Jethro Jones
500 episodes listed below
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Jethro Jones interviews instructional leaders from around the nation to learn and teach what it takes to become a transformative principal. Episodes address topics like Response to Intervention (RTI), Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS), Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS), the latest advances in educational research, standards-based grading, and interviews with industry leaders like Bill Daggett, Rick Wormeli, Todd Whitaker and even people outside the education like Seth Godin, JeVon McCormick, Liz Wiseman, and more.
Based on 5 episodes we listened to · July 2026
Transformative Principal gives school leaders practitioner-level conversations about grading reform, inclusive pathways, and team-based instruction, with a recurring, careful take on AI in the classroom.
Transformative Principal is aimed at the practitioner end of Education, less at people who study schools than at the people who run them. Host Jethro Jones, who founded the Bee Podcast Network, builds each episode around a long interview, then closes with a brief, careful note…
A school can drop grades and still miss the point; Jethro Jones asks what you'd replace them with.
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Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
A grounded look at educator support, careful AI use, and practical problem solving.
The episode follows educators trying to get better through support that feels honest rather than polished. It makes a convincing case for masterminds as a place to admit a problem, hear another angle, and leave with something usable.
A practical case for deep thinking and relational skills, not just access, when AI changes the classroom.
This episode argues that schools need to do more than pass along information when AI makes retrieval cheap and abundant. It makes the case for deep thinking, relational skills, and the ability to work through messy real-world problems, while still leaving room for information,…
A practical case for team-based learning that helps students keep moving.
It makes a clear case for better learning through structure: schools can organize teams, assign roles, and set tasks so students work with one another instead of beside one another. The strongest point is the push against ability grouping as the default.
A systems-level school-design discussion about grades, motivation, behavior, and how to judge AI tools with outside validation.
The segment treats school change as a systems question: grades, motivation, and behavior are intertwined, so removing one lever without replacing it can fall flat.
A practical case for earlier, more inclusive CTE access and cautious AI use.
Transition services come through here as part of a student's future, not a side program. The piece favors getting general education and special education staff into the same planning room, and it makes a practical case for bringing students impacted by disabilities into CTE…
School leadership notes and a firm case for public schools
Clear thinking about education’s next turn.
Steady counsel for school leaders.
This podcast segment introduces sponsors discussing educational challenges like absenteeism and ed tech solutions, but does not yet cover the main topic of coaching in dissertation success.
This podcast segment introduces sponsors discussing educational challenges like chronic absenteeism and tools for learning, with the main topic being principal self-efficacy.
This segment discusses the impact of chronic absenteeism in education and promotes Playworks as a solution through recess, along with sponsorships from iXcel and Renaissance.
This segment discusses the role of recess in addressing chronic absenteeism in schools, highlighting Playworks' partnership to make recess safe and engaging, with measurable impacts on student attendance.
This segment discusses the role of recess in reducing chronic absenteeism and building connected school communities, with sponsors Playworks, iXcel, and Renaissance.
This podcast segment discusses using technology to build relationships and encourage children to love reading, with sponsorships focusing on educational tools and reducing absenteeism.
This transcript segment features sponsor messages from Playworks and iXcel discussing challenges in education like chronic absenteeism and promoting tools for schools, with no substantive content from the main episode yet.
This segment discusses the impact of chronic absenteeism in education, highlighting Playworks' approach to improving student attendance through recess and introducing sponsors iXcel and Renaissance Intelligence as educational solutions.
This segment features sponsor messages from Playworks and iXcel, focusing on reducing chronic absenteeism through recess and an educational platform, with a mention of Renaissance Intelligence, but does not begin the main episode on literacy.
This segment discusses the impact of chronic absenteeism in schools and promotes Playworks as a solution through recess, along with sponsorships from iXcel and Renaissance.
This podcast segment introduces an episode about executive functions in K-3 classrooms with guests Mitch Weathers and Sarah Oberle, but the transcript only contains sponsor messages without substantive content.
This transcript features sponsor messages from Playworks and iXcel discussing solutions for chronic absenteeism in education and ed tech platforms, with no substantive content from the main episode provided.
This transcript consists of sponsor messages for Playworks, iXcel, and Renaissance, focusing on educational challenges and solutions, without substantive content from the main episode.
This podcast segment features sponsor messages from Playworks, iXcel, and Renaissance, with the main topic being AI standards and cybersecurity education for kids, as indicated by the title.
This segment introduces sponsors discussing challenges in education such as chronic absenteeism and ed tech solutions, but does not yet reach the main episode content on instructional coherence.
This transcript features sponsor messages from Playworks and iXcel discussing challenges in education like chronic absenteeism and ed tech solutions, but does not include substantive content from the main episode with Marie Bordeleau.
This segment introduces the Transformative Principal Podcast and promotes resources like Linked Leaders and Michael Hyatt's Free to Focus course for educational leaders seeking professional development and support.
This segment discusses the impact of chronic absenteeism in education, highlighting Playworks' approach to using recess to improve student attendance and behavior, along with sponsor messages from iXcel and Renaissance.
