Show Notes:

In episode 88, I interview Mike Yates (@justmikeyates), an educator, TedX speaker, and the host of the “School Sucks” Podcast. During the episode, we discussed Mike’s podcast and TedX talks, which have inspired his work to transform education, his unique upbringing, equity in education, and whether he is a change agent or a disruptor.

[Tweet “Check out episode 88 of the Leader Of Learning podcast with @dr_kreiness and @justmikeyates at leaderoflearning.com/episode88! #leaderoflearning”]

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About Mike Yates

My mission is to transform the k-12 education experience. I taught in public, private and charter schools for 5 years helping 89% of my students to earn commended on the Texas state standardized test and helping more than 75% of my students earn 4s and 5s on AP (Advanced Placement) Tests. I won teaching and coaching awards and still found myself unable to help kids the way they should be. I knew there had to be another way. Here is what I am doing about it: I’m keeping my focus on three words that I believe are vital to realizing a future of education where every kid can succeed: Equity, Innovation, Action!

Today, I work tirelessly to innovate school as a team leader at Alpha, an innovative, independent school that uses adaptive learning software in place of direct instruction. Every student at Alpha performs in the top 10% of students their age on the MAP assessment. 99% of our students report that they love coming to school. Every student learns life skills, technical skills, and transferable skills.

We are changing the way kids do school. I am helping through a specialization in developing great workshops with Alpha. All the time we save by using adaptive learning apps to replace direct instruction is spent in exciting and engaging workshops that create a special learning experience. Alpha students take workshops that teach real, practical life skills wrapped in a proxy you might not expect. You might see a kid learning public speaking and performance by putting on a magic show. You may see a student learning financial literacy by learning to flip junk on eBay.

I am working on the development of a school reinvention lab (21st Century Learning Lab) to ensure that every student in Austin, Texas can receive a phenomenal education. The team and I hope that this lab is a place where we can train educators to create new models of school and use new techniques to reach students.