In this episode, Stewart Campbell and Lukas Fehling explore why translating the UDL Guidelines 3.0 is never “just language”, t’s culture, identity, and what Stewart Campbell calls a linguistic habitus.  They unpack the real-world tension between the informal “Du” and formal “Sie” in German-speaking academic contexts where “distance equals neutrality” and how UDL’s focus on intentionality (not uniformity) creates room for authenticity and multiple pathways to engagement.  The conversation then shifts to the grassroots momentum behind the emerging UDL network for German-speaking countries, the surprising weight of cross-country administrative startup work, and practical advice for anyone hoping to build a connected UDL community in their own region. TranscriptResources:Lukas Fehlings Stewart Campbell 

In this episode of The Principal’s Handbook, we continue the Principal Reset Series by exploring the mindset patterns of the High-Achieving Principal. While ambition and drive can be powerful leadership strengths, they can also lead to constant comparison, moving the finish line, and never feeling like enough has been accomplished. You'll learn how achievement can become tied to your identity, why that creates pressure and burnout, and how to use the TEA Cycle to uncover the thoughts driving these patterns. This episode will help you slow down, recognize the progress you've already made, and focus on leading the right work consistently rather than chasing the next initiative.

In this episode, Dr. Erin Bailey sits down with Khrisma Antoinette, author of children's books for kids in non-traditional family structures, including Precious Love and He's Mine. Khrisma shares how a church book club first introduced her to a main character who looked like her — a moment that sparked her mission to ensure all children see themselves in the books they read.The conversation covers why family representation matters in children's literature, how Khrisma grounds her writing in real community research, and the power of books to open difficult — and healing — conversations. Practical takeaways include simple ways families can build literacy at home, tips for creating welcoming family literacy events, and a reminder that the smallest intentional moments from educators often leave the biggest lifelong impact.About Khrisma Antoinette:Khrisma Antoinette, Librarian & Children's Book Author. Khrisma Antoinette is a children’s book author and librarian who helps families turn storytelling into a tool for connection and confidence. She works with caregivers, librarians, and educators to create reading experiences that spark curiosity and build lifelong readers.Links:Khrisma's WebsiteInstagram: @khrismaantoinetteRIF's Family Dollhouse Resources and More: Dramatic Play Materials | RIF.org

Host Shannon welcomes back Dave Dolan — immersive learning veteran and VR-in-education advocate — for a wide-ranging conversation about the real challenges and possibilities of bringing VR into classrooms worldwide.Topics covered:The "just" problem — Dave's framework for why ed tech vendors consistently underestimate the burden they place on teachers, and why most educators see VR's value but won't adopt it under current conditions.The four stakeholders — Students, teachers, IT, and admin each have distinct needs that must all be satisfied for a successful VR rollout.Champion teacher trap — Most companies sell to the enthusiastic early adopter, leaving the other 25–30 teachers in a school behind — and when that champion leaves, the program collapses (illustrated by a real-world Estonia case study).VR as a calculator — Dave's vision: VR should be as unremarkable and accessible as a calculator. One device per 10 students, offline-capable, picked up and used as needed — not a monthly event in the gymnasium.Gaming vs. education devices — A deep dive into why consumer/gaming headsets create hidden costs through MDM solutions, connectivity dependencies, and biometric data collection that should give schools pause.Student data and privacy — As VR shifts from behavioral data to biometric data, Dave raises serious concerns about devices tied to social media platforms and what that means for student privacy.Graphics quality vs. content quality — The real measure of a VR experience is its word count (actual learning content), not photorealism. Good enough graphics + rich content beats stunning visuals with nothing to do.AR glasses hype — Both hosts are skeptical of the current rush toward AR glasses for education: battery life, AI hallucinations, data ownership, and misuse potential in schools are all unresolved.VR vs. XR terminology — Dave argues that lumping VR, AR, and MR under "XR" degrades the unique value of each technology. VR's power is immersion and distraction removal — fundamentally different from AR/MR.Links:Shannon's Links:Putman XRLinkedIn: Dr. Shannon PutmanDave's Links:Sensible VRLinkedIn: Dave Dolan

