K-12 Confidential
Even before the pandemic lock-downs, American teachers from sea to shining sea reported a critical shortage of teachers within their ranks, and have watched in horror at the crippling levels of greed, arrogance, apathy, and ignorance at every level of K-12 educational governance. While embattled teachers have continued to try in vain to draw attention to the issues, our leaders have failed to acknowledge the problems at all. But since covid, the nation’s teachers have borne witness to a break neck hastening pace of this downward spiral–and a total avoidance of a conversation from our leaders.
This a-political podcast, created and produced exclusively by teachers, gets into the nitty gritty details of why teachers are leaving the profession in droves, and uncovers huge contributing structural problems baked into the teaching profession which are not discussed or understood even within the K-12 educational world, which also explain why so much of what is done in K-12 is ineffective. These desperate, passionate, highly qualified teachers use this podcast series to insert teachers forcefully into the national conversation about the critical issues plaguing K-12 education, because no one else was letting them in–a fact which belies a central thesis about the roots of the problems discussed throughout the episodes. Listeners will be gripped by the reality that without substantial reforms which empower teachers to lead the work, the inevitable result is a collapse of our very ability to effectively self-govern–a process which they argue is already well underway.
Listen as they describe the problems in teacher pay, teacher preparation requirements, special education, climate and culture, reading instruction, the false promise of existing DEI based frameworks in K-12, and the problems inherent in outsourced canned curriculums. Become a part of the solution as they outline a framework to authentically fix these problems, which require all hands on deck from both inside and outside of K-12 education.
Episodes
14 episodes
Episode 12. The K-12 Governance Mess: Teacher Unions
K-12 Confidential Co-Hosts, Trina and Mani, discuss the complexities and challenges faced by teachers and unions in K-12 education, specifically in the context of teacher strikes. The discussion includes U.S. literacy rankings, the impact of te...
Episode 11. The K-12 Governance Mess: A Former Administrator Blows the Whistle!
In this episode of K-12 Confidential, the hosts discuss the complexities and failings of K-12 governance with Roxanne, a former district office administrator with over 40 years of experience in education. The episode delves into the problematic...
Episode 10. The Teacher Pay Mess: An Interview with an Expert
This episode of K-12 Confidential features an interview with Dr. Paul Bruno, a distinguished assistant professor of education policy. The discussion focuses on the complexities of teacher compensation, highlighting evidence that higher salaries...
Episode 9. Intro to the Teacher Pay Mess
In this episode of K-12 Confidential, hosts Trina and Melissa discuss the critical issues surrounding teacher pay in the United States. Melissa, a veteran teacher with diverse educational experiences, joins Trina for an in-depth conversation ab...
Episode 8. The Teacher Shortage Mess: Take This Mess and Shove It!
In this episode of the K-12 Confidential podcast, veteran educators discuss the dire state of the U.S. K-12 education system, focusing on the systemic issues driving teachers away. The episode features an interview with Kelvin Mack, a high scho...
Episode 7. Big Textbook Exposed: An Interview with Two Confidential Teacher Informants
In this episode of the K 12 Confidential podcast, veteran teachers discuss the detrimental impact of canned curriculum in public schools. With an emphasis on the marginalization of English Language Development (ELD) teachers and students, the e...
Episode 6. Intro to the "Big Textbook Mess:" Stuffing the Mess Into a Can
In this episode of K 12 Confidential, the host introduces the 'Can Curriculum Mess' series, outlining the basic problems with large textbook companies in U.S. K-12 education. The episode discusses the massive profits of these companies despite ...
Episode 5. Evidence of the Mess: An Interview with Dr. Paul Bruno
In this episode of K-12 Confidential, the hosts discuss the convoluted and fragmented governance of K-12 education and its role in the teacher shortage crisis. The core argument posits that the decentralized local control model obfuscates accou...
Episode 4. The Teacher Shortage Mess: Where Did All the Teachers Go?
In this episode of K12 Confidential, we delve into the complexities surrounding the teacher shortage crisis in the United States. As the new school year kicks off, many school districts struggle to fill vacant teaching positions. The host trace...
Episode 3. Introduction to the Teacher Shortage Mess
The podcast 'K-12 Confidential' addresses the multifaceted issues within the American K-12 education system, focusing on the severe teacher shortage crisis. Hosted by Trina and new co-host Manuwellla Allen (Mani), the discussion highlights how ...
Episode 2. Introduction to the Messes: Experts Chime In
In this introductory episode of the K-12 Confidential podcast, hosts Shawn and Trina—a married couple with over 35 years of teaching experience—discuss the current state of K-12 education in the U.S., touching on various systemic issues such as...
Episode 1. Intro to the Messes: K-12 Education is BIZARRE!
The inaugural episode of the K 12 Confidential podcast dives into the complex and pressing issues plaguing the American K-12 education system. Host Trina English discusses with her sister Mandy Walker the alarming states of literacy and sexual ...
Episode 0. K12 Confidential--Episode 0: We Don't Need Another Hero
Our short scripted description of our podcast!Welcome to K 12 Confidential, a podcast crafted by veteran K 12 teachers for the American people. This introductory episode outlines the podcast's mission to uncover the harsh realities and s...