Episode

12 Dec 2023 · 41 min

0:00

In this episode of Class Disrupted, host Michael Horn and co‑host Diane Tavenner interview Tim Knowles, president of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning. Knowles outlines the foundation’s 120‑year history—from creating the first teacher retirement fund, the Carnegie Unit, Pell Grants, and professional standards—to its current agenda focused on accelerating social and economic mobility for first‑generation, low‑income, and under‑represented students. He explains why the foundation is moving away from seat‑time‑based education toward competency‑ and mastery‑based learning, and how it is partnering with Educational Testing Service (ETS) to develop new tools that surface non‑cognitive and cross‑contextual skills (persistence, collaboration, critical thinking, etc.) that are currently invisible to colleges and employers. The conversation also covers the national “portraits of a graduate” effort that identifies a consensus set of eight‑to‑ten core skills for K‑12 graduates, the need to replace the Carnegie Unit with more meaningful progress metrics, and the foundation’s work to redesign higher‑education classifications—introducing an economic‑mobility classification and revamping the historic R1 system. Knowles describes the newly launched Post‑Secondary Commission, envisioned as a modern “Committee of Ten,” and shares how state leaders are showing interest in scaling competency‑based systems. The interview ends with personal reflections on poetry and leisure activities, illustrating the human side of the reform agenda.

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