1
00:00:00,017 --> 00:00:03,637
Hi, this is Aurora from the Educating All Learners Alliance,
2
00:00:03,857 --> 00:00:07,957
and today we're speaking to Nick Covington for 5 Minutes with Human Restoration Project.
3
00:00:08,697 --> 00:00:12,777
Human Restoration Project is informing, guiding, and growing a movement towards
4
00:00:12,777 --> 00:00:17,017
a progressive, human-centered education system by bringing together a network
5
00:00:17,017 --> 00:00:20,477
of radical educators who are transforming classrooms across the world.
6
00:00:20,977 --> 00:00:24,737
Joining us today is Nick Covington, the Creative Director of Human Restoration
7
00:00:24,737 --> 00:00:28,857
Project and a former high school social studies teacher in the Iowa Public Schools,
8
00:00:29,037 --> 00:00:33,337
who promotes progressive education across the board. Thanks for joining us today, Nick.
9
00:00:33,557 --> 00:00:37,197
Awesome. Thanks so much for having me. Let's dive right in. Tell us more about
10
00:00:37,197 --> 00:00:39,357
Human Restoration Project and the work that you do.
11
00:00:39,897 --> 00:00:47,797
Yeah. So I think while a lot of reform efforts and so-called reimaginings of school often come from,
12
00:00:48,297 --> 00:00:52,697
top-down or one-off kind of initiatives, you know, you have somebody come in,
13
00:00:52,777 --> 00:00:54,937
deliver a package and kind of go ahead and leave.
14
00:00:55,377 --> 00:00:59,797
Those end up oftentimes not being super super sustainable in the long run because
15
00:00:59,797 --> 00:01:01,317
they don't have a lot of buy-in from teachers.
16
00:01:01,717 --> 00:01:04,657
They don't have a buy-in from kids. They don't have buy-in from the community.
17
00:01:04,877 --> 00:01:07,637
They're just kind of dropped off like a package at your door,
18
00:01:07,717 --> 00:01:10,637
and then you're kind of left to see what you're supposed to do with it.
19
00:01:10,837 --> 00:01:13,497
But the work of Human Restoration Project is grassroots.
20
00:01:13,777 --> 00:01:17,497
It's systems based, and it's really based around our four big ideas.
21
00:01:17,657 --> 00:01:21,217
So that's that learning is rooted in purpose-finding and community relevance.
22
00:01:21,497 --> 00:01:25,397
So that looks like mapping a path to purpose, creating interdisciplinary
23
00:01:25,397 --> 00:01:28,377
multi-age spaces it looks like
24
00:01:28,377 --> 00:01:31,937
social justice being the cornerstone to educational success so
25
00:01:31,937 --> 00:01:35,497
that's reimagining space promoting free play authenticating
26
00:01:35,497 --> 00:01:40,517
student voice engaging in restorative practices that looks like dehumanizing
27
00:01:40,517 --> 00:01:44,597
practices not belonging in schools so reforming grading and assessment practices
28
00:01:44,597 --> 00:01:48,457
especially and that learners are respectful toward each other's innate human
29
00:01:48,457 --> 00:01:52,857
worth because the other part of this is that oftentimes Sometimes education is such an isolated,
30
00:01:53,097 --> 00:01:56,737
alienated endeavor, perhaps between you and a computer screen.
31
00:01:56,937 --> 00:02:00,057
And this really plugs in community. It really plugs in collaboration.
32
00:02:00,237 --> 00:02:05,277
So that's not only like honoring self-directed learning, but also promoting
33
00:02:05,277 --> 00:02:09,237
cooperation over competition, connecting to the community, ensuring a strong
34
00:02:09,237 --> 00:02:10,677
public education and those things.
35
00:02:10,677 --> 00:02:15,117
So while a lot of those other approaches go into schools with a prepackaged
36
00:02:15,117 --> 00:02:18,537
idea of like what works, we actually start by listening to students,
37
00:02:18,637 --> 00:02:21,457
listening to teachers, meeting with community partners.
38
00:02:21,777 --> 00:02:25,917
Finding out what their needs are and their goals are, and then helping them
39
00:02:25,917 --> 00:02:30,757
actually build sustainable systems around their vision for happier,
40
00:02:30,817 --> 00:02:33,277
healthier, more connected kids and communities.
41
00:02:33,677 --> 00:02:37,637
I love that. The sustainability piece is what's really, really important there. Yeah.
