Anchored in Education

Last week’s conversation on Anchored in Education talked about taking on leadership responsibilities in different parts of our world in a moment of crisis. Today, I want to explore what leadership in education looks like in different parts of our world, leaving out the crisis part. 

The Dwight School is a private independent for-profit college preparatory school located on Manhattan's Upper West Side in New York City. They offer an International Baccalaureate curriculum and in addition to the New York campus, have global campuses located in London; Seoul, South Korea; Shanghai, China; Dubai in the United Arab Emirates; and, coming in August 2024, Hanoi, Vietnam. 

My guest today is Brantley Turner, and she has been tapped to lead the opening of the Dwight School in Hanoi. Brantley Turner serves as the East Asia Education Director for Dwight Schools, brings 25 years of experience in China, including a decade as the founding principal of a unique collaborative high school approved by China’s Ministry of Education. This is the first time Anchored in Education has really expanded beyond the U.S. border to learn more about global education in both teaching and learning.

After you listen to today's episode, go to www.escottengland.com and click on the Podcast tab at the top to find today's episode page and read more about Brantley.

I have long said that some of the best leadership lessons I have learned have come from outside of education. I frequently mention the leadership of retired Navy Submarine Captain L. David Marquet. His intent-based leadership that he highlighted in his best-selling book Turn the Ship Around is something that I frequently mention when asked about my leadership style. I have been fortunate to come across another book that has provided me with similar perspectives of finding leadership where you don’t always suspect it. 

My guest today is Phillip Jett, and he is the author of the recently released book Stranded in the Sky: The Untold Story of the Pan Am Luxury Airliners Trapped on the Day of Infamy. I know it’s quite the title, but be honest right now, do you have a clue as to what this book will be about other than what you’ve heard on the title? I didn’t either. I have heard, read, and watched many stories and reflections on what happened on December 7, 1941. But never in this have I heard a story about Pan Am, and furthermore, never had I heard about luxury airliners.

I knew from reading a brief synopsis that on that at that moment when Pearl Harbor came under attack, unsuspecting people were thrust into roles where survival depended on leadership. I’ve learned a lot from this book, and I hope you will learn a lot from our guest today.

After you listen to today's episode, go to www.escottengland.com and click on the Podcast tab at the top to find today's episode page and read more about Philip.

I am fortunate to be in a position in which I receive many books sent to me a month. One such book I received earlier in the year was Made for Learning: How the Conditions of Learning Guide Teaching Decisions. The authors are Debra Crouch and Brian Cambourne. The way this dynamic author duo came to be is a great story by itself, one that we will actually hear a little about in just a few minutes. But more than that, Debra and Brian have put together a book that will allow us as educators to better leverage the teaching and learning process. 

There are eight conditions of learning that our authors have identified. Today, we are joined by Debra Crouch who will go into a more detail, not just on the conditions of learning but how they are intricately connected to one another.

After you listen to today's episode, go to www.escottengland.com and click on the Podcast tab at the top to find today's episode page and read more about Debra.

There are only a few foods I do not like. I don’t do olives of any sort. I don’t do pickled beets. And I despise Doritos of any flavor. That last one I am super serious about. I don’t even allow Doritos to be eaten in my car. So I am not a picky eater. I know a few picky eaters. Jennifer is one. My former secretary is another. But really, I would use the term picky for anyone who doesn’t eat like I eat.

And now I’ve come to realize that for some, choosing what they do or don’t eat is not always a choice left up to them. And to call them picky, can actually be quite hurtful. I’ve been introduced to Selective Eating Disorder, or the more formal term: Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder. 

People with selective eating disorder often choose foods in which they feel is safe. This could mean in terms of texture, color, taste, and so forth. More important for us to know is that these people often feel a lot of stress and anxiety around eating, especially when eating around others.

It’s a topic that we need to talk about on Anchored in Education because I can think of so many times I’ve commented or heard others comment on lunches students eat at school. Thankfully, Linda B. Davis, author of the fictional book Food Fight, a juvenile novel designed to help educate readers on Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder. Today, she joins us to talk more about this rare eating disorder.

After you listen to today's episode, go to www.escottengland.com and click on the Podcast tab at the top to find today's episode page and read more about Linda.

Recently, I have had several guests on Anchored in Education who have written fictional literature. Even though most of the works of fiction have been geared towards children and young adults, I have not hesitated to feature these guests. I have several reasons for this, with one of those reasons being that sometimes we need to escape from our adult literature and be reminded that lessons come in many varieties. The second is that we often don’t realize the various things students are going through because we struggle to connect or understand.

Today’s guest recently published the book Might as Well Be Dead. It is a book that follows a main character who is thirteen and trying to navigate the trials of middle school, best friend problems, and even a budding romance. On top of that? He’s trying to get over his mom’s sudden decision to pick up and leave the family. In the process, he begins having hallucinations of a middle-aged Englishman who ultimately confesses he needs the young protagonist to deliver a message.

