MindShift Podcast
Education & Explainer
About
It’s easy to see a child’s education as a path determined by grades, test scores and extra curricular activities. But genuine learning is about so much more than the points schools tally. MindShift explores the future of learning and how we raise our kids. This podcast is part of the MindShift education site, a division of KQED News. You can also visit the MindShift website for episodes and supplemental blog posts or tweet us @MindShiftKQED or visit us at MindShift.KQED.org. Take our audience survey! https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/7297739/b0436be7b132
Episodes
- Ross Greene: What if Bad Behavior Isn’t the Problem?
Clinical psychologist Ross Greene discusses his Collaborative & Proactive Solutions model with KQED's Ki Sung. The model focuses on identifying unmet needs and unsolved problems behind student behavior rather than using traditional discipl…
- Who Misses Out When Tutoring Starts Too Late?
Bellevue Elementary faced challenges when AmeriCorps funding was cut, leading to a loss of tutors. Principal Nina Craig discusses the impact on instruction and student relationships, while new AmeriCorps members describe working with limit…
- Randy Porter’s Middle School Jazz Band
Retiring music teacher Randy Porter of Roosevelt Middle School in Oakland discusses his 40-year career. He explains how introducing students to experimental jazz, such as the music of Sun Ra, encourages their creativity and exploration.
- Scott R. Levy: How School Boards Can Strengthen Our Democracy
Scott R. Levy, author of "Why School Boards Matter," explains to KQED's Marlena Jackson-Retondo the crucial role of school boards in contemporary American education and democracy, detailing their functions, historical power shifts, and pot…
- Financial Literacy in The Digital Age With Lillian Zhang
Financial educator Lillian Zhang shares insights from her book "The New Money Rules" on debt elimination, saving, and investing for young adults. She discusses these topics with Marlena Jackson-Retondo.
- MIT's TeachLab Presents The Homework Machine
This month MindShift is sharing an episode from MIT's TeachLab podcast. Hosts Jessie Dukes and Justin Reich have interviewed teachers, school leaders, and students about how the debut of ChatGPT and Generative AI is actually playing out in…
- Deborah Farmer Kris: How Awe Helps Us Flourish
KQED's Ki Sung talks to longtime MindShift contributor and child development expert Deborah Farmer Kris. In her book "Raising Awe-Seekers: How the Science of Wonder Helps Our Kids Thrive," she shares how exploring the emotion awe can help…
- What Can Teachers Do About AI? Three Approaches in the Classroom
This month MindShift is sharing an episode from our friends at KQED's Close All Tabs. Close All Tabs breaks down how digital culture shapes our world through thoughtful insights and irreverent humor. Host Morgan Sung talks to Max Spero, fo…
- Why Teens Love to Hang Out at the Library
Host Ki Sung takes listeners inside some of the public libraries that have made significant transformations to better serve community needs. Inspired by Chicago’s pioneering YOUmedia model, similar teen-centered library programs are now th…
- Can Talking to Older Adults Make Students Better Citizens?
Interacting with people from different generations has been shown to accelerate students’ social skills, improve literacy, and provide valuable lessons about history and culture. However, many students have limited opportunities to engage…
- How to Help Kids Through Friendship Breakups Without Making Things Worse
Do you remember the sting of not being invited to a birthday party or watching your friend sit at a different lunch table? Most adults can recall a falling out with a friend—also known as a friendship breakup. While romantic relationships…
- When Teachers Learn All of AAPI History, Students Benefit
There is a common perception that Asian Americans don’t get involved with civic life, but a closer read of AAPI history proves that to be false.
- Why Are These High School Students Having Better Debates Than Grown-Ups?
When you think of debate, you might picture presidential candidates interrupting each other, pointing fingers, and undermining their opponents. It often feels like a reflection of today’s fractured and tense civic discourse. But in high sc…
- Finding Your Voice Isn't Just For Kids, It's For Teachers Too
Teacher Jess Lifshitz noticed that her students were more enthusiastic when they told her about their everyday life than when they wrote stories for their writing unit prompts. While listening to The Moth Radio Hour, she got the idea to us…
- Mindshift Celebrates Season 10!
