Season 2: Shaping the Future hosted by Matthew Mugo Fields
Welcome to Shaping the FutureTM Season 2! Hosted by Matthew Mugo Fields, the podcast focuses on topics like women in tech, public healing in the wake of COVID-19, and the science of happiness. Stay tuned for discussions with industry leaders and experts as we explore how we can better prepare students for an unpredictable future.
How to Encourage Ambition
Air date: September 21, 2021
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcast or Spotify.
Featured guest:
- Shellye Archambeau, former CEO of MetricStream and author of Unapologetically Ambitious
Today's guest, Shellye Archambeau explains how she rose through the ranks to become one of the only Black women to hold a tech CEO position in Silicon Valley. On this episode we answer the following questions:
- How do we overcome imposter syndrome?
- What makes a good leader, and how can we as educators prepare our students for future leadership positions?
- How do we encourage our students to be ambitious?
The Evolving Role of EdTech in K–12 Classrooms
Air date: July 13, 2021
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcast or Spotify.
Featured guest:
- Amit Patel, Managing Director at Owl Ventures
In this episode, Amit Patel explains how he became one of the people who provide essential financing for popular education apps and companies, and answers the following questions:
- Why is education technology a good investment?
- What are indicators that a new EdTech company will be successful, in the market and in the classroom?
- Will advancements in artificial intelligence ever replace the role of teacher?
School Cyber Attacks and the Rise of Misinformation
Air date: May 18, 2021
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcast or Spotify.
Featured guest:
- Former Secretary of Defense Ash Carter, Director of the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government
This episode explores how Ash went from being a physicist to pursuing a career at the Pentagon and answers the following questions:
- What are the concerns surrounding social development in students since the pandemic began?
- How can educators protect themselves from the latest cyber security threats targeting schools?
- How can education help to negate the spread of misinformation?
Breaking Barriers in Tech
Air date: April 27, 2021
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcast or Spotify.
Featured guest:
- Rana el Kaliouby, co-founder and CEO of Affectiva and author of the book Girl Decoded
This episode explores how Rana made the transition between a young academic to the CEO of a technology company and answers the following questions:
- What role can emotion play when it comes to technology, particularly artificial intelligence?
- How does a research project become a company?
- What is the experience for a woman in the male-dominated tech leadership space, and what are the barriers to entry?
The Future of Social Impact and the Arts
Air date: March 30, 2021
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcast or Spotify.
Featured guest:
- Marc Bamuthi Joseph, vice president and artistic director of social impact at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
This episode explores the importance of the arts and answers the following questions:
- How can the role of art help to facilitate public healing in the wake of COVID-19 and the social justice movements in 2020?
- What is the future of social impact?
- How can we expand voices in the arts to better represent the population?
The Future of Happiness and Education
Air date: January 26, 2021
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcast or Spotify.
Featured guest:
- Dr. Tal Ben-Shahar, bestselling author of Happier, lecturer, and co-founder and chief learning officer of the Happiness Studies Academy
This episode explores the science behind happiness and answers the following questions:
- What are the basic elements of happiness?
- What is anti-fragility, and how can embracing this idea lead to better resilience in the face of hardships?
- The rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are fundamental American liberties, but what responsibilities do schools have to teach happiness alongside their curriculum?
Check out the video below for a sneak peek of the episode!
Season 1: Shaping the Future Hosted by Dr. David Dockterman
Shaping the Future Season 1 is hosted by Dr. David Dockterman (Dock), an education lecturer at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, and features education experts and thought leaders from other industries covering leading issues from across the K-12 industry. Listen to season one below for expert insights to best shape the future of education, including the future of the workforce and job skills needed, education's civic responsibilities in our democracy, and what it means to be media literate in the digital age.
Future Career Skills and Preparing Students for the Workplace
Air date: October 2019
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcast or Spotify.
Featured guests:
- George Anders, senior editor-at-large at LinkedIn, New York Times bestselling author, and Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist
- Dr. Bill Daggett, founder of International Center for Leadership in Education and creator of the Rigor/Relevance Framework
This episode explores key questions around the future workforce, such as:
- Are we preparing students for today’s workforce or the one they’ll inherit?
- How is the teaching profession changing to keep pace with an evolving world?
- What can educators do to ensure students succeed in careers that don’t even exist yet?
- What are the “soft skills” educators need to cultivate in their students to prepare them for a future career?
Preparing Future Voters and the Influence of Educators
Air date: October 29, 2019
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcast or Spotify.
Featured guests:
- Sylvia Acevedo, CEO of the Girl Scouts and author of Path to the Stars: My Journey from Girl Scout to Rocket Scientist
- Dr. Emma Humphries, chief education officer at iCivics
This episode explores how to responsibly teach civics in schools and addresses questions like:
- How does the historical role of schools impact how we teach civics today?
- How can we empower students to make changes in their communities?
- Can we successfully teach civics education and remain nonpartisan?
Teaching Impeachment and Controversial Issues
Air date: November 12, 2019
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcast or Spotify.
Featured guests:
- Dr. Emma Humphries, chief education officer at iCivics
- Jayson Chang, high school social studies teacher
- Geraldine Stevens, social studies content expert
As the presidential impeachment currently dominates national media, this episode explores how educators can address timely yet controversial and/or politicized topics. Students may come across social media posts, overhear conversations, or see major media about all kinds of controversial or politicized topics, and they will naturally have questions and opinions that could come up in class. How can teachers facilitate these difficult classroom discussions?
Future Skills for Fact-Checking Online Fakes
Air date: November 19, 2019
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcast or Spotify.
Featured guests:
- Katy Byron, editor and MediaWise program manager at Poynter
- Erik Palmer, author, consultant, and former teacher
In an era where “fake news” and false information is rampant online, this episode will explore:
- How do we ensure ALL students are media literate?
- What resources exist to help educators teach this complex and ever-evolving subject?
- What role can social media play in teaching media literacy in context?
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SHAPING THE FUTURE is a trademark of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
This blog, originally published in 2021, has been updated for 2025.
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