This segment features sponsor messages from Playworks and iXcel discussing challenges in education like chronic absenteeism and ed tech solutions, with no substantive episode content starting yet.
This transcript segment features sponsor messages from Playworks discussing recess as a solution to chronic absenteeism, iXcel promoting its educational technology platform, and Renaissance introducing Renaissance Intelligence, without substantive content from the main episode.
This segment discusses the impact of chronic absenteeism in education and promotes sponsors like Playworks, iXcel, and Renaissance, focusing on solutions such as recess and educational technology.
This podcast segment features sponsorships from Playworks, iXcel, and Renaissance, focusing on educational challenges like chronic absenteeism and tools for teaching and learning, but does not include substantive content from the main episode on coaching over evaluation.
This transcript features sponsor messages from Playworks and iXcel discussing educational challenges like chronic absenteeism and promoting their services to improve school engagement and learning outcomes.
This transcript introduces sponsors discussing challenges in education, such as chronic absenteeism and ed tech solutions, but does not yet cover the main topic of coaches evaluating teachers.
This segment discusses the impact of chronic absenteeism in education and promotes Playworks as a solution through recess, followed by sponsorships from iXcel and Renaissance.
This podcast segment introduces sponsors discussing challenges in education like chronic absenteeism and solutions such as recess and ed tech platforms, but does not yet reach the main topic on building accountability with Will Parker.
This segment features sponsor messages from Playworks and iXcel discussing solutions to chronic absenteeism and educational technology, with a brief mention of Renaissance Intelligence.
This podcast segment features sponsorships from Playworks and iXcel discussing educational challenges and solutions, with an introduction to an episode about learning through video games at Alpha School with Benny.
This segment discusses Craig Randall's return to the Transformative Principle podcast to talk about the evolution of Trust-Based Observations and his new podcast featuring 20-minute teaching observations.
This segment discusses the impact of chronic absenteeism in education and promotes Playworks as a solution through recess, while also mentioning other sponsors like iXcel and Renaissance.
This segment features sponsor messages from Playworks and iXcel discussing solutions for chronic absenteeism and educational technology, with an introduction to Renaissance Intelligence.
This transcript features sponsor messages from Playworks and iXcel discussing solutions for chronic absenteeism and educational technology, with no substantive content from the main episode yet.
This segment features sponsor messages from Playworks and iXcel discussing solutions for chronic absenteeism and educational technology, with a brief mention of Renaissance Intelligence.
This podcast segment introduces sponsors and sets up an episode about supporting students and families with ADHD, but does not yet reach substantive content.
This transcript segment features sponsor messages from Playworks and iXcel discussing educational challenges like chronic absenteeism and solutions such as recess and online learning platforms, without substantive content from the main episode.
This transcript includes sponsor messages for Playworks, iXcel, and Renaissance, focusing on educational challenges and solutions, but does not contain substantive content from the main episode about helping kids find purposeful direction.
This segment discusses the impact of chronic absenteeism in education and promotes Playworks as a solution through recess, followed by sponsorships from iXcel and Renaissance.
This podcast segment features sponsor messages from Playworks, iXcel, and Renaissance, focusing on educational challenges like chronic absenteeism and learning platforms, but does not yet begin the main discussion on literacy in mental health and reading with Barb Solish and Dr.
This segment consists entirely of sponsor messages promoting Playworks, iXcel, and Renaissance Intelligence, focusing on solutions for education challenges like absenteeism and learning platforms.
This segment features sponsor messages from Playworks and iXcel discussing solutions for chronic absenteeism and educational technology, with a brief mention of Renaissance Intelligence.
This podcast segment features sponsor messages from Playworks and iXcel discussing solutions for chronic absenteeism and educational technology, with an introduction to an episode on innovative leadership with Brad Gustafson.
This segment discusses the impact of chronic absenteeism in education and promotes Playworks as a solution through recess, while also highlighting sponsors iXcel and Renaissance.
This transcript segment features sponsor messages from Playworks and iXcel discussing solutions for chronic absenteeism and educational technology, with no substantive content from the main episode on early mental health intervention.
This podcast segment introduces sponsors discussing educational challenges and solutions, but does not yet reach the substantive content about principals using AI for innovation and cognitive equity.
This segment features sponsor messages from Playworks and iXcel discussing challenges in education like chronic absenteeism and ed tech solutions, with no substantive content from the main episode yet.
School leadership can get lonely fast.
Former principal Jethro Jones argues that traditional education systems have perfectly set themselves up for AI disruption by prioritizing adult convenience over student learning.
Education researcher Michael Toth explains how the pandemic revealed that school had become optional for students, and how device-centric development is causing brain matter loss and anxiety.
Jethro Jones interviews Adrian Ireland, author of Designing Different, about reimagining educational architecture.
Jethro Jones interviews Joel Lavin, an equity and inclusion administrator, about transforming transition services for high school students with disabilities.