Mindshift returns with Season 10. We’re exploring how to help kids find their voice, balance their identity, and just be kids. Hear practical tips and expert insights on how to better show up for young people in the classroom and beyond. F…
- What Our First and Last Words Can Tell Us About Our Humanity
This month MindShift is sharing an excerpt of an episode from our friends at KQED's Forum. Forum tells remarkable and true stories about who we are and where we live. KQED's Grace Won talks to linguist and author Michael Erard. In his new…
- Can Better Conversations Fight Misinformation and Build Media Literacy?
Host Nimah Gobir moderates the MindShift KQED: Can Better Conversations Improve Media Literacy Among Students? panel at the 2025 SXSW EDU conference.
- Minnie Phan: A Young Girl and the Power of Art
Vietnamese children’s book illustrator Minnie Phan talks to KQED's Ki Sung about using art to process events and heal wounds in the Vietnamese diaspora.
- Why Handwriting Still Matters in the Age of Screens
KQED's Nimah Gobir talks to educator and language therapist, Dr. Nancy Cushen White about why handwriting is such a powerful tool for literacy learning.
- Disengaged Teens: What to Know and How to Help Them Find Their Spark
KQED's Ki Sung talks to Jenny Anderson and Rebecca Winthrop, authors of "The Disengaged Teen: Helping Kids Learn Better, Feel Better, and Live Better." They discuss the different modes of engagement and how to support teens at home and in…
- How to Help Boys Thrive in a Changing World
Ruth Whippman, author of "Boy Mom: Reimagining Boyhood in the Age of Impossible Masculinity" talks to KQED's Nimah Gobir about the biggest challenges facing boys today, and actionable steps parents and educators can take to make a differen…
- Book Reading Goals for Young Readers with Traci Thomas
KQED's Ki Sung talks to host of The Stacks podcast, Traci Thomas, about rereading books she loved as a child with her own children, what's on her reading list as they grow and what she's learned about reading from all of her author intervi…
- The Lasting Impact of Full-Length Reading
Journalist Rose Horowitch and Author Danielle Bayard Jackson join KQED's Nimah Gobir in conversation to explore the problem of reading stamina in college students.
- How the Mentor Mindset Can Help Adults Show Up Better for Tweens and Teens
David Yeager is a professor of psychology at the University of Texas at Austin and an expert in behavioral science. He just published a book titled “10 to 25: The Science of Motivating Young People.” He joins KQED's Ki Sung in conversation…
- Why Poetry Is Making a Comeback in Schools
Hanif Abduraqqib. Sarah Kay. Elizabeth Acevedo. Clint Smith. Do any of these names sound familiar? How about Amanda Gorman? All of these writers are part of America’s thriving contemporary poetry scene. But you won’t find them in many text…
- Humanizing History by Teaching with Primary Sources
If you think of social studies as a dry, dusty march of names and dates to memorize, think again. In the last two decades, as historical records have been digitized and made accessible to the public, teachers have begun using primary sourc…
- How to Get Kids Thinking Instead of Mimicking in Math Class
From book bans to chronic absenteeism to phone distractions, it’s a hard time to be a teacher. But amidst all the challenges, there’s something surprising happening among math teachers. Some of them say they’re more excited to go to work t…
- The Black Panther Legacy and Oakland Community Schools
MindShift revisits the pioneering initiatives of the Black Panthers, who used a community school approach when they opened a first-of-its-kind school in East Oakland in 1973. Then we focus on Oakland Unified School District's ambitious jou…
- What Role Can Schools Play in Breaking Cycles of Homelessness?
This podcast episode explores Monarch School, a public school in San Diego County dedicated to serving unhoused students and their families. Highlighting the growing issue of homelessness among students and its adverse impact on education,…
- A Research-Backed Way to Improve Student Attendance
Not all students returned to school after the pandemic. Research shows that chronic absenteeism surged around the country. Niki Espinoza, a community school coordinator at Maple Elementary, discovered a strategy informed by Harvard researc…
- MindShift Returns With Season 9!
MindShift returns with Season 9! Discover solutions for raising our kids in the modern era. Hear from educators and experts creating pathways for students to flourish. Subscribe to receive new episodes starting July 16.
- What's Lost When Books Are Banned?
We're sharing an episode from our friends at the Adult ISH podcast . In light of the latest number of attempted book bans as tracked by the American Library Association (ALA) , Adult ISH hosts Nyge Turner and Dominique “Dom” French speak t…
- Dipping Into the Mindshift Mailbag
We love hearing from you, our listeners, and learning how you’re putting the insights that we share into your teaching and your parenting. We like to see the way that we deliver value to your lives. If you appreciate the work that we do on…
- Where Are All the School Buses?