This book is filled with so much that can cause one to step back to reconsider what unknown trials a person may face. And we welcome author Mark Goldblatt to discuss it in more detail.

After you listen to today's episode, go to www.escottengland.com and click on the Podcast tab at the top to find today's episode page and read more about Mark.

Just a few days from today will mark the seventh anniversary of the fatal shooting of Philando Castile in the Minneapolis-St. Paul Metropolitan area. A couple of months ago marked the three year anniversary of the murder of George Floyd, also in the Minneapolis-St. Paul Metropolitan area. Located just miles from both of these tragic incidents was our guest today, David Mura. David is a third generation Japanese American. Both his grandparents and parents spent time in Japanese internment camps during World War II. 

Already an accomplished author, David recently published his newest book The Stories Whiteness Tells Itself: Racial Myths and Our American Narratives. This book explores how white stories about race attempt to erase the brutality of the past and underpin systemic racism in the present. This book takes an indepth look at how historical and fictional narratives have been told to justify and maintain white supremacy. It is a book that can at times feel like a gut check to readers. But it is one that I feel we need to explore more on Anchored in Education.

After you listen to today's episode, go to www.escottengland.com and click on the Podcast tab at the top to find today's episode page and read more about David.

I came across a new book, recommended to me by my friends at Books Forward. It’s called Welcome to Monsterville, and it’s illustrations of various monsters with an accompanying poem. If I stopped here, you might be left wondering how I am tying this in to anchored in education. Great question. Now let me tell you the back story.

This book came about when the late illustrator Michael Rothenburg began using art therapy to help him through various challenges. He would then send them to his friend and accomplished poet Laura Shovan who would write a poem to go with the illustration. When these two friends started this, it wasn’t for the purposes of a book. It was to cope with things life was throwing at them. One of those things was the Covid19 pandemic.

It was only later when they realized the message they could get out by publishing these works. Welcome to Monsterville reminds us as educators that sometimes we need to value process over product. It also has huge implications as an SEL teaching tool, which is just one area that I was fortunate enough to speak about with my guest today, Laura Shovan.

After you listen to today's episode, go to www.escottengland.com and click on the Podcast tab at the top to find today's episode page and read more about Laura.

I sometimes wonder if the 1991 hit song by Genesis “I Can’t Dance” was written for me. I mean, I was only eight, so maybe it would be cruel that they would direct such harsh words to a young and impressionable child. Okay, maybe it was written with me in mind. But it is nearly accurate in all ways. I can neither dance nor sing. And a recent stroll through downtown Chicago on my way from the orange line to Union Station proved I struggle with walking as a lack of awareness led me to step off the curb and fall straightway onto Adams Street. I can talk—most of the time—so there is that. 

But the lack of singing or dancing talent has never stopped me from creating parodies to popular songs to get students excited to come back to school. I created them as a first grade teacher, a principal, and a superintendent. I even created one during a summer in which I was uncertain where I would be in the fall. I just knew you couldn’t go wrong with a good back to school jam. That’s the power of telling a story with a video.

Which is pretty perfect since today’s guest specializes in video storytelling. John Azoni is the founder of Unveild which has the explicit intent of helping higher education institutions better tell their stories through video. And from personal experience, regardless of your position or level within education, you’re going to want to learn more with us today.

After you listen to today's episode, go to www.escottengland.com and click on the Podcast tab at the top to find today's episode page and read more about John.

If you are a regular listener of Anchored in Education, then you’ve heard my guest today on four previous episodes. And each time Charley Cass joins us he enlightens us with thought-provoking conversations. The other thing you would notice about my previous episodes with Charley is that they cover a wide variety of topics. We’ve tackled such topics like awards and accolades given to students for academics, we’ve talked about the crucial role support personnel play, we’ve talked about family engagement, and we’ve talked about navigating that first year as a superintendent. And since that final conversation, Charley published a book: Leaving Poverty: On Purpose and For Good. 

I had no clue when I received my copy what I was going to learn. I knew Charley had led some talks and workshops on poverty. I didn’t realize that he used personal experiences to help educate others on what poverty looks like from that lens. As Charley says, he is a rags to middle class story. A story that I’m sure decades ago would never have pegged a young Mr. Cass to grow up to become an Illinois Principal of the Year among other accolades.

After you listen to today's episode, go to www.escottengland.com and click on the Podcast tab at the top to find today's episode page and read more about Charley.

One day Jennifer emailed me. She then said told me, hey, I just emailed you. Yes, she emailed me while in the same room. But what she emailed was a link to the book Drama Mama: Lessons Learned in the Imaginary Elsewhere by award-winning theater teacher Kristie Farr. The first lines of the description asked: Are you losing your passion for teaching? Have you forgotten why you even became a teacher?