42
00:02:38,172 --> 00:02:42,072
Yeah. So tell me a little bit more about how this specifically impacts students
43
00:02:42,072 --> 00:02:44,312
with disabilities and students with learning differences.
44
00:02:44,712 --> 00:02:48,892
Yeah, it's really interesting because the way that we approach that systems
45
00:02:48,892 --> 00:02:53,392
level design particularly leans into like a universal design for learning,
46
00:02:53,492 --> 00:02:56,312
which, of course, means recruiting multiple means of engagement,
47
00:02:56,632 --> 00:02:58,592
representation and action and expression.
48
00:02:58,592 --> 00:03:04,252
So, like, obviously, those legal parts are important for kids to have 504s,
49
00:03:04,252 --> 00:03:06,812
IEPs and have those supports and have them be honored.
50
00:03:06,872 --> 00:03:12,792
But rather than try to meet every kid's need on a huge spectrum of ability,
51
00:03:13,112 --> 00:03:17,332
neurodivergence, etc., rather than trying to meet that with a patchwork of all
52
00:03:17,332 --> 00:03:20,312
these different documents, actually honoring their own learning,
53
00:03:20,412 --> 00:03:24,432
letting them get to decide what tools they're going to be the most successful with,
54
00:03:24,632 --> 00:03:28,392
letting them express their learning in ways that they can best show it.
55
00:03:28,592 --> 00:03:33,292
And letting them then choose how to be and exist in physical space rather than
56
00:03:33,292 --> 00:03:35,672
try to fit in in any single particular way.
57
00:03:35,832 --> 00:03:40,792
So yeah, we really learn into UDL and we've also, shout out to our friends at the Stimpunks.
58
00:03:41,052 --> 00:03:44,832
We've actually consulted with them a lot too. They're a disability and neurodivergence
59
00:03:44,832 --> 00:03:46,932
advocacy group that's based out of Texas.
60
00:03:47,212 --> 00:03:50,492
Yeah. So we have a close partnership with them to kind of review,
61
00:03:50,652 --> 00:03:55,232
look at our materials, make sure we're keeping those people in the forefront of our mind.
62
00:03:55,332 --> 00:03:57,612
And that's a great name for an organization. So good.
63
00:03:58,372 --> 00:04:01,512
Simpunks.org? Yes. I believe I'll make sure I put that in the production notes
64
00:04:01,512 --> 00:04:03,892
for this in case folks want to check them out too. Yep.
65
00:04:04,192 --> 00:04:08,172
Great. You know, it's not easy doing this kind of restorative and this kind
66
00:04:08,172 --> 00:04:11,892
of reform work. So what are some lessons learned along the way?
67
00:04:12,570 --> 00:04:17,710
Yeah. I think to get back to that sustainability part that I opened with,
68
00:04:17,830 --> 00:04:23,590
I think we often see that dehumanizing practices in schools burn out adults and kids alike.
69
00:04:23,950 --> 00:04:28,830
It was the case when I stepped out of the classroom in June of 2022 that at
70
00:04:28,830 --> 00:04:34,310
that time, K-12 educators had the highest rates of burnout of any other profession in the country.
71
00:04:34,370 --> 00:04:38,610
Higher than healthcare professionals, lawyers, any other kind of high stress
72
00:04:38,610 --> 00:04:40,610
position, educators were first.
73
00:04:40,610 --> 00:04:44,690
So I think a lot of times people imagine that student-centered practices kind
74
00:04:44,690 --> 00:04:50,390
of hit adults and kids against each other to like have kids or adults win out one way or the other.
75
00:04:50,450 --> 00:04:55,390
But you can't have restoration that doesn't address both halves of that equation.
76
00:04:55,790 --> 00:05:00,630
I didn't intend for that to rhyme. That was just kind of a little fortuitous thing. But but right.
77
00:05:00,670 --> 00:05:04,670
So I think when we go in and we work with schools or the people who use our
78
00:05:04,670 --> 00:05:05,970
open education resources.
79
00:05:06,450 --> 00:05:10,790
You know, they see how it helps bring balance back to, you know,
80
00:05:10,790 --> 00:05:15,010
they can kind of reclaim a bit of their life and it actually helps create happier
81
00:05:15,010 --> 00:05:16,630
and healthier environments for kids, too.
82
00:05:16,630 --> 00:05:19,630
And in turn, that leads to environments that adults want to be in.
