Welcome to Wide Walls, a podcast where inspiring educators, researchers, designers, and innovators share their personal journey and their vision for creating better learning experiences for children.
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Adolescent Literacy, Reading Through Play, and Building an AI-Backed Company - Julia Rivard Dexter
What if the biggest problem in education isn’t teaching children to read, but helping them believe they’re readers?
I had the pleasure of welcoming Julia Rivard Dexter, entrepreneur, Olympian, and CEO of Shoelace Learning (https://future.shoelacelearning.com/), to Wide Walls to explore exactly that question. What started as a conversation about adolescent literacy quickly became a much broader discussion about confidence, gaming as a tool for reading engagement, and how AI can help address some of the challenges of building an EdTech company.
Here are a few ideas that stood out:
📚 The hidden literacy crisis — Why we focus so much on early reading, while millions of adolescents continue to struggle with comprehension, stamina, and confidence as readers.
🎮 Engagement before achievement — How game-based learning can motivate students to practice, build confidence, and eventually see themselves as readers.
🏷️ The cost of labels — How being labeled a “bad reader” at a young age can reshape a child’s identity and relationship with learning for years.
🤖 Building an AI-agents-backed company — Julia shared how Shoelace has integrated AI agents across the business, what became possible, and the very real human tradeoffs that came with that transformation.
🌱 A school built around passion — What education could look like if we connected students with mentors who share their interests and gave them more ownership over what and how they learn.
One of my favorite quote from our conversation:
“I believe humans are so much more capable than we think we are. If we give that space, that guidance, that coaching, in a place that’s fueled by passion, it’s pretty incredible where we could go.”
Find more about Julia and her work:
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliarivard/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliarivard/)
- Shoelace Learning: https://future.shoelacelearning.com/ (https://future.shoelacelearning.com/)
- My Magic Moment: https://mymagicmoment.space/ (https://mymagicmoment.space/)
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit widewalls.substack.com (https://widewalls.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1)
2 Apr 2026
Co-Creating with Children, Rethinking AI Models, and Learning through Play - José Antonio Gordillo Martorell
What if we’ve been thinking about learning, children, and AI all wrong? That’s exactly what this latest Wide Walls episode explores.
I had the pleasure of speaking with José Antonio Gordillo Martorell. José is a design strategist and education innovator, Founder and CEO of Cultural Inquiry (https://www.cultural-inquiry.com/), and author of the recent book Children’s Boards in Museums (https://www.routledge.com/Childrens-Boards-in-Museums-New-Approaches-to-Working-with-Children-in-Museums/GordilloMartorell/p/book/9781032937229).
He has spent years working alongside researchers, museums, and global design communities to explore what happens when we truly take children seriously as creators, and what it means to build AI with and for children, not just adults.
Here are a few key takeaways from our conversation:
🤝 From users to co-creators — What changes when children actively shape the systems, products, and environments designed for them
🎮 Play is serious work — Why play isn’t just for kids, but the foundation of learning, creativity, and even professional environments
🤖 AI isn’t built for children (yet) — How today’s AI systems are designed by and for adults, and what it would take to create AI that truly supports children’s development
📉 The risk of standardized thinking — How AI could reduce creativity and diversity of thought if we’re not intentional
🔮 Reimagining learning & AI — What a child-centered future could look like: more agency, more creativity, and systems designed with children, not just for them
One of my favorite lines from the episode:“Children don’t need to be protected from the world. They need to be trusted to help shape it.”
This conversation reinforced something I’ve been thinking a lot about lately:If we don’t intentionally design learning and AI for children, we’re implicitly designing it against them.
Find more about José and his work:
- LinkedIn -> https://www.linkedin.com/in/jose-antonio-gordillo-martorell-28ab0727/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/jose-antonio-gordillo-martorell-28ab0727/)
- Cultural Inquiry -> https://www.cultural-inquiry.com/ (https://www.cultural-inquiry.com/)
- (Book) Children's Boards in Museums -> https://www.routledge.com/Childrens-Boards-in-Museums-New-Approaches-to-Working-with-Children-in-Museums/GordilloMartorell/p/book/9781032937229 (https://www.routledge.com/Childrens-Boards-in-Museums-New-Approaches-to-Working-with-Children-in-Museums/GordilloMartorell/p/book/9781032937229)
- (Book) Why it's so great to be a child (as an adult) -> https://www.united-pc-publishing.com/books/guidebooks-non-fiction/other-miscellaneous/why-its-so-great-to-be-a-child-as-an-adult.html (https://www.united-pc-publishing.com/books/guidebooks-non-fiction/other-miscellaneous/why-its-so-great-to-be-a-child-as-an-adult.html)
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit widewalls.substack.com (https://widewalls.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1)
12 Feb 2026
The Art of Teaching, Jazz and Mastery, and Learning by Doing - Dr. Gary Stager
On this episode of Wide Walls, I’m joined by Dr. Gary Stager — educator, author, jazz lover, and one of the most outspoken champions of constructionism and learning-by-doing in classrooms.
Gary has spent decades reimagining how children learn, championing hands-on, creative, and learner-driven approaches inspired by the work of Seymour Papert and Reggio Emilia philosophy.
In this episode, we discuss:
Jazz as a Model for Learning
Jazz blends mastery, collaboration, and deep listening. Excellence emerges from practice, tradition, and co-creation — not shortcuts. Classrooms should aspire to that same standard.
Reanimating the Art of Teaching
Teaching is not curriculum delivery. It’s designing environments where powerful ideas can flourish. Empathy and intuition matter as much as content.
High Ceilings Matter
Creativity without ambition is shallow. Students need real complexity and meaningful standards to grow.
Computers as Intellectual Laboratories
Programming is a way of thinking, not just a skill. When students model ideas with code, they engage deeply with concepts. Making with bits expands what’s possible.
Love Over Duty
Dignity and meaningful work reduce discipline better than rules. Students remember relationships, not worksheets. Love is a better master than duty.
Find more about Gary and his work:
* Personal Website -> https://professorgarystager.com/ (https://professorgarystager.com/)
* LinkedIn -> https://www.linkedin.com/in/garystager/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/garystager/)
* Invent to Learn -> https://inventtolearn.com/ (https://inventtolearn.com/)
* Seymour Papert Archives -> https://dailypapert.com/ (https://dailypapert.com/)
* The Language of Computation - CMK in Reggio Emilia -> https://reggio.constructingmodernknowledge.com/ (https://reggio.constructingmodernknowledge.com/)
* Cymbal Press -> https://cymbalpress.com/ (https://cymbalpress.com/)
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit widewalls.substack.com (https://widewalls.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1)
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864
Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025
Apple Podcasts (US)
5.0 / 5
3 ratings
Spotify
5.0 / 5
4 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 52 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
Quality
65
Social presence
0
YouTube
64
Engagement
32
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