Shows
The Knowledge Matters PodcastBonus Episode: Writing: An Unsung Hero of Reading ComprehensionThis bonus episode is an audio recording of our most popular webinar ever, Writing: An Unsung Hero of Reading Comprehension. It features familiar voices to listeners of Season 1 of the Knowledge Matters Podcast, best-selling author and host Natalie Wexler, as well as StandardsWork’s Chief Program Officer Kristen McQuillan, Doug Lemov (Teach Like a Champion), and Julia Cooper (SchoolKit).Their conversation focuses on why writing should be connected to content learning. How does the act of writing about one’s learning deepen retention of the content? How does it support emerging writers in focusing on their craft? Our...2025-03-251h 01
TransformED with STEP UpEp. 22: From Classroom Gaps to Knowledge Gains: Natalie Wexler on Education ReformIn this episode of TransformED with StepUp, we’re excited to welcome Natalie Wexler, a prominent education author known for her groundbreaking insights into education reform. Natalie’s acclaimed book, The Knowledge Gap: The Hidden Cause of America’s Broken Education System—And How to Fix It, along with her works on effective writing instruction, have sparked meaningful discussions on improving U.S. schools. She also hosts Reading Comprehension Revisited as part of the Knowledge Matters Podcast series and has written for top publications like The New York Times And The Atlantic.Natalie brings a wealth of experien...2025-03-1400 min
Bedrock Talks from Bedrock Learning32. Reading is learning: Breaking down the artificial barrier with Natalie WexlerNatalie Wexler joins Andy Sammons to tackle one of education's most persistent challenges: the artificial barrier between reading and learning. This eye-opening conversation dives deep into why traditional approaches to reading comprehension don't work - and what cognitive science tells us actually does.Wexler, author of The Knowledge Gap and co-author of The Writing Revolution, unpacks how our current methods of teaching reading comprehension - as isolated skills, divorced from content - fundamentally misunderstand how comprehension works. She explains why background knowledge functions as "mental Velcro" for new information, and why simply practicing skills like making inferences...2025-03-1135 min
Critically SpeakingNatalie Wexler: America's Knowledge GapIn this episode, Therese Markow and Natalie Wexler discuss the poor reading skills of American students, as evidenced by NAEP test results. Natalie highlights the ineffectiveness of current reading programs and the focus on skills over content. She also talks about the discrepancies between students of different backgrounds, and how The Matthew Effect appears in reading comprehension and general knowledge. She also encourages teachers and parents to introduce their children, as early as possible, to higher concepts and vocabulary as children can and do understand more than many give them credit for. Natalie also discusses the role of writing...2025-02-1144 min
The Mandy Connell Podcast01-27-25 Interview - Natalie Wexler - Why Aren't Kids Learning?WHY AREN'T KIDS LEARNING? I've got a guest that says the curriculum schools uses has a HUGE impact on student learning, as many curriculums aren't based at all on science and have been failing students. When they got rid of phonics instruction children stopped reading well, and that's just one example. Why do curriculums change and how can you insure your schools are using the best ones available? I've got Natalie Wexler on at 1pm to talk about it, and you really should read this article on it too.2025-01-2715 min
Creating Joyful Readers23. The Role of Knowledge in Literacy and Learning with Natalie WexlerDon't miss this conversation with literacy expert Natalie Wexler.Connect with our guest:https://nataliewexler.com/The Knowledge Gap: The Hidden Cause of America's Broken Education System--and How to Fix it https://amzn.to/3BBt4cZThe Writing Revolution: A Guide to Advancing Thinking Through Writing in All Subjects and Grades https://amzn.to/3ZJzXRFSome links referenced here are affiliate links. Supporting the podcast through these links comes at no additional cost to you.--> Shop for your modern day literacy classroom HERE:https...2025-01-2740 min
Melissa & Lori Love Literacy ™[Listen Again] The Writing Revolution with Judith Hochman and Natalie WexlerFrom July 22, 2022The Writing Revolution authors, Judith Hochman and Natalie Wexler, share a 'revolutionary' approach to writing. The best part: It begins at the sentence level AND content knowledge drives the rigor. Moreover, there is an overlap in reading, writing, and critical thinking. What are the principles of The Writing Revolution? There are six: Students need explicit instruction in writing, beginning in the early elementary grades.Sentences are the building blocks of all writing.When embedded in the content of the curriculum, writing instruction is a pow...2025-01-1744 min
Science of Reading: The PodcastS9 E8: Cognitive science-informed teaching, with Natalie WexlerIn this episode, Susan Lambert rejoins podcast alum Natalie Wexler to discuss Natalie’s new book Beyond the Science of Reading: Connecting Literacy Instruction to the Science of Learning. Listeners will gain insights into why this topic is important, what this book offers educators, why Natalie was so drawn to writing this book, and what cognitive science-informed teaching looks like in general. Natalie addresses how cognitive load theory works in practice with literacy, misconceptions about focusing only on phonics, and scaling science-informed instruction. Natalie also answers a question from the listener mailbag about encouraging colleagues to adopt an evidence-based ap...2025-01-1540 min
Progressively IncorrectS4E16: Natalie Wexler on Knowledge, Cognitive Science, and Beyond PhonicsIn this episode, I catch up with Natalie Wexler to discuss her new book, Beyond the Science of Reading. Our wide-ranging conversation covers often underrepresented areas of the science of reading, including the importance of background knowledge for comprehension, cognitive load theory, and explicit writing instruction. Listen and subscribe to Progressively Incorrect on…SpotifyYouTubeApple PodcastsWordPress This … Continue reading S4E16: Natalie Wexler on Knowledge, Cognitive Science, and Beyond Phonics2025-01-0243 min
Melissa & Lori Love Literacy ™Ep. 212: Beyond the Science of Reading with Natalie WexlerPhonics alone won’t solve the literacy crisis.Natalie Wexler's new book: Beyond the Science of Reading: Connecting Literacy Instruction to the Science of Learning advocates, which connects the science of reading to the broader science of learning.Key Points:The current reading crisis is fundamentally a learning crisis.Cognitive science principles, such as retrieval practice, should apply to all learning.Advocating for a knowledge-building curriculum supports all students, particularly those who struggle. Writing instruction should start with explicit techniques.All teachers should integrate literacy within their content.Beyond the...2024-12-2041 min
Principal Center RadioNatalie Wexler—Beyond the Science of Reading: Connecting Literacy Instruction to the Science of Learning
Visit Natalie's Website, www.NatalieWexler.com
Follow Natalie on X @natwexler
About The Author
Natalie Wexler is an education journalist whose work has appeared in The New York Times, The Atlantic, and the Washington Post.