83
00:05:19,710 --> 00:05:24,970
So it's hopefully trying to take that negative kind of doom loop where things
84
00:05:24,970 --> 00:05:29,470
just continually get worse and try to break that and actually create a restorative,
85
00:05:29,470 --> 00:05:31,970
you know, a positive restorative loop in the process.
86
00:05:32,270 --> 00:05:35,810
And that's great. So for folks listening out there, how can they get involved
87
00:05:35,810 --> 00:05:39,230
or stay informed, stay up to date with the work that you're doing at HRP?
88
00:05:39,230 --> 00:05:43,610
Yeah, we've actually got our third annual conference to restore humanity,
89
00:05:44,010 --> 00:05:46,910
which we think is a virtual conference done right.
90
00:05:47,150 --> 00:05:53,070
I think 90% of attendees at our last one rated it higher than the typical in-person
91
00:05:53,070 --> 00:05:54,210
conference, which is really cool.
92
00:05:54,470 --> 00:05:58,810
That's July 22nd through the 25th. And you can learn more about that.
93
00:05:58,910 --> 00:06:02,490
You can learn more about all of our work at humanrestorationproject.org.
94
00:06:02,490 --> 00:06:04,830
While you're there, sign up for a newsletter.
95
00:06:05,090 --> 00:06:09,270
And if you go on any social media platform, search for Human Restoration Project,
96
00:06:09,470 --> 00:06:11,110
we're pretty much on all of them.
97
00:06:11,190 --> 00:06:15,450
So yeah, feel free to follow us, send us a message, and we'll get connected.
98
00:06:16,050 --> 00:06:18,710
Awesome. Thank you so much for chatting with us today. It's been great talking
99
00:06:18,710 --> 00:06:20,330
with you. Yeah. Thanks, of course, Aurora.
100
00:06:20,750 --> 00:06:24,150
That's it for us today, folks. Thank you to Nick Covington. And to learn more,
101
00:06:24,270 --> 00:06:26,610
visit humanrestorationproject.org.
102
00:06:26,950 --> 00:06:30,730
I'm Aurora from ILA, and this was 5 Minutes with Human Restoration Project.
103
00:06:31,760 --> 00:06:40,941
Music.
00:00:00,017 --> 00:00:03,637
Hi, this is Aurora from the Educating All Learners Alliance,
2
00:00:03,857 --> 00:00:07,957
and today we're speaking to Nick Covington for 5 Minutes with Human Restoration Project.
3
00:00:08,697 --> 00:00:12,777
Human Restoration Project is informing, guiding, and growing a movement towards
4
00:00:12,777 --> 00:00:17,017
a progressive, human-centered education system by bringing together a network
5
00:00:17,017 --> 00:00:20,477
of radical educators who are transforming classrooms across the world.
6
00:00:20,977 --> 00:00:24,737
Joining us today is Nick Covington, the Creative Director of Human Restoration
7
00:00:24,737 --> 00:00:28,857
Project and a former high school social studies teacher in the Iowa Public Schools,
8
00:00:29,037 --> 00:00:33,337
who promotes progressive education across the board. Thanks for joining us today, Nick.
9
00:00:33,557 --> 00:00:37,197
Awesome. Thanks so much for having me. Let's dive right in. Tell us more about
10
00:00:37,197 --> 00:00:39,357
Human Restoration Project and the work that you do.
11
00:00:39,897 --> 00:00:47,797
Yeah. So I think while a lot of reform efforts and so-called reimaginings of school often come from,
12
00:00:48,297 --> 00:00:52,697
top-down or one-off kind of initiatives, you know, you have somebody come in,
13
00:00:52,777 --> 00:00:54,937
deliver a package and kind of go ahead and leave.
14
00:00:55,377 --> 00:00:59,797
Those end up oftentimes not being super super sustainable in the long run because
15
00:00:59,797 --> 00:01:01,317
they don't have a lot of buy-in from teachers.
16
00:01:01,717 --> 00:01:04,657
They don't have a buy-in from kids. They don't have buy-in from the community.
17
00:01:04,877 --> 00:01:07,637
They're just kind of dropped off like a package at your door,
18
00:01:07,717 --> 00:01:10,637
and then you're kind of left to see what you're supposed to do with it.
19
00:01:10,837 --> 00:01:13,497
But the work of Human Restoration Project is grassroots.
20
00:01:13,777 --> 00:01:17,497
It's systems based, and it's really based around our four big ideas.
