PODCAST · kids
MindShift Podcast
by KQED
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
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From Life, Automated: Why AI Might Not Change Education Much at All
KQED is distributing a new podcast called Life, Automated from our partners at the Ryan Institute on Complexity that explores what it means to live, work, and make decisions in a rapidly automating world. In this episode , MIT education researcher Justin Reich walks host and science writer Dr.…
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Why the Costs of College Go Beyond Tuition
As confidence in higher education shifts and economic pressures intensify, young people are navigating increasingly complex decisions about life after high school. In this episode, college students share their financial realities and experts examine the tension between cultural expectations…
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Career Training Is on the Rise and These High Schoolers Are Out for Blood
As skepticism about the cost of college grows, Career and Technical Education (CTE) is gaining renewed attention. But is CTE a shortcut around higher education or a bridge into it? In this episode, we follow a group of high school students earning a phlebotomy certification and hear researchers…
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Has Ed Tech Gone Too Far? Parents Want to Hit Pause.
When a middle schooler started bringing home his worst grades ever, his parents were stunned. His teachers said he understood the material. The problem? He couldn’t stay off his school-issued iPad. In classrooms across the country, districts have banned phones, but the screens haven’t…
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The Lasting Legacy of Rita Pierson’s ‘Every Kid Needs a Champion’
More than a decade after Rita Pierson stepped onto the TED stage and declared, “Every child deserves a champion,” her words still echo through schools, teacher prep programs, and staff meetings across the country. But what does it actually take to live out that message in today’s classrooms when...
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Teachers are Burning Out. Can Former Educators Help?
At Redwood Heights Elementary in Oakland California, educators participate in workshops with the Teaching Well, a professional support organization focused on teacher sustainability and emotional resilience. This episode explores how supporting teacher well-being directly impacts classroom…
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How Finnish Education Inspires U.S. Schools, Still
Inspired by Finland’s student-first approach, Copper Island Academy in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula prioritizes inclusion, early intervention, and teacher autonomy to create a learning environment where support is built into the classroom rather than siloed in separate rooms. This episode explores...
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MindShift Season 11 Is on the Way!
This season we explore the ecosystems of support that shape student success. At a time when schools are facing staffing shortages, disruptions to the Department of Education, and shifting public trust, this season asks: who sustains the people responsible for sustaining students? Across six...
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Shafia Zaloom: Sex Ed and Becoming the Askable Parent
KQED’s Ki Sung talks to health educator Shafia Zaloom about her book Getting Real About Sex Ed: What Today's Students Need. Zaloom shares advice for parents and educators wondering how to navigate authentic conversions with young people.
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Ross Greene: What if Bad Behavior Isn’t the Problem?
KQED's Ki Sung talks with clinical psychologist and author Ross Greene about why traditional discipline strategies often fail students, and what educators can do instead. Greene explains his Collaborative & Proactive Solutions model, which shifts the focus away from rewards and punishments and...
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Who Misses Out When Tutoring Starts Too Late?
KQED’s Marlena Jackson-Retondo reports from Bellevue Elementary in Santa Rosa. Abrupt cuts to AmeriCorps funding last year impacted the school-based tutoring there. Principal Nina Craig explains how the loss of tutors affected instruction and student relationships, while new AmeriCorps members,...
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Randy Porter’s Middle School Jazz Band
In this episode, KQED’s Marlena Jackson-Retondo visits the band room at Roosevelt Middle School in Oakland and speaks with longtime music teacher Randy Porter, who is retiring after 40 years in Oakland Unified schools. Porter shares how introducing students to experimental jazz, including the…
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Scott R. Levy: How School Boards Can Strengthen Our Democracy
In this episode KQED’s Marlena Jackson-Retondo speaks with Scott R. Levy, adjunct lecturer at Harvard’s Graduate School of Education and a former school board member, about why school boards matter more than ever. Levy’s new book, Why School Boards Matter: Reclaiming the Heart of American…
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Financial Literacy in The Digital Age With Lillian Zhang
Lillian Zhang is a financial and career educator. Her book, "The New Money Rules: The GenZ Guide to Personal Finance" covers how to eliminate debt and offers non-judgmental advice on saving and investing. Zhang talks to KQED's Marlena Jackson-Retondo about the tips she gives to young people...
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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 schools. They’ve compiled their learnings into a mini...
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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 students engage with classwork and also open us all up to...
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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, founder of the AI detection company Pangram Labs, MindShift...
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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 thriving in cities like New York and San Francisco. These…
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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 with older generations. And when these interactions do...
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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 and their endings get plenty of attention, friendship...
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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.
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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 school debate clubs, students are learning a different...
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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 use that format of spoken storytelling to an audience in her...
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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. Follow Mindshift wherever you get your podcasts or visit...
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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 book, Bye Bye I Love You: The Story of Our First and Last...
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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 school.
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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 difference for the boys in their lives.
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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 interviews.
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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.
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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 to share strategies adults can use to get into the best...
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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 books, because high school poetry units tend to focus on...
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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 sources as portals for students to connect with the real people...
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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 than ever before. Why? Because of a new approach to…
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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 journey to become a community school district. We’ll take a...
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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, we showcase Monarch School's community school model. By...
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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 research that centered collaboration with families. Using...
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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.
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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 to Traci Thomas, host of “The Stacks” podcast, and Scott...
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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 Mindshift, please visit https://donate.kqed.org/podcasts…
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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 school-aged kids ride a school bus. In California, that number…
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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, that's at the root of learning how to read, is so hotly...
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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 KQED's Ki Sung in conversation to unpack bias, which is all...
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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 faced by Black students and educators, offering solutions...
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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 classroom teachers including journal prompts, discussion formats...
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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.
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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 she’ll share some developmentally appropriate tools…
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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 where all students feel confident to share their ideas…
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
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
HOSTED BY
KQED
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does MindShift Podcast have?
MindShift Podcast currently has 117 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is MindShift Podcast 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...
How often does MindShift Podcast release new episodes?
MindShift Podcast publishes regularly with 117 episodes available. Check the episode list for the typical release schedule.
Where can I listen to MindShift Podcast?
You can listen to MindShift Podcast on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts MindShift Podcast?
MindShift Podcast is created and hosted by KQED.
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