The Harvard EdCast

Harvard Professor Jon Star explores why the reading wars and math wars keep resurfacing, what counts as credible research evidence in education, and how research should inform teaching and learning. In this episode of the EdCast, Star examines the history behind debates over the science of reading and science of math, the tension between explicit instruction and discovery-based learning, and why educators must keep individual student needs at the center of decisions about how children learn.

Alexis Redding explores why loneliness and uncertainty are a normal part of the college transition and how we can better support students.

Jon Star on strategies to move math teaching beyond speed, fostering deeper thinking and understanding for advanced students.

Journalist Jeff Selingo takes us inside the culture shaping families’ college admissions decisions and the push to refocus on fit, clarity, and better outcomes.

Mississippi’s reading gains aren’t a miracle -- they’re the result of sustained reform. Literacy expert Kymyona Burk explains how policy, teacher investment, and clear implementation helped the state improve scores, and what other states can learn from its “Mississippi Marathon.”

What do students really need from sex education today? Health educator Shafia Zaloom says schools must move beyond basic biology lessons to teach consent, relationships, identity, and communication. In this episode of the Harvard EdCast, Zaloom explains why comprehensive sexuality education should be part of the broader school experience and how educators and school leaders can navigate resistance while supporting student well-being. In this episode you'll learn: *Why consent education alone isn’t enough *What comprehensive sexuality education really means *Why schools shouldn’t silo sex education in health class *How educators can navigate political and parent pushback

Karen Brennan explains how starting with students’ own questions can transform classrooms into spaces of deeper, self-directed learning.

Doug Larkin and Suzanne Poole Patzelt discuss their six-year, multi-state study on teacher retention, revealing that supportive relationships and strong school cultures matter more than pay in keeping teachers in the classroom.

Julia Minson of the Harvard Kennedy School shares practical strategies for turning disagreement into understanding, connection, and constructive dialogue.

Eric Soto-Shed on using America’s 250th anniversary as a chance to rethink how we teach democracy in schools.

Gabrielle Oliveira reveals how migrant families’ decisions, often misunderstood from the outside, are driven by deep care, and what schools must do to truly support the children.

Jarvis Givens uncovers how American schooling was shaped by race, land, and power and why that history still matters today.

Harvard’s Jal Mehta explores whether education research can ever be truly neutral and how politics, values, and funding shape what we know about schools.

Liz Cohen explains how high-impact tutoring has become one of the most promising strategies for helping students recover from pandemic learning loss.

Political scientist Eitan Hersh explores how universities can help bridge divides by fostering viewpoint diversity and teaching students to engage across differences.

Harvard’s Elizabeth Bonawitz explores why curiosity is essential to learning and how schools can better protect it.

Dreama Gentry on how rural communities are redefining what opportunity looks like and why the future of education depends on keeping rural America in the picture.

Stephanie Smith Budhai and Marie Heath explore how AI reflects human bias, urging teachers and school leaders to use it critically, intentionally, and equitably in classrooms.

Harvard’s Marty West explains how a nationwide school voucher program could shake up public education.

University of Birmingham’s Vicky Goodyear and Harvard’s Carrie James discuss research on school phone bans and the challenges and limits of keeping phones out of the classroom.

Harvard’s Liz City shares what it really takes to lead strategically in schools — and how any leader can build the skills to do it well.

Robert Jenkins explores why innovation, equity, and tailored support are essential to transforming global education and helping all children reach their full potential.

Anjali Adukia discusses how textbooks across states like Texas and California are less different than commonly believed — especially in how they portray race, gender, and historical narratives.

Lily Howard Scott explores how intentional teacher language in early childhood classrooms can shape children’s inner voice, support emotional regulation, and promote lifelong resilience and well-being.

Aaliyah El-Amin and Scott Seider explore how cultivating critical consciousness in K–12 classrooms can empower students to recognize injustice, take action, and achieve academic and civic success.

Lisa Plaggemier discusses how and why schools need to be better prepared for cyberattacks.