21
00:01:17,657 --> 00:01:21,217
So that's that learning is rooted in purpose-finding and community relevance.
22
00:01:21,497 --> 00:01:25,397
So that looks like mapping a path to purpose, creating interdisciplinary
23
00:01:25,397 --> 00:01:28,377
multi-age spaces it looks like
24
00:01:28,377 --> 00:01:31,937
social justice being the cornerstone to educational success so
25
00:01:31,937 --> 00:01:35,497
that's reimagining space promoting free play authenticating
26
00:01:35,497 --> 00:01:40,517
student voice engaging in restorative practices that looks like dehumanizing
27
00:01:40,517 --> 00:01:44,597
practices not belonging in schools so reforming grading and assessment practices
28
00:01:44,597 --> 00:01:48,457
especially and that learners are respectful toward each other's innate human
29
00:01:48,457 --> 00:01:52,857
worth because the other part of this is that oftentimes Sometimes education is such an isolated,
30
00:01:53,097 --> 00:01:56,737
alienated endeavor, perhaps between you and a computer screen.
31
00:01:56,937 --> 00:02:00,057
And this really plugs in community. It really plugs in collaboration.
32
00:02:00,237 --> 00:02:05,277
So that's not only like honoring self-directed learning, but also promoting
33
00:02:05,277 --> 00:02:09,237
cooperation over competition, connecting to the community, ensuring a strong
34
00:02:09,237 --> 00:02:10,677
public education and those things.
35
00:02:10,677 --> 00:02:15,117
So while a lot of those other approaches go into schools with a prepackaged
36
00:02:15,117 --> 00:02:18,537
idea of like what works, we actually start by listening to students,
37
00:02:18,637 --> 00:02:21,457
listening to teachers, meeting with community partners.
38
00:02:21,777 --> 00:02:25,917
Finding out what their needs are and their goals are, and then helping them
39
00:02:25,917 --> 00:02:30,757
actually build sustainable systems around their vision for happier,
40
00:02:30,817 --> 00:02:33,277
healthier, more connected kids and communities.
41
00:02:33,677 --> 00:02:37,637
I love that. The sustainability piece is what's really, really important there. Yeah.
42
00:02:38,172 --> 00:02:42,072
Yeah. So tell me a little bit more about how this specifically impacts students
43
00:02:42,072 --> 00:02:44,312
with disabilities and students with learning differences.
44
00:02:44,712 --> 00:02:48,892
Yeah, it's really interesting because the way that we approach that systems
45
00:02:48,892 --> 00:02:53,392
level design particularly leans into like a universal design for learning,
46
00:02:53,492 --> 00:02:56,312
which, of course, means recruiting multiple means of engagement,
47
00:02:56,632 --> 00:02:58,592
representation and action and expression.
48
00:02:58,592 --> 00:03:04,252
So, like, obviously, those legal parts are important for kids to have 504s,
49
00:03:04,252 --> 00:03:06,812
IEPs and have those supports and have them be honored.
50
00:03:06,872 --> 00:03:12,792
But rather than try to meet every kid's need on a huge spectrum of ability,
51
00:03:13,112 --> 00:03:17,332
neurodivergence, etc., rather than trying to meet that with a patchwork of all
52
00:03:17,332 --> 00:03:20,312
these different documents, actually honoring their own learning,
53
00:03:20,412 --> 00:03:24,432
letting them get to decide what tools they're going to be the most successful with,
54
00:03:24,632 --> 00:03:28,392
letting them express their learning in ways that they can best show it.
55
00:03:28,592 --> 00:03:33,292
And letting them then choose how to be and exist in physical space rather than
56
00:03:33,292 --> 00:03:35,672
try to fit in in any single particular way.
57
00:03:35,832 --> 00:03:40,792
So yeah, we really learn into UDL and we've also, shout out to our friends at the Stimpunks.
58
00:03:41,052 --> 00:03:44,832
We've actually consulted with them a lot too. They're a disability and neurodivergence
59
00:03:44,832 --> 00:03:46,932
advocacy group that's based out of Texas.
60
00:03:47,212 --> 00:03:50,492
Yeah. So we have a close partnership with them to kind of review,
61
00:03:50,652 --> 00:03:55,232
look at our materials, make sure we're keeping those people in the forefront of our mind.
62
00:03:55,332 --> 00:03:57,612
And that's a great name for an organization. So good.
