Edutopia did another review of the best research of 2024, and we are here to talk about it. First, discussion of student errors can lead to big gains in student learning. However, those gains only come in an interactive, collaborative class culture.

Later, the remembered success effect shows that ending challenging learning experiences with clear victories on more attainable problems improves student perceptions of their learning in ways that can sustain their motivation long-term.

095 Error Climate & Remembered Success

Professional Learning Communities, or PLCs, provide a collegial network for educators to reflect on and improve their practice. We look at an evaluation of a pre-packaged PLC program that did not improve PLCs in schools, and wonder how we can support educators at the building level instead.

Later, we look at how very early math is learned by children. They experience the snowball effect, meaning it is far more important that learners have experiences with math regardless of the specific types of math they may experience. Math is good, m’kay.

096 PLC Outcomes & Early Numeracy

Team teaching is increasing in popularity among schools to help educators work together in their daily practice. We read about different models for team teaching and think about how it maps to our past experiences in a wide variety of teaming approaches from our own careers.

Later, we reflect on how to develop epistemic empathy. Our ability to take the perspective of students who don’t yet know our content helps us be better guides in their learning journeys, but relies on our hard won experience in the classroom.

097 Team Teaching & Epistemic Empathy

Dual language programs provide a local opportunity for students to get closer to an immersive experience learning a language directly within their school community. However, we read research on the barriers to providing multilingual instruction that fosters racial literacy within a similarly multilingual context.

Later, we look at the positive impact of high quality instructional materials for English-language learners that improves their test performance while substantially increasing their ability to engage in effective argumentation.

098 Racial Literacies & Multilingual Content

All professional learning occurs when teachers try things in their classroom and iterate to make it better. We reflect on the importance of articulating aspirational goals and supporting teachers as they iterate toward their goals as on-going professional development.

Later, we grapple with how research on the impact of educational technology cannot exist outside of the instructional context. What problem does any given technology help teachers solve, and how effectively does it help teachers solve it?

099 Synthesis of PD & Classroom Technology

In this extra length episode, we talk with Dr. Imogen Herrick about her work developing Community Science Data Talks. These talks help students engage the local consequences of climate change to develop their STEM knowledge while navigating their emotional experiences with the data. Our ranging conversation touches on the need for local data sources, fostering student agency, and cultivating civic empathy and hope.

100 Data Talks with Imogen Herrick

Education research, from technology to instruction to design, too often uses an instrumentalist approach that assumes the right tool or trick will simply solve a problem. Jason McDonald joins to talk about the need for entangled research that actually changes both the researcher and the system for the better.

Later, we read The Opportunity Makers and reflect on how some important flaws put key findings at odds with most other educational research.

101 Ed Tech & Opportunity Makers

Our season finale again reviews the most noteworthy papers from the past year. We reflect on hosting student data talks, the use of errors in the classroom, and more. We also spend time thinking about our goals for the types of papers we read and what kinds of “shoulds” (or “shouldn’ts”) we hope to get from them.

Later, we share the results of a follow-up analysis of our past most noteworthy papers. Where are they now, and what do we hope to see from the papers we highlight each year in the field more broadly?

102 Season 8 Finale

Student collaboration is a powerful tool for learning in many contexts, and we read a meta-analysis that highlights the benefits to both the givers and receivers of help in peer tutoring situations. It seems to be almost categorically good… but the details of successful programs remain elusive.

Later, we read about how group structure predicts student creativity. How do we teach processes that prepare students to be ready to be independent when creativity matters most?

103 Peer Tutoring & Collaborative Creativity

In a neuroscience-focused episode, we start with a new model of how having agency influences how much our brains are learning from moment to moment. Building classroom routines that emphasize student choice, from tiny procedural choices to major learning decisions, can boost the positive impacts of dopamine on their brain’s learning pathways.

Later, we read an experimental study of the impacts of emotional events on long-term memory. How can we leverage the benefits of positive emotional experiences in authentic, sustainable ways all year long?

104 Dopamine Motivation & Emotion to Memory

Teaching is a personal profession. We shine brightest when we work together in a safe environment for the betterment of our students. Two Pint PLC is a podcast that invites you to join two educators who discuss the big issues in education in a personal and casual conversation. Two Pint PLC combines the research base, current events and personal experiences to provide a context for each listener’s own professional development.