In this episode of Why Distance Learning, your hosts continue their conversation with Jered Borup — professor at George Mason University and one of the most-cited researchers in K-12 online learning — about what AI in education is actually doing to relationships, what social presence requires when "build a video lecture" can be done by a chatbot, and why teacher burnout is the real bottleneck the field doesn't want to talk about. Borup connects his earliest 2012 work on asynchronous video to his 2025 Open Praxis research on combining AI-generated text with human-created video, and argues that AI used to offload feedback erodes the very thing online learners need: the felt sense that the teacher is real and knows them.Together, the hosts and Jered explore the conflation of social media, video games, and ed tech in the parental imagination after the pandemic; how to use AI without replacing the relational core of teaching; why one-on-one asynchronous video may build social presence more reliably than synchronous Zoom classes; the DLAC Phase 2 research agenda Borup co-authored with Michael Barbour and Kristen DeBruler; the mental-health gap between teachers and other professionals with comparable education; and Borup's one-line answer to the show's title question — that personalization and Universal Design for Learning are easier to do online than off.This is Part 2 of a two-part conversation. Listen to Part 1 for the foundational ACE framework, the on-site mentor model, and the parent question.Key Topics"Emergency remote learning" vs. real online learning — what parents are still confusingSocial presence — old research, new tools (asynchronous video, AI-plus-human-video)The risk of offloading teacher feedback to AIAsynchronous one-on-one video as a relationship lever (vs. one-to-many Zoom)DLAC Research Agenda Phase 2 — what's keeping researchers up at nightTeacher mental health and the AI strain on top of pandemic strainAuthentic assessment and "we're too in love with the five-paragraph essay"Empathy as the core design move"Why distance learning?" — empowerment, personalization, UDLLinks & ResourcesJered Borup's site: https://sites.google.com/site/jeredborup/ACE Framework on EdTech Books: https://edtechbooks.org/encyclopedia/academic_communities_of_engagement_ace_frameworkA Framework for Establishing Social Presence Through the Combination of AI-generated Text with Human-created Video (Open Praxis, 2025): https://openpraxis.org/articles/10.55982/openpraxis.17.1.769Harnessing the Power of Generative AI to Support ALL Learners (Borup, Evmenova & Shin, 2024): https://www.researchgate.net/publication/380570253_Harnessing_the_Power_of_Generative_AI_to_Support_ALL_LearnersDLAC Research Agenda Phase Two (Borup, Barbour & DeBruler, Sept 2025): https://www.deelac.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/DLAC-Research-Agenda-Phase-2-Final-1052025.pdfBreaking Through the Screen: Practical Tips for Engaging Learners in the Online and Blended Classroom (Borup & Joan Kang Shin, National Geographic Learning): https://www.amazon.com/Breaking-Through-Screen-Practical-classroom/dp/0357541855K-12 Blended Teaching open-source book series: https://edtechbooks.org/k12blended_seriesJered's Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=PGs7TacAAAAJ&hl=enPart 1 of this conversation: [LINK — add when published]Guest Bio: Jered BorupJered Borup is a professor in the Division of Learning Technologies at George Mason University and co-coordinator of the Learning Technologies in Schools graduate program. His research, grounded in six years of junior-high history teaching, focuses on K-12 online and blended learning: the support communities that surround a learner, the parental role in online education, and how generative AI can extend personalized support to historically underserved students. He earned his Ph.D. in Instructional Psychology and Technology from Brigham Young University and has been recognized as one of the top 2% most-cited researchers in his field.About the HostsSeth Fleischauer is the founder of Banyan Global Learning and host of Why Distance Learning. Through Banyan, he designs live virtual programs that connect K-12 classrooms to global peers and expert facilitators — building the kind of structured, human-centered distance learning the podcast explores. See https://banyangloballearning.com/Allyson Mitchell works with CILC, the Center for Interactive Learning and Collaboration, to help educators implement high-quality live virtual learning experiences across grade levels. Discover more at CILC.org.