I saw that this book was a piece of reflection, a glimpse at Kristie’s story and journey through 30 years of teaching. I am always down for a good story. When I received my copy of Drama Mama, I couldn’t put it down. So much of what Kristie was writing about resonated with me as a person, a father, and an educator. I am so grateful that she has agreed to join me on today’s episode so we can talk more about her journey and lessons she has learned. I definitely learned from it. I hope you will, too.

After you listen to today's episode, go to www.escottengland.com and click on the Podcast tab at the top to find today's episode page and read more about Kristie.

I truly cherish and value every guest. So when I have the opportunity to have a guest return, I am beyond thrilled. You might remember Peg from our earlier conversation when we talked about productive struggle and the power of saying not yet. Peg joins Anchored in Education again today to talk about how we can clear the path for developing learners while promoting essential literacy skills. In fact, that’s the name of her new book that was published just this month.

Clearing the Path for Developing Learners: Essential Literacy Skills to Support Achievement in Every Content Area is a book that came about after educators in Peg’s district began breaking down what essential literacy skills made their appears in standards, curriculum, and other areas. While I’ll let her talk more about these seven essential skills, I will say that Peg was recently a guest speaker for my Curriculum and Instructional Leadership course discussing these very skills. I think you will find a lot of applications in what Peg is discussing along with the usefulness her new book can provide districts.

After you listen to today's episode, go to www.escottengland.com and click on the Podcast tab at the top to find today's episode page and read more about Peg.

One day an email landed in my inbox recommending today’s guest. The email featured the book Moral Code, written by today’s guest Lois Melbourne and her husband Ross. The timing couldn’t have been more perfect as it is a sci-fi thriller that features the powerful implications of AI. Which, AI seems to dominating our headlines in such a way that soon we won’t be using the word sci-fi in front of the word thriller. 

But as I always do, in my research of Lois, I found out that she stays quite busy with several ventures in the areas of education and students. Today she is going to talk about how we can evolve as lifelong learners, the importance of career education, promoting women in STEM, and of course, Moral Code.

After you listen to today's episode, go to www.escottengland.com and click on the Podcast tab at the top to find today's episode page and read more about Lois.

I think of a lot of books I enjoyed reading as a child. The Boxcar Children. Fudge. The Goosebump Series. I could get lost in these books because I felt so connected to the characters. Dare I say, I identified with them? Yes, I could definitely say that because I often did. Which is why I never considered that many grow up not getting to say the same thing.

My guest today is one of them. Shetal Shah has been in and around education for many years.  One thing she noticed was the lack of books in the classroom featuring Indian or Indian-American women like herself. As a former history teacher at an all girls school, Shetal witnessed how curriculum and literature inclusive of women from diverse backgrounds can have a positive impact on girls’ self-esteem, identity development, and belonging. She knew what she had to do: She decided to write her own book.

She chose the Hindi word Shakti for the title because it means feminine energy and strength, power, and a force to be reckoned with. I am excited to welcome Shetal today to talk more about her book Shakti Girls: Poems of Inspiring Indian Women, and why we need to see a more inclusive curriculum of many cultures.

After you listen to today's episode, go to www.escottengland.com and click on the Podcast tab at the top to find today's episode page and read more about Shetal.

Last week, Tracy Badua joined us to talk about her book This is Not A Personal Statement. That conversation highlighted the pressures that students often feel in life, especially academic, and the extremes they will sometimes go to. It was a relevant conversation for us to remember not just in support of students, but for us as adults as well. When we finished the conversation, Tracy mentioned she had another book coming out on May 9. It’s called The Takeout. 

She sent me a preview copy and while I was reading it I realized just how often what she was writing about happens. I’m in the world of academia, so I live in a world of citing sources. But what happens when someone steals your idea for their gain without ever giving you credit? This is just one of so many different themes Tracy covers in The Takeout. I knew she had to come back to talk about this as well.

After you listen to today's episode, go to www.escottengland.com and click on the Podcast tab at the top to find today's episode page and read more about Tracy.

Have you ever had a setback in life? I’m sure we all have. How did you handle it? Grin and bear it; trying hard next time? Or forging your way through using lies and deception so no one would know of your shortcomings? As crazy as it may seem, many resort the latter when faced with such a dilemma. Our guest today is Tracy Badua, author of This is Not A Personal Statement, a work of fiction that was inspired by actual events. Tracy’s book actually highlights a common problem when it comes to students facing pressures and stress in academics.

After you listen to today's episode, go to www.escottengland.com and click on the Podcast tab at the top to find today's episode page and read more about Tracy.

Have you ever wondered how to start a podcast where you know you’re going to say something that some will find offensive? No? Just me. Alright. Let me start by saying I’m a fan of baseball. While I don’t follow the major leagues closely any more, I can often be found at minor league games throughout the United States each summer. But what I really can’t stand is when someone says, “So and So broke an unwritten rule.” 

