Reimagining Student Outcomes with Laurie Gagnon

The Future of Smart

In this episode, Ulcca Joshi Hansen interviews Laurie Gagnon, Program Director for CompetencyWorks at the Aurora Institute. They discuss competency-based approaches to education that organize learning around demonstrated skills and knowledge rather than lockstep grade-level standards. Gagnon explains how competency models better account for individual development and allow more flexibility in how and when learning happens. Ulcca and Laurie talk about how competency systems open the door for broader educational ecosystems involving families, out-of-school providers, and community organizations. They also discuss how competency models value the knowledge and skills students already have through their family, cultural roots, languages spoken, and passions. The episode explores how competency-based systems support more personalized, equitable learning for all students.

If you are new to this podcast, we suggest listening to episodes 2-4 to build a foundation for the concepts and principles we'll keep returning to on the Future of Smart.

E.2 - From Brain Bound to Our Extended Minds

E.3 - A Return Journey to Wisdom

E.4 - Using Science to Imagine a New Purpose and Design for Education with Dr. Pamela Cantor