Teaching Topeka: Recent Episodes
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Few industries have been as affected by the COVID-19 pandemic as education. Join The Capital-Journal's Rafael Garcia as he hosts education leaders from the Topeka metro area and for the state in discussing the most pressing issues affecting students, teachers and families today.
Both school and the Kansas Legislature are out for the year and the Capital-Journal's two statehouse reporters, Andrew Bahl and Jason Tidd, are joined by education reporter Rafael Garcia to talk about it all. They run down the big education policy developments from the last year and break down how it will impact your school.
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Children's books are the foundation for many people's values and beliefs. But how can parents look for books that include a diverse rang of voices and values? Find out on episode 7 of Teaching Topeka.
Washburn professor Chris Jones and student Mara Coufal discuss what it means to be a college student this year, and the motivation it takes to trudge through anyway.
The ballot for the Kansas State Board of Education is typically an overlooked position, but as 2020 demonstrated, the board occasionally plays a big role in setting the education agenda for the state. Board member Ann Mah talks to The Capital-Journal's education reporter Rafael Garcia about the issues she sees as priorities for the state board this coming year.
For decades, rumors had flown around Seaman Unified School District 345 that the district's namesake founder Fred Seaman, a prominent education figure in early 20th century Kansas, had ties to the Ku Klux Klan. But it wasn't until 2020, with the help of an anonymous source to tip them in the right direction, that Seaman high journalists were able to find more concrete evidence pointing to just membership, but leadership, in the white supremacist organization. This is how they did it.
Protests on social justice and racial equity have rocked the U.S. this summer, but with students now back to learning, how are schools addressing the topic? Topeka Unified School District 501 superintendent Tiffany Anderson spoke on The Capital-Journal's Teaching Topeka podcast on how schools can not only serve as "disruptors" of injustice, but how they can train students to think critically about racial justice.
Schools and teachers all face a challenge in reopening this fall, but with a different set of needs, special education faced different obstacles in crafting reopening plans. Bert Mooore, Kansas State Department of Education director of special education and title services, and Heath Peine, Wichita Public Schools executive director of student support services, joined The Capital-Journal's Teaching Topeka to discuss how Kansas schools are tackling those obstacles.
The first day of school is an anxious day for most students returning to classes, but in a pandemic, those jitters might be bigger than normal. Hannah Kemble and Glynis Kickhaefer, school counselors for Auburn-Washburn Unified School District 437, join Rafael Garcia, education reporter for The Capital-Journal, to chat about strategies parents can take to help mitigate any nerves or anxiety.
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