She is the coauthor of The Writing Revolution 2.0. She is the author of The Knowledge Gap: The Hidden Cause of America's Broken Education System and How To Fix It, and the new book, Beyond the Science of Reading, Connecting Literacy Instruction to the Science of Learning.
2024-11-0425 min
Dyslexia Duo PodcastDyslexia Duo Podcast Episode 17 Part 2- Natalie WexlerThe duo conclude their interview with educational author Natalie Wexler.
Find out more about Natalie Wexler and her work here: https://nataliewexler.com/
2024-10-2739 min
Lars og PålEpisode 149 Den gamle skolen møter ny forskning, med Morten BrattbakkHva skjer om vi kombinerer nyere forskning med gamle etablerte ideer om skole og undervisning? Lektor Morten Brattbakk mener at vi her finner løsningen på mye av det som idag skaper problemer i dagens samfunn, hvor barn er for mye på skolen, og både lærer for lite og leker for lite. I denne samtalen snakker vi om cognitive load theory, arbeidsminnet og langtidsminnet, betydningen av kunnskap, hva som er problemet med kritisk tenking slik denne ferdigheten ofte omtales i skoledebatten, lærerens rolle som både trener og dommer i klasserommet, anonym retting, motivasjon og menin...2024-10-191h 47Dyslexia Duo PodcastDyslexia Duo Podcast Episode 16 Part 1- Natalie WexlerThe duo conduct an excellent conversation with educational author Natalie Wexler.
Find out more about Natalie Wexler and her work here: https://nataliewexler.com/
2024-10-1941 min
Science of Reading LeadershipBridging the Knowledge Gap with Natalie Wexler“We have lots of evidence that having knowledge of the topic really helps you with reading comprehension.”In this powerful Science of Reading Leadership episode, we welcome Natalie Wexler, an esteemed education writer and author of "The Knowledge Gap: The Hidden Cause of America's Broken Education System—And How to Fix It." Natalie shares her extensive experience and dives into how we can bridge the educational divide with effective knowledge-building strategies.Key Takeaways:Understanding the Knowledge Gap: Natalie explains the knowledge gap concept, highlighting the disparity in background knowledge that contributes to the reading comprehension gap betwee...2024-06-1124 min
Racket To GoListen to This Article: Substack Q&A: Natalie Wexler of "Minding The Gap"Should we teach more knowledge and less process? Why has knowledge become a bad word? Racket catches up with K-12 expert Natalie Wexler, author of "The Knowledge Gap" This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.racket.news/subscribe2024-05-1623 min
All For LiteracyNarrowing the Knowledge Gap With Natalie WexlerWhat would it take to narrow the knowledge gap between high-achieving and struggling students when it comes to reading and writing?
Education writer Natalie Wexler joins Host Dr. Liz Brooke in Season 2, Episode 8. Wexler is author of “The Knowledge Gap: The Hidden Cause of America’s Broken Education System—and How to Fix It.” Her writing focuses on content-centric education and charts possible routes to achieving educational and social equity.
Gain a critical understanding of how content-focused instruction improves student success. Wexler and Brooke break down the findings behind several in-classroom studies that have changed how certai...2024-05-0743 minAll For LiteracyNarrowing the Knowledge Gap With Natalie WexlerWhat would it take to narrow the knowledge gap between high-achieving and struggling students when it comes to reading and writing?
Education writer Natalie Wexler joins Host Dr. Liz Brooke in Season 2, Episode 8. Wexler is author of “The Knowledge Gap: The Hidden Cause of America’s Broken Education System—and How to Fix It.” Her writing focuses on content-centric education and charts possible routes to achieving educational and social equity.
Gain a critical understanding of how content-focused instruction improves student success. Wexler and Brooke break down the findings behind several in-classroom studies that have changed how certai...2024-05-0743 min
KindlEDEpisode 43: The Knowledge Gap. A Conversation with Natalie Wexler.This week, Kaity and Adriane chat with Natalie Wexler, an education writer and the author of "The Knowledge Gap," about the root causes of the pervasive knowledge gap, the unintended consequences of modern education, and actionable solutions for closing the achievement gap and igniting a love of learning in students.Episode 43 