Episode 311: If They Don’t Know, We Didn’t Teach

## The most cited book in education was written for Brazilian adult literacy. Now we use it to build theories to teach American seven-year-olds. The tip of the iceberg of America’s educational decline. !https://i0.wp.com/choralosophy.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/ep311_banner_DRAFT.png?resize=525%2C525&ssl=1 October 23 Students are struggling in 2026. Standards are decreasing. Pedagogy has gotten worse over the last twenty years. And the education profession is slowly starting to wake up as districts continue to push us to work miracles with kids who struggle to do things that were basics in our lifetime. A blog companion to this episode is FREE! That’s my thesis, and this episode will provide some supporting evidence and resources for the teachers that don’t plan to take this lying down. First, we will cover the collapse — the numbers, which are brutal. Then the autopsy: seventy years of philosophy, a rigged definition of good teaching, and the largest educational experiment in American history, which the profession decided to ignore. Then we bring it into the choir room, because music education is not immune to this, nor are we a special case. And at the end of the show, my proposed way out. So, stick around to the end and have your thinking stimulated and challenged. Maybe even have some of your core assumptions about what it means to be a teacher shaken a bit. Not because I think I have landed a monopoly on the truth, but because our students deserve a community of educators who are as engaged in the art of teaching as we expect THEM to be in our content.  Choralosophy presented by Ludus. Visit Ludus.com/choralosophy for the cutting edge in fine arts ticketing and marketing solutions. Clinician/Presenter Requests Support the Show/Bonus Materials Choralosophy Community Blog Merch Store! !https://i0.wp.com/choralosophy.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/IMG_5713.jpg?resize=525%2C394&ssl=1 Now the most popular item in the store. Do you have yours yet?! !https://i0.wp.com/choralosophy.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/KA-Logo-w-tagline-JPG.jpg?resize=525%2C340&ssl=1 Visit Kaleidescope Today!  www.sightreadingfactory.com is the best literacy tool on the market today. Enter Choralosophy at checkout to get 10% off memberships for you AND your students! ## Be Sure to Find Choralosophy on TikTok! For future rehearsal clips, find me on TikTok, Insta and Facebook !https://i0.wp.com/choralosophy.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/mymusicfolders_logo_horizontal_1546100229__78733.original.png?resize=252%2C63&ssl=1 Enter Choralosophy at Checkout for a 5% discount when you shop for folders, robes and other gear for your choir program! www.mymusicfolders.com and www.mychoirrobes.com !https://i0.wp.com/choralosophy.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Endeavor-Logo-blue.png?resize=300%2C82&ssl=1 RyanMain.com is now expanding to a family of composers! Visit endeavormusicpublishing.com and of course, enter Choralosophy at checkout for a 10% discount! > View this profile on Instagram > > Choralosophy Podcast (@choralosophy) • Instagram photos and videos > @choralosophypodca