This episode is part 2 of my knowledge mobilization plan that I've put together as part of my graduate school research. If you're reading these show notes: I graduated! As of February, I officially have a Master of Education in Education Technology from Memorial University of Newfoundland. As part of my research, I decided to interview people who could give me insight into the nature of educational curation, and how it's being re-shaped and re-conceptualized. The second part of this series is with Garth Nichols, Vice Principal of Experiential Education & Innovation at Havergal College in ..read more

I finished grad school!  In this episode, an interview with Dana Fallis, management consultant and my former teaching partner.  As part of my capstone project for grad school, I had to assemble a Knowledge Mobilization Plan. As part of this plan, I proposed the sharing and discussion of my findings with leading voices in the education industry. This episode is Part 1, and focuses on the transformation of curational practice for K-12 teachers.  Don't know what curation is? Listen and find out! Welcome to that high school life, the grad school edition.  ..read more

When you measure student success, and it's easy to get lost in the numbers—exam pass/fail rates, diploma completion, acceptance ratios.  It's important to remember the people behind the numbers though. This is an interview with Anna Do, a former student who graduated from the Canadian International School in Vietnam in 2019. Today, Anna's a graduate student pursuing her M.Sc in Health Sciences at Wilfred Laurier University.  In this episode, we talk about the importance of perseverance even when you're not 100% clear about the outcome, adjusting to grad school, beating imposter syn ..read more

In this episode, an interview with Khai, a Grade 11 student, on: Switching curricula as an international school student Moving to another country Murakami novels Future aspirations for school Long term personal goals Also in this episode: Sort of improved sound quality thanks to a couple of new mics and a mildly soundproofed room.  This interview was filmed before the winter break, and Season 2 of That High School Life continues in February with a look at technology in the classroom. Music for this episode: "Professor Umlaut" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Co ..read more

What happens when you slack off? Bad things usually, but is there a good way to slack off? And if there is, how do you do it? In this episode, I interview Conrad, a university pal who's now a senior developer at Slack. But he wasn't always a senior developer—like every functioning adult, he had to go through his own ups and downs to get to where he is now. In this episode, we talk about a few things that I regularly get asked about as a teacher. High school indecisiveness: Good or bad? Working smart: Does it exist? The importance of saying yes and being uncomfortable: Should you actually do ..read more

Welcome back to school! Season 2 of THSL starts with an interview in Toronto, Canada (recorded back in July). My guest for this episode was Jon, a student services professional at the post-secondary level. - Helping students make a transition (for teachers) - the right kind of workload - Helping yourself make a transition (for students) - lifestyle, academics, social stuff - Specific information from a professional: Transitions for international students (tl;dr - if you need help, ask!) Some issues I had in this episode that you might notice: I just got these sweet tube pre-amps not an hour be ..read more

The concept of music in a school setting conjures up some common images: spit valves being released, guitar strings being plucked, reeds being soaked, and the humble plastic recorder being turned into an impromptu spitball shooter. In this interview, Erik shares his thoughts on what it is to be a music director in an international school. Musical influences from Bach to John Denver to Mariah Carey, contemplations on street karaoke, and the growing Vina House sub-genre are just a couple of things we talk about in this episode. *** Music for this episode: "Professor Umlaut" Kevin MacLeod (inco ..read more

In this episode: - New intro/outro music! (CC attribution below) - Joe remembers to introduce the podcast - An interview with Anna, an OSSD student - Looking back at three years of high school - Anna dishes out advice for the new class of grade 9s - In retrospect, some odd editing went on with this episode. All part of figuring out Logic X Pro + how to work the recording gear! "Professor Umlaut" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0 ..read more

The past couple of months have been...interesting (in the sense of the phrase, "May you live in interesting times").  This episode of That High School Life is an interview with Johannes, an IB Year 1 student at International School Ruhr. Since we just recently implemented a hybrid (in-person/online) learning schedule, this interview during a lunch break at school (and right before a business quiz).  In this interview: a student's perspective on online learning—losing track of days, keeping up with community service, and realizing the things that we sometimes take for granted, both ..read more

An interview with Yu, soon-to-be official graduate of the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme Thoughts on 9 years in the same school, being a third culture kid, and lessons learned from teachers as you get older A look at the familiar feeling of "what now?" that follows completion of a long task (like high school) A special announcement to wrap up season 2 of That High School Life At the end: A trailer for Onward!, a new podcast coming out in July 2019 Subscribe to Onward! by looking for it in your podcast app (Google Play, Apple Podcasts or Spotify), or by visiting the link ..read more