Tim Shriver and Stephanie Jones discuss how to teach and create more welcoming environments.

Mathew Portell and Tyisha Noise discuss the need for a human-centered approach in schools and how to make the shift.

Eve L. Ewings talks about how the education system has been shaped by racist ideologies, many envisioned by Thomas Jefferson, and have only strengthened racial divisions to this day.

Harvard's Marty West discusses the federal-state relationship in education and the history of the often challenged Department of Education.

Ebony Bridwell-Mitchell shares how leveraging social networks can spark meaningful change, and why schools must embrace the power of human connection to achieve lasting success.

Andrew Tucker discusses the growing trend of portraits of a graduate and how schools prepare students — not just for college — but for careers and lifelong success.

Laura Chávez-Moreno discusses how bilingual education programs influence the racialization of Latinx students.

Lindsay Whorton talks about the challenges of being a superintendent, and how to attract, support, and retain leaders.

Edward Clapp discusses the limitations of individualist creativity and how to shift to a more participatory approach.

Charol Shakeshaft talks about how schools enable sexual misconduct and how to stop it.

Elliot Haspel discusses the challenges and potential solutions for universal childcare in the U.S.

Niobe Way discusses the crisis of connection among boys and young men, focusing on how societal norms about masculinity suppress emotional vulnerability and deep friendships.

Harvard's Ying Xu shares how artificial intelligence impacts children's development.

Harvard's Eric Soto-Shed shares strategies for teaching the election.

Dr. Michael Rich shares strategies for balancing children's time online and offline.

Olivia Chi discusses the implications of "emergency teaching licenses," their impact on teacher diversity, and the ongoing efforts to ensure the quality and stability of the teaching workforce.

Jaime Peterson highlights the prevalence and harmful effects of corporal punishment in schools, underscoring the need for its abolition and the implementation of evidence-based disciplinary practices to ensure students' well-being and safety.

Eyal Bergman sheds light on chronic absenteeism and what family engagement has to do with it.

Heather Wathington discusses how FAFSA changes will impact first-generation, low-income students in accessing college.

Kentaro Iwasaki talks about the challenges and potential solutions to address inequality in math education, emphasizing the importance of dismantling tracking systems and promoting equitable practices.

Robin Stern and Janet Patti discuss the critical need for emotional intelligence among school leaders.

Journalist Laura Pappano shares the motivations, strategies, and implications that mom movements are having on public education.

Psychologist Peter Gray emphasizes the urgent need to reclaim independent play as a crucial tool for fostering resilient, self-reliant, and mentally healthy young individuals, countering children's declining mental health in a world dominated by structured routines and overprotection.

Harvard's Pamela Mason sheds light on the multifaceted journey of teaching and learning to read. In this episode, we explore the intersection of effective literacy instruction, cultivating joy in reading, and empowering educators and families to ignite a passion for lifelong learning.

Wade Morris discusses the evolution and significance of report cards in the American education system.

Superintendent Michael Hester shares the story behind the solar green initiative that raised teacher salaries.

Abigail Gewirtz shares strategies for addressing scary global events with children that build confidence and resilience.

Brian Rosenberg addresses the cultural and structural factors that impede significant transformations in higher education.

Andrea Hussong discusses the how and why of raising grateful children.

Tony DelaRosa discusses "Teaching the Invisible Race" and transforming how educators teach Asian American Pacific Islander narratives in the classroom.

Harvard's Nadine Gaab talks about dyslexia and the need to move from a wait-to-fail approach toward a preventative model.

Justin Cohen shares practices that lead to school transformation and what's standing in the way.

Rich Reddick talks about the impact of the Supreme Court's decision to end race conscious admissions and the future of diversity work on college campuses.

Anant Agarwal discusses how and why educators need to embrace AI.

Ten million children attend afterschool learning programs. Bianca Baldridge discusses how these programs are often misunderstood and exposes how valuable they truly are.

