When Education Gets Ahead of the System

In Episode 6 of The Dark Side of the Moon, the conversation looks backwards in order to see forwards. Sparked by the story of the Round Hill School in 19th-century Massachusetts, Garland, James and Darren explore what happens when education evolves faster than the systems designed to contain it.

The episode traces striking parallels between early human-centred schools like Round Hill, Montessori and Waldorf, and today’s AI moment. From child-centred learning and mixed-age collaboration to tactile, hands-on experience, the discussion asks why approaches that develop deep thinking often struggle to survive inside rigid curricula, credentials and measurement frameworks.

As the conversation unfolds, deeper tensions emerge around assessment, trust and value. How do we measure learning when growth is qualitative rather than quantitative? What happens when schools optimise for what can be counted rather than what actually matters? And in an AI-enabled world, does shifting judgement away from teachers create more fairness, or introduce new risks entirely?

This episode weaves history, education and culture into a thoughtful reflection on learning, technology and the limits of systems. It is a reminder that the hardest questions facing education today are not new, but they may finally be impossible to ignore.

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Episoder(22)

Just Get on the Train

India has just made AI a compulsory part of education for every child from the age of five.In the final episode of the season, James, Darren and Garland open there and land on an uncomfortable estimat...

5 Jun 48min

Sir Ken Robinson Was Right

In June 2006, a Liverpudlian educator walked onto a TED stage and said something the audience was not ready to hear. All kids have tremendous talent and we squander them pretty ruthlessly.Twenty years...

29 Mai 43min

You Bought an Attention Economy

A mother in Wichita checks her seventh grader's screen time. Thirteen thousand YouTube videos in three months. During school hours.In Episode 20 of The Dark Side of the Moon, the conversation starts w...

22 Mai 36min

Locked Up and Learning Nothing

Five thousand schools. Yondr pouches in every classroom. Phones locked away for the entire day.In Episode 19 of The Dark Side of the Moon, James, Darren and Garland sit with the first serious study on...

15 Mai 42min

The Wrong Fight

The New York Times says American districts are pulling the plug. Sweden has done a full about-turn. The BBC, the podcasts, the parents at the school gate, all pointing the same direction. Take it out....

8 Mai 49min

The End of the Learning Management System (LMS)

A new UK report finds over a million young people, educated and trained, sitting outside the workforce.In Episode 17 of The Dark Side of the Moon, Darren and James open with that number and ask the qu...

1 Mai 32min

Put the Phone Down

Europe is rolling out a new age verification app. Australia has already banned social media for under-sixteens. Spain is next. The mood is the same everywhere. Take it away from them.In Episode 16 of ...

24 Apr 39min

When Claude Feels the Pressure

In Episode 15 of The Dark Side of the Moon, Darren, James and Garland dig into new Anthropic research with an uncomfortable implication. Language models do not feel, but something that looks a lot lik...

17 Apr 45min