An unwritten rule in baseball is not a rule. It is more of a behavioral constraint that is imposed on players that are not typically voiced or written down. Here’s the thing: Who came up with the unwritten rules and who continues to hand them down to generation after generation of players?

By now you’re probably asking, does this rant have anything to do with today’s topic? Yes, way more than you think. My guest today is Margaret Ghielmetti. Margaret penned Brave(ish): A Memoir of a Recovering Perfectionist. In her book, she talks about the Family Handbook. The family handbook is actually something we most likely all are aware of but don’t physically have. Guess what? It’s the unwritten rules we’ve been taught to abide by. 

When Margaret and I first began communicating I told her how there are unwritten rules in teaching. Maybe they are practices and habits we do because that is how we were taught, or what we witnessed growing up. And while many times they aren’t bad “rules,” they can often hinder us. We are going to find out how today.

After you listen to today's episode, go to www.escottengland.com and click on the Podcast tab at the top to find today's episode page and read more about Margaret.

My guest today spoke to the Illinois Association for School Administrators conference in the Fall of 2022. I wasn’t in attendance, but I knew his keynote was powerful when my Twitter feed began going crazy with overwhelmingly positive feedback. It just so happened that I had an interview scheduled the next day with frequent Anchored in Education guest, Charley Cass.
Charley joined the recording from his hotel room where he gave an outstanding review of the talk and said he’d make a good guest.

I started researching, and what I found was incredible. It wasn’t that my guest today was drafted by the Chicago Cubs. It wasn’t the amazing stories he had of his minor league playing days. It was his message that he shares all over the world. He has spoken at some of the largest companies and organizations. He speaks at schools in front of thousands of students. He is an avid writer, publishing three children’s books with other works on the way. 

He is also on a quest to end racism. He has a powerful message of love is greater than hate.
And it stemmed from the tragic shooting at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church on June 17, 2015. Of the nine victims, one of them was the mother of our guest today, Chris Singleton. I find his message to not only be timely, but ever much needed.

After you listen to today's episode, go to www.escottengland.com and click on the Podcast tab at the top to find today's episode page and read more about Chris.

A few months back I was given a list of potential guests that consisted of about a half dozen names. It was up to me to research each name and determine how they fit in the Anchored in Education platform. One of the names was Melinda Wenner Moyer. I put the name into a search and discovered that she was a journalist with a particular interest in parenting, science, and medicine. The next line I read said she was the author of the book How to Raise Kids who Aren’t Assholes: Science-based Strategies for Better Parenting, from Tots to Teens. My search stopped immediately and instead shifted to how I can purchase this book. 

A couple of days later I was engrossed in Melinda’s book and realized I had to get her onto the podcast. Melinda readily agreed, but her first thought was she wasn’t a teacher. But in reading the book I could already see how this book would benefit educators, parents, soon to be parents, or, in short, everyone. I finished reading the book towards the end of 2022 and it has yet to make it to my bookshelf because I keep opening it to re-read sections. Today she joins us to talk more about the book and the implications for how her book can help educators and parents alike, find research proven strategies to better assist children.

After you listen to today's episode, go to www.escottengland.com and click on the Podcast tab at the top to find today's episode page and read more about Melinda.

Back in the fall of 2022 I received a message from Efraín Martínez asking if I would like to be a guest on his podcast, Wisdom and Productivity. I agreed under the condition that he would one day join me on Anchored in Education. And while today is that day, I wanted to give you a little background on why I was so excited to host Efraín. He has an incredible story. One that is riddled with ups and downs, wins and losses, happiness and tears.

In my research before putting together an episode, I found captivating articles by major news outlets that had Efraín as the focal point sharing candidly the struggles and successes that have helped define who he is as a person and a leader. I think many times we share similar stories but are afraid to share them for the fear of what others will think. 

And then there is the podcast he hosts, Wisdom and Productivity. A simple concept that approaches each episode in the same way and yet produces fresh content with each episode. I can learn so much from Wisdom and Productivity and the man behind the microphone, and it is my opinion, that you can too.

After you listen to today's episode, go to www.escottengland.com and click on the Podcast tab at the top to find today's episode page and read more about Efraín.

I am fortunate to be able to devote time to producing a quality podcast that is informative, engaging, and entertaining. To celebrate the 100th episodes, I've asked former guest, and friend, Chris Briggs-Hale to take over as the host. Listen as we explore what makes Anchored in Education what it is. We dive deep into the why behind this podcast. 

After you listen to today's episode, go to www.escottengland.com and click on the Podcast tab at the top to find today's episode page and read more about our host, Chris Briggs-Hale, as well as find out how to follow him and the great things he is doing.