In our final episode of the 2024-25 season, we reflect upon our year of learning and how our philosophies of education continue to evolve. We return to perennial questions: What's the purpose of education? Who gets to learn, and how? How do we best learn? What’s worth unlearning? And, where are we headed? From redefining student success to shifting attitudes on academic freedoms and institutional values, we’ve covered a lot of ground over the past year. We’ll revisit insights from guests on school leadership, student travel, pedagogy, rural education, and student-led local journalism. We’ll also grapple with what’s next for American schools and universities amidst so much uncertainty and turbulence. Thanks for listening, and we’ll be back in September of 2025!

For a full list of episode sources and resources, visit our website at https://sixteentoone.com/archives

Something about the newsroom of The Reporting Project at Denison University in Granville, Ohio feels different. It’s energetic— humming, even when the lights are dimmed and the computer screens are turned off at the end of a long day of writing, collaborating, and crafting stories from the raw materials of community and change in rural Ohio. From Intel’s $20 billion arrival in the region to local election night coverage to the antics and attire of the Buckeye Lake Pirate Festival, The Reporting Project weaves human connection together with a liberal arts approach to narrative journalism.

In “the most egoless newsroom” around, a growing cohort of student journalists works alongside veterans of the craft—seasoned educators like Jack Shuler (founder of The Reporting Project and Director of Journalism at Denison) and Alan Miller (former Executive Editor and 37-year veteran of The Columbus Dispatch)— to shine a light on stories of deep significance to surrounding communities. In this episode, we are also joined by Julia Lerner (managing editor of The Reporting Project) and Caroline Zollinger (recent Denison graduate, editor, and reporter) to discuss how the revitalization of community news is fostering trust, awakening civic life, and driving a new generation of students toward curiosity and community engagement.

To learn more about The Reporting Project, visit thereportingproject.org. Please support your local news organizations!

Additional Notes & Resources:

The Reporting Project

The Observers Collaborative

Center for Community News | The University of Vermont

WCLT Radio

This week we’re taking a break from the evolving civic situation in the U.S. to shine light on global stories in education that you may have missed.

Nepal’s National Teachers’ Strike Lifted: Teachers and Students in Nepal are resuming classes more than a month after teachers began demonstrating across the country in protests that included clashes with police over issues of teacher pay, sick leave, grading systems, and other issues. Negotiators had faced setbacks after several rounds of contentious negotiations with the country’s teacher unions. Educators have been turning up the pressure on the Nepalese government to enact legislation directed by the country’s 2015 Constitution that transfers control of the nation’s schools to regional and local authorities.

“AI tools are going to do to students’ critical thinking skills what social media has done to their attentive skills.”

AI in Global Classrooms: National Experiments in China and Estonia: Prompted by emerging policy statements on AI use in U.S. classrooms, we take a look at how other countries are faring as the pressure to adopt AI tools and lessons increases with the ubiquity of AI products. In China, AI in schools is almost old news; we’ll take a look at their aggressive stance on implementing the technology and compare it to that of Estonia, which has recently announced a partnership with OpenAI for the use of a custom version of ChatGPT for education within its public secondary schools.

Ashlie Crosson Named National Teacher of the Year: The Council of Chief State School Officers has announced the 2025 recipient of the National Teacher of the Year award. This year’s winner is Ashlie Crosson, an English teacher and media & journalism advisor at Mifflin County High School in Pennsylvania. Congrats, Ashlie!

Discussion Questions

High stakes make schools a precarious place to “move fast and break things,” but there are sometimes costs to falling behind. What is the appropriate pace of educational change?

When we worry about being “left behind” in the race to adopt artificial intelligence tools in our schools, have we considered the net impact of AI, or are we focused on individual benefits and risks?

As we adopt more AI tools, do we risk learning becoming “artificial”?

What does it mean to “personalize” the educational experience?

For a full list of episode sources and resources, visit our website and click on Archives.