In each episode of the Inside Our MIND podcast, we take a look at issues and challenges facing education that we are working to address through research, technology and strategic initiatives.

In our latest episode, I welcome our Massachusetts Professional Learning Designer Elizabeth Birie to the show for a conversation about edtech implementation. Elizabeth reflects back on her firsthand experiences with edtech as a teacher, and some of the challenges educators face when implementing programs. We discuss how her experiences have informed the work Elizabeth has been doing at MIND, supporting teachers, schools, and students who are using our ST Math program.

Over the past year, Elizabeth has also been lending her expertise to the EdTech Genome Project. Coordinated by the EdTech Evidence Exchange, the EdTech Genome project is "creating an evidence-based framework to help educators make better-informed decisions about which technologies to use in their classrooms and schools -- and how to implement them most effectively."

The EdTech Evidence Exchange just published a report on the EdTech Genome Project, which you can download here: https://edtechevidence.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/1.-FINAL-EdTechGenomeProject-FinalReport_July2021-2.pdf.

Topics Covered in the Podcast:

0:00 - Overview and past history of content
2:30 - Elizabeth’s teaching experience and working with MIND
6:00 - The importance of school and staff culture
10:00 - EdTech Genome Project overview
15: 30 - Defining staff culture for the project
22:00 - Staff culture and the impact of COVID-19
25:30 - Current status and next steps for the EdTech Genome Project
27:15 - Bringing insights back to MIND

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You can learn more about the EdTech Genome Project at https://edtechevidence.org/.