Why did 1.2 million students never enroll in public school? Stanford Economist Thomas Dee discusses where these students went and why it's important to understand the implications of the enrollment dip.

John Silvanus Wilson talks about how HBCUs represent a model of higher education desperately needed to save the future of democracy.

Language and Literacy pioneer Catherine Snow discusses the current state of literacy in America.

Melinda Mangin shares what it means to be a trans inclusive school.

Katie Davis discusses how children engage with technology at each stage of development and how they can best be supported.

Geoff Cohen discusses ways we can nurture belonging as educators, parents, and citizens.

Carola Suárez-Orozco discusses the social emotional needs of immigrant students.

Jack Schneider and Jennifer Berkshire talk about parental rights movements and how these movements can impact education. They are the hosts of the education policy podcast, "Have You Heard."

Harvard's Chris Dede on how to use artificial intelligence in education.

Jeffrey Duncan-Andrade discusses why schools need to be equity-focused and how equality hasn't produced the results needed.

Harvard's Aysha Upchurch talks about the transformative power of hip-hop in education.

Noreen Naseem Rodríguez discusses anti-oppressive social studies and why we need it in elementary schools.

Laura Schifter talks about how schools contribute to climate issues and what needs to happen to change it.

Harvard's Heather Hill and Jon Star reflect on how COVID impacted math teaching and learning, and where do we go next.

Developmental psychologist Paul Harris talks about how children's imaginations can inform education and parenting.

Harvard Senior Lecturer Jennifer Cheatham and Claremont Graduate University Professor Carl Cohn discuss how extreme politicalization is affecting the role of the superintendent.

Ethan Chang details the strategies white parent activists used to challenge ethnic studies in California schools and why we need to understand how counter-curricular movements gain momentum and take hold.

Frank DeAngelis, retired principal of Columbine High School, talks about the lessons learned in leading through school shootings.

Harvard researchers Emily Weinstein and Carrie James tell us what teens are really doing while on their phones.

Harvard Professor Tom Kane shares what research tells us about planning COVID catch-up efforts in response to pandemic learning loss.

Stewart Kwoh talks about the need for Asian American history in the curriculum, how this can be done, and the challenges to making it a reality in education.

Associate Professor Sarah Dryden-Peterson talks about the ways we can better support refugee children and teachers in education around the world.

Harvard Professor Fernando Reimers discusses what global innovations made an impact in education during the pandemic and whether education can sustain them.

National Teacher of the Year Juliana Urtubey reflects on the importance of valuing all parts of a student’s identity and what that means for a teacher today.

Harvard Professor Dick Light shares what sets a great university apart from an okay one.

Elizabeth Steiner talks about job-related stress, reflecting on teachers' intentions to stay or leave the field.

Chris Gabrieli talks about the drop in college enrollments, what this means, and what higher education can do to change it.

Gloria Ladson-Billings discusses how Critical Race Theory became the umbrella term for all things race in schools and the current tension around teaching and talking race in the classroom.

Harvard's Stephanie Jones and Emily Hanno discuss how remote learning and the pandemic has affected children's behavior and well-being. They talk about how educators and families need to invest in social emotional learning before addressing learning loss or lost classroom time.

Traci Baxley talks about social justice parenting and raising socially aware children.

Economist Jeff Denning explains why college completion rates have gone up in the past few decades.

Claudia Costin talks about how COVID has impacted education in developing countries like Brazil.

Michael Fauteux talks about how gratitude practice shifted teaching and learning and impacted students.

Christopher Emdin discusses a new educational model and how to be ratchetdemic.

Journalist Katie Worth shares what she discovered about how climate change is taught in America.

Maleka Donaldson shares different ways teachers frame mistakes in kindergarten and how mistakes can impact lifelong learning.

Paul LeBlanc, president of Southern New Hampshire University, talks about how higher education needs to change and some of the innovative efforts his institution has taken to be more accessible to all students.

Linda Mendonca discusses the impact of COVID on school nurses and why every school needs a nurse.