We're sharing an episode from our friends at the Bay Curious podcast. California has fewer school buses than in other parts of the country. A survey conducted by the Federal Highway Administration found that nationally, almost 40% of schoo…
- How Much Phonemic Awareness Do Students Really Need?
Education journalist, Jill Barshay of the Hechinger Report, writes a weekly column about education research called “Proof Points.” She joins KQED's Ki Sung to discuss her latest piece about phonemic awareness and why this important skill,…
- 5 Cognitive Biases that Shape Classroom Interactions - and How to Overcome Them
Educator, Tricia Ebarvia advocates for a more complete way of seeing ourselves, one another and curricula. She just published a book titled “Get Free: Antibias Literacy Instruction for Stronger Readers, Writers, and Thinkers." She joins KQ…
- Bettina Love Explains How Policy Ended a 'Glorious' Era in Black Ed
In "Punished for Dreaming," Bettina Love reflects on a 'glorious' era in Black education, unraveling historical nuances and consequences of policy decisions that led to its decline. Through insightful analysis, she navigates the challenges…
- Nurturing Students’ Academic Identities in Uncertain Times
Miriam Plotinsky, an instructional coach, author, and former high school English teacher, discusses her latest book, Writing Their Future Selves: Instructional Strategies to Affirm Student Identity . It contains a wealth of tools for class…
- How to Build a Safe Space to Discuss Students’ Names
Matthew R. Kay and Jennifer Orr discuss how they turn simple conversations about students’ names into opportunities for connection and self-discovery.
- Phyllis Fagell's Tools to Unleash Middle School Superpowers
Phyllis Fagell, Psychotherapist and author of the new book “Middle School Superpowers: Raising Resilient Tweens in Turbulent Times," talks about why middle school is the last best chance to impress social skills and values upon kids; plus…
- Dear Math: You Are Terrible and Wonderful
MindShift spotlights a teacher who encourages students to name their feelings and share their past experiences – the highs and the lows – by writing letters to math. This activity launches a yearlong process of building a classroom culture…
- How Green Schoolyards Can Turn Schools into 3D Textbooks
Most people are familiar with snow and rain as reasons to cancel recess. But what about canceling recess because it’s too sunny? Playgrounds in California are heating up. And with asphalt blacktops and metal monkey bars, kids are forced to…
- The Right Way to Say “I’m Sorry”
We all know how it feels to get a bad apology. “I’m sorry if,” “I’m sorry but,” and other ways people skirt real acknowledgement of wrongdoing. Effective apologies require empathy, perspective-taking, honesty and courage, and making amends…
- Inclusive Dress Codes: A Challenge and an Opportunity
In recent years, dress codes have been undergoing significant shifts in many schools across the nation. With language targeting hair, visible skin, and footwear, dress codes are often touted as promoting professionalism and eliminating dis…
- How Extroverted Teachers Can Engage Introverted Students
As educators move away from sage-on-the-stage instruction, their first step is often to foster more student discussion. A talkative classroom might be a mark of success in student-centered learning, but it doesn’t mean every student is eng…
- Uncovering Healthy Relationships With Consent Education
Age-appropriate consent education involves much more than navigating sexual activity. It can show up in situations as mundane as sharing fries, asking someone to dance at prom, or initiating a romantic relationship. By teaching students ho…
- Mindshift is Back with Season 8!
MindShift is back with Season 8! Hear from educators and experts creating pathways for students to flourish. Subscribe to receive new episodes starting July 18.
- Many Students Are Using Study Strategies That Don't Work — and Better Options Exist
Our guest, University of Virginia Professor Daniel Willingham, is the author of a new book to help us break the cycle of ineffective learning habits. In “Outsmart Your Brain,” he gives tips on how to listen when you’re sitting in a lecture…
- How Centering Joy Can Make Learning More Relevant to Students and Teachers
Gholdy Muhammad is Professor of Literacy, Language and Culture at the University of Illinois and the author of Unearthing Joy: A Guide to Culturally and Historically, Responsive Teaching and Learning. She talks about joy in an educational…
- How Youth Sports Became a Feast or Famine World
Running coach and author, Linda Flanagan, talks about her book, “Take Back the Game: How Money and Mania are Ruining Kids’ Sports and Why It Matters," and gives tips on how parents can tell when they've gone too far.