I’ve been listening to spoken word programming since I was a kid. Some of my best memories of me going to middle school were listening to Howard Stern on the radio. Say what you will about the King of all Media, but the man knows how to interview.

As I’ve grown into an adult, my palette has expanded beyond morning radio shows to the wide world of podcasts. I plan on writing a more comprehensive blog post about my favorite podcasts later, but for now I want to focus on three podcast episodes that have changed the way I think about a topic near to my heart: education.  Continue reading “Three Podcasts that Changed the way I think about Education” →

This is the second of a 12-part series based off of Wired Magazine’s Kevin Kelly’s 1997 article “New Rules for the New Economy” on my predictions for what education will look like in the next 100 years. My first prediction was The Integration of Personal and Professional Education Tools. 

The point of my predictions isn’t to be “right,” per se, in the way a weather report strives to be accurate. Instead, I strive to be thought-provoking in the way a concept car at an auto show demonstrates what manufacturers imagine the future of automobiles might look like, even if they don’t plan on releasing that specific concept car.

My next prediction is Freemium Schooling using the Follow the Free framework. The idea is to look at where people are voluntarily choosing to spend their discretionary resources (time or money) and use that as a predictor of where people will be willing to spend those same resources in the future.  Continue reading “Freemium Schooling: Predictions for Education’s Next 100 Years [2 of 12]” →

One of my favorite mixed martial artists is Conor McGregor. Few can match his mix of braggadocio, physical talent, and success (ignore the Nate Diaz loss).

One of his most frequently used quotes is:

Slow is smooth, smooth is fast.

In fact, he likes it so much that he got it tattooed on his forearm.

This saying resonates a lot with me because, as this sign I saw on Fair Street in Cold Spring reminds me, slow progress is powerful.

As I work on improving myself and finding my path, there is a temptation to rush. I appreciate urgency, but they don’t call me Slowmar for ‘nothin.

I’m the only one that is going to live my life so I’m going to do it at my pace.

I’ve spent most of my adult life thinking about what the future of education in the United States can look like, especially for high-need communities. In that time, I’ve seen the rise of online education, updates in state standards, and a growing rift between so-called reformers and so-called anti-reformers. I want to look beyond the what we currently think is possible and imagine what education can look like in the next century.

The framework I’m using to explore this new reality is based off of Wired Magazine’s Kevin Kelly’s 1997 article “New Rules for the New Economy.” There are twelve techniques for prognosticating the future that he outlines. Prediction is an inherently messy business, but the exercise is worthwhile to think beyond the constraints of our current conversations. The point of my predictions isn’t to be “right,” per se, in the way a weather report strives to be accurate. Instead, I strive to be thought-provoking in the way a concept car at an auto show demonstrates what manufacturers imagine the future of automobiles might look like, even if they don’t plan on releasing that specific concept car.

I plan on using Kelly’s 12 frameworks to imagine these new realities. The first is extrapolation, where he suggests you take the current iteration of things and extrapolate outward.

Continue reading “Beyond the Possible: Predictions for Education’s Next 100 Years [1 of 12]” →

Part of the story we are told about how the world works is that we should have faith in institutions. In the short term, that story has proven to be true. In my current job, I come in at 9am, do my work, leave at 6pm, and twice a month a predetermined amount of money is deposited into my account.

In hindsight, the educational institutions that were supposed to be the solid foundation upon which my future is built have either had cracks in their foundations or have completely crumbled.

Continue reading “Looking back on a Trail of Broken Institutions” →

Continue reading “11 Pieces of Wedding Planning Advice (from my wife)” →

An aspect of modern living that my parents never had to deal with was having (real or perceived) unlimited options.

Here is a brief list of the aspects of life that they had very limited options about that I can have any variation of: Continue reading “The Grass is Always Greener: Satisfaction when you have Unlimited Options” →

I could have written my thoughts about police brutality and Black Lives Matter after Trayvon Martin. I didn’t. After reading the news, scrolling through social media, and listening to hot takes, I felt like everything that I would have said had already been said.

I could have written my thoughts after Michael Brown. I didn’t. I felt like everything had already been said. Continue reading “Completely Original Thoughts about Police Brutality and Black Lives Matter” →

When I reflect on the last six months or so of work, I can point to tasks and projects that I’ve completed and feel a sense of accomplishment. However, within that sense of accomplishment, like fruit on the bottom of a cup of yogurt, lies a sense of dissatisfaction.

In trying to understand why that dissatisfaction exists for me, I remembered Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. I superimposed this framework for understanding human motivation over my work streams for the last half year and it helped me understand why I may be feeling the way I am. Continue reading “Work Satisfaction as Understood by Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs” →

Three years ago, I was attempting to rent an apartment. One of the last steps was for the landlord to conduct a background check on me and my wife. He called me shortly after he completed the background check, telling me that he was, unfortunately, unable to rent us the apartment. He didn’t feel comfortable renting the apartment to someone who had been accused of domestic violence.

This was news to both of us. Continue reading “Exploring Parallel Universes: The Fates of 8 People with my Name” →