In this episode, host Brenna Clarke Gray introduces her podcast as a space for educators who crave meaningful change, thoughtful conversation, and a touch of rebellious spirit. She shares her vision of blending theory with practice by interviewing bold thinkers in education and then unpacking those ideas with her longtime collaborator, David N. Wright, in companion episodes full of candid, coffee shop-style chats. With themes of accessibility, kindness, and “productive disobedience,” Brenna invites listeners into a supportive community where big ideas meet real classroom challenge…and where breaking the rules might just be the key to better teaching.

Published by Wilfrid Laurier University Press

In this episode, Brenna interviews Cate Denial about her essay-turned-book, A Pedagogy of Kindness. Cate talks about her journey to kindness, the devaluing of teaching and learning in higher education, and the practice of ungrading (including an unessay assignment!). In doing so, Cate addresses what is radical about really assessing learning.

Published by Wilfrid Laurier University Press

In this episode, Brenna and Dave unpack authentic assessment, how care can be exploited, and contract grading as a practice, and Brenna confesses that she didn’t know what a reader response was for two years. 

Published by Wilfrid Laurier University Press

In this episode, Brenna interviews Sheri Spelic about her book Care at the Core and what reciprocal learning can happen between post-secondary and K-12 educators. Sheri discusses the importance of curiosity to learning, “school thinking” and rule-breaking, and the importance of care. Sheri asks us to think about who we are in the classroom, who we want to be, and what assumptions underpin the choices we make. 

Published by Wilfrid Laurier University Press

In this episode, Brenna and Dave unpack “trickle-down clamping down,” making space for curiosity, and the importance of being surprised in the classroom, and Dave confesses that he’s tired of learning.

Published by Wilfrid Laurier University Press

In this episode, Brenna interviews Maha Bali about her edited collection Open at the Margins and the ways open education is not always already equitable. Maha discusses intentionally equitable hospitality, being a scholar outside the dominant discursive frame, and the complexities of consent in the classroom. Maha invites us to consider our values and the challenges in upholding them. 

Published by Wilfrid Laurier University Press

In this episode, Brenna and Dave unpack ethical open practice, releasing your inner control freak, and caring about learners’ ideas (not just our own), and Brenna confesses that she’s not sure what she was supposed to learn in Digital Humanities class. 

Published by Wilfrid Laurier University Press

In this episode, Brenna interviews Andratesha Fritzgerald about her book Antiracism and Universal Design for Learning: Building Expressways to Success. Andratesha discusses using the tools of universal design for antiracist teaching practice goals, where and how racism shows up for learners in school (especially in K-12 education), and how educators can signal that their classroom will be a safer space for learning. Andratesha talks about the power of reflection in empowering learners. 

Published by Wilfrid Laurier University Press

In this episode, Brenna and Dave unpack the role of authority in the classroom, being aware of how power dynamics are at work, and why “safe space” discourse is so threatening to university folks, and Dave confesses to being uncomfortable and afraid. 

Published by Wilfrid Laurier University Press

In this episode, Brenna interviews Naomi Hodgson about her book Manifesto for a Post-Critical Pedagogy. Naomi discusses the principles we want to defend as educators, the difference between hope in the present and optimism for the future, and the notion of pedagogy rooted in care and love for the world. Naomi invites us to think about why we educate and what is valuable about the work we do.

Published by Wilfrid Laurier University Press

In this episode, Brenna and Dave unpack the differences between hope and optimism, the role of the emancipator in education, and why sometimes good intentions go bad, and Brenna confesses to being really very bad at theory. 

Published by Wilfrid Laurier University Press

In this episode, Brenna interviews Audrey Watters about her book, Teaching Machines. Audrey discusses the legacy of B.F. Skinner in education right up to the present day, the feminization and deprofessionalization of the teaching profession and the concurrent rise of educational technologies, and the rewarding of compliance in education. Audrey invites us to consider why we use the technologies we choose and where resistance and refusal might be possible. 

Published by Wilfrid Laurier University Press

In this episode, Brenna and Dave tease out the possibilities of refusal and resistance, how the teacher works as a craftperson, and the resilience of passive learning, and Dave confesses that project-based learning makes him anxious. 

Published by Wilfrid Laurier University Press

In this episode, Brenna interview John Warner about his book Why They Can’t Write: Killing the Five-Paragraph Essay and Other Necessities. John discusses the structural problems with how we view writing instruction in the university, the failure to trust teachers with their classroom practice, and the importance of understanding the folklore that underpins your teaching. John encourages us to establish a teaching practice in line with our own values, not (necessarily) those of the institution. 

Published by Wilfrid Laurier University Press

In this episode, Brenna and Dave try to figure out why we find the institution so intimidating, how to dismantle the folklore students have about our classes, and how to assess skills development, and Brenna confesses that she doesn’t know how budgets work. 

Published by Wilfrid Laurier University Press

In this episode, Brenna has the opportunity to debrief with her peer reviewers, Chris Friend and Lindsay Masland, about the experience of peer reviewing a podcast and their hopes for this project. Brenna then gives Dave one last chance to share his thoughts on the process of making Community of Praxis. 

Published by Wilfrid Laurier University Press