63
00:03:58,372 --> 00:04:01,512
Simpunks.org? Yes. I believe I'll make sure I put that in the production notes
64
00:04:01,512 --> 00:04:03,892
for this in case folks want to check them out too. Yep.
65
00:04:04,192 --> 00:04:08,172
Great. You know, it's not easy doing this kind of restorative and this kind
66
00:04:08,172 --> 00:04:11,892
of reform work. So what are some lessons learned along the way?
67
00:04:12,570 --> 00:04:17,710
Yeah. I think to get back to that sustainability part that I opened with,
68
00:04:17,830 --> 00:04:23,590
I think we often see that dehumanizing practices in schools burn out adults and kids alike.
69
00:04:23,950 --> 00:04:28,830
It was the case when I stepped out of the classroom in June of 2022 that at
70
00:04:28,830 --> 00:04:34,310
that time, K-12 educators had the highest rates of burnout of any other profession in the country.
71
00:04:34,370 --> 00:04:38,610
Higher than healthcare professionals, lawyers, any other kind of high stress
72
00:04:38,610 --> 00:04:40,610
position, educators were first.
73
00:04:40,610 --> 00:04:44,690
So I think a lot of times people imagine that student-centered practices kind
74
00:04:44,690 --> 00:04:50,390
of hit adults and kids against each other to like have kids or adults win out one way or the other.
75
00:04:50,450 --> 00:04:55,390
But you can't have restoration that doesn't address both halves of that equation.
76
00:04:55,790 --> 00:05:00,630
I didn't intend for that to rhyme. That was just kind of a little fortuitous thing. But but right.
77
00:05:00,670 --> 00:05:04,670
So I think when we go in and we work with schools or the people who use our
78
00:05:04,670 --> 00:05:05,970
open education resources.
79
00:05:06,450 --> 00:05:10,790
You know, they see how it helps bring balance back to, you know,
80
00:05:10,790 --> 00:05:15,010
they can kind of reclaim a bit of their life and it actually helps create happier
81
00:05:15,010 --> 00:05:16,630
and healthier environments for kids, too.
82
00:05:16,630 --> 00:05:19,630
And in turn, that leads to environments that adults want to be in.
83
00:05:19,710 --> 00:05:24,970
So it's hopefully trying to take that negative kind of doom loop where things
84
00:05:24,970 --> 00:05:29,470
just continually get worse and try to break that and actually create a restorative,
85
00:05:29,470 --> 00:05:31,970
you know, a positive restorative loop in the process.
86
00:05:32,270 --> 00:05:35,810
And that's great. So for folks listening out there, how can they get involved
87
00:05:35,810 --> 00:05:39,230
or stay informed, stay up to date with the work that you're doing at HRP?
88
00:05:39,230 --> 00:05:43,610
Yeah, we've actually got our third annual conference to restore humanity,
89
00:05:44,010 --> 00:05:46,910
which we think is a virtual conference done right.
90
00:05:47,150 --> 00:05:53,070
I think 90% of attendees at our last one rated it higher than the typical in-person
91
00:05:53,070 --> 00:05:54,210
conference, which is really cool.
92
00:05:54,470 --> 00:05:58,810
That's July 22nd through the 25th. And you can learn more about that.
93
00:05:58,910 --> 00:06:02,490
You can learn more about all of our work at humanrestorationproject.org.
94
00:06:02,490 --> 00:06:04,830
While you're there, sign up for a newsletter.
95
00:06:05,090 --> 00:06:09,270
And if you go on any social media platform, search for Human Restoration Project,
96
00:06:09,470 --> 00:06:11,110
we're pretty much on all of them.
97
00:06:11,190 --> 00:06:15,450
So yeah, feel free to follow us, send us a message, and we'll get connected.
98
00:06:16,050 --> 00:06:18,710
Awesome. Thank you so much for chatting with us today. It's been great talking
99
00:06:18,710 --> 00:06:20,330
with you. Yeah. Thanks, of course, Aurora.
100
00:06:20,750 --> 00:06:24,150
That's it for us today, folks. Thank you to Nick Covington. And to learn more,
101
00:06:24,270 --> 00:06:26,610
visit humanrestorationproject.org.
102
00:06:26,950 --> 00:06:30,730
I'm Aurora from ILA, and this was 5 Minutes with Human Restoration Project.
103
00:06:31,760 --> 00:06:40,941
Music.
