Breaking Conversation into Teachable Skills: A Case Study with Nativity Preparatory School

Breaking Conversation into Teachable Skills: A Case Study with Nativity Preparatory School

Achieving the mission of Nativity Preparatory School — in which students grow in character, deepen their faith, and develop transferable academic skills — requires a foundational skill set: the ability to express oneself and listen deeply to others. We partnered with Nativity Prep to break discussion into teachable, assessable skills, starting in sixth grade. Read…

REAL Teacher Feature: Brendan Flanagan

REAL Teacher Feature: Brendan Flanagan

Thank you to Brendan Flanagan for sharing his REAL life with us! Brendan is an English teacher at Gill St. Bernard’s School in Chester, NJ. Here are his thoughts on discussion, R.E.A.L.®, and learning. Hometown: Middletown, NJ Current City, School, Teaching Assignments: AP Language & Composition, English 10, and Digital Literacy at Gill St. Bernard’s…

Combatting Polarization with Conversation: An Interview with CDI

Combatting Polarization with Conversation: An Interview with CDI

Mylien Duong is the Senior Director of Research at the Constructive Dialogue Institute. What follows is a conversation between Mylien and R.E.A.L.® founder Liza Garonzik about CDI’s groundbreaking new report on Polarization in K-12 Classrooms. This conversation has been lightly edited for clarity.  Liza: Tell us, what is the Constructive Dialogue Institute? Where did it…

Breaking It Down: The “R” in R.E.A.L.

Breaking It Down: The “R” in R.E.A.L.

R.E.A.L.® Discussion is a professional development program that empowers faculty to teach their students how to thrive in discussion – in the classroom, in the cafeteria, on the court, and in their communities. R.E.A.L.® gives faculty and students shared language and classroom routines  to make discussion come alive in their classrooms.  The whole system is…

REAL Teacher Feature: Erika Drezner

REAL Teacher Feature: Erika Drezner

Thank you to Erika Drezner for sharing her REAL life with us! Erika is the Upper School English department chair at the Berkeley Carroll School in New York. Here are her thoughts on discussion, R.E.A.L.®, and learning. Hometown: Ithaca, New York Current City, School, Teaching Assignments: English teacher and Upper School English Department Chair at…

Back to School with R.E.A.L.

Back to School with R.E.A.L.

Back-to-school season just might be our favorite time of year here at R.E.A.L.® Discussion. Why? We have spent the summer connecting a diverse group of educators across geographies, backgrounds, teaching styles, and career stages. Despite their differences, all share a commitment to teaching discussion skills to students growing up in a screenbound, polarized world.  R.E.A.L.®…

Let’s Talk About It: Teaching Face-to-Face Communication Skills as Preventative Care for Teens’ Mental Health

Let’s Talk About It: Teaching Face-to-Face Communication Skills as Preventative Care for Teens’ Mental Health

Have you noticed that kids today aren’t talking to each other? We have. We see that today’s teens are connecting with each other, certainly — they spend hours interacting with one another from behind the comfort (and, at times, the agony) of their screens. Yet when kids are off-screen, together, they struggle to talk —…

Understanding the “Organ of Learning” : Brain Science with Glenn Whitman

Understanding the “Organ of Learning” : Brain Science with Glenn Whitman

Glenn Whitman is the Executive Director of the Center for Transformative Teaching and Learning at St. Andrew’s Episocpal School, where he also teaches history. The CTTL’s mission is “to elevate teacher effectiveness, student achievement, and the whole child’s school experience using the most promising research and strategies in Mind, Brain, and Education Science.” What follows…