Kurtis Hewson is an author and the co-founder of Jigsaw Learning, a consultancy that teaches educators its Collaborative Response frameworks. With over a decade of experience as an administrator, Kurtis has championed the call for collaborative structures in schools to ensure success for all students.

In this episode, Kurtis and I discuss the creation of the Collaborative Response frameworks and how they’re used. We get deep into the four layers of team collaboration and the importance of letting teachers address the needs of their students.

For all links and resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.educatorforever.com/episode190.

Dr. Abby Emerson is a former fifth-grade teacher and now an assistant professor of childhood education at Hunter College at the City University of New York. She is the author of the book, From Anti-Racism to Abolition: Professional Learning for Liberating Schools, which is a book coming out this fall for educators who are curious about how to better use professional development to work towards racial justice in schools.

Abby and I take this episode to discuss seeing structural racism in our education system, among many other deep topics. If you want to see racial justice in education, you’ll want to tune in.

For all links and resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.educatorforever.com/episode189.

Matt Wilkins is a former middle school teacher, scientist, and founder of Galactic Polymath Education Studio. He has spent the last 10 years trying to translate cutting-edge research into engaging videos, and fun, standards-aligned lessons that a non-specialist can teach.

In our discussion, Wilkins notes his work focuses on translating cutting-edge research into accessible lessons for K-12 classrooms. He highlights the disconnect between scientific knowledge and public understanding, emphasizing the need for interdisciplinary education.

For all links and resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.educatorforever.com/episode188.

Dr. Niki Elliott is a clinical professor and director of the Center for Embodied Equity and Neurodiversity at the University of San Diego. A leading voice in neurodiversity and trauma-informed education, she has trained thousands of teachers, school counselors, and helping professionals worldwide to better support children with learning differences, mental health diagnoses, trauma histories, and behavioral challenges.

In this episode, Dr. Niki and I discuss the importance of embodied equity and the impact of the physical environment on neurodiverse children's nervous systems. We also get into her Center for Embodied Equity and Neurodiversity and how she prepares teachers for working with neurodiverse children.

For all links and resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.educatorforever.com/episode187.

Josh Davidson is the creator and co-founder of Night Zookeeper, an award-winning online learning program that helps children fall in love with reading, writing, and creativity through games and storytelling. Josh is passionate about giving kids the confidence to see themselves as writers and creators, and he speaks regularly about the power of play, stories, and co-created worlds in education.

Josh and I have a great time talking about inspiring creativity and a love of learning in kids. We get into the challenges he faced creating his show and he provides a lot of great tips for budding content producers. You’ll want to tune in!

For all links and resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.educatorforever.com/episode186.

I have spent decades — decades — studying how people learn. I've read the research, I've built the frameworks, I'm literally getting a graduate degree in learning design from Johns Hopkins right now. And I still catch myself thinking: I need to know more before I'm ready to start.

Ironic, right? Someone who studies learning... afraid to learn out loud.

But here's what's wild: that fear? That "not ready yet" feeling? It turns out it's not a personal flaw. It's just... how learning actually works. And once I understood that, everything changed.

So today I want to take you inside the framework we've built at Educator Forever — our approach to learning — and specifically, I want to talk about three ideas that I think will shift the way you think about learning anything.

For all links and resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.educatorforever.com/episode185.

If you've been thinking about starting an education business, it can feel really overwhelming knowing how to start, and most people really only see businesses when they're polished and successful. And it can feel intimidating, because we see these really well put together businesses that feel streamlined, and we don't see the messiness that goes into creating them. And so today I want to normalize the messiness that's how we learn.

For all links and resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.educatorforever.com/episode184.

Monika Robinson is an Educator Wellbeing Coach with 17 years of experience across school systems. Her career includes roles as an elementary teacher, instructional coach, nonprofit director, and consultant giving her a deep understanding of the challenges educators face and what it takes to thrive in demanding environments.

In our conversation, Monika and I talk about educator wellness and how she started her consultancy Reparations Ed in 2020, which initially focused on educational equity for black students but later shifting to educator wellness. We get into so many important issues teachers face, including teacher retention and the need for teachers to prioritize their well-being.

For all links and resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.educatorforever.com/episode183.