutrition." * So, the ice cream truck, it's a nod to Richard Clark, who frequently rings in my ear when I'm tempted to take things at face value. "Is it the method, or the medium?" I wonder.The title, No Such Thing, has a few meanings. Mostly, it emphasizes the importance of hard questions as we develop and document the narrative of "education" in the US. For Richard E. Clark, the question is whether there's such a thing as learning from new technologies. For others, it might be whether there's a panacea for the challenges we face in this field. Whatever your question, I hope that it reminds you to keep asking--yourself, your learners, others--what's working and how so.* Clark, R. E. (1983) Reconsidering Research on Learning From Media. Review of Educational Research 53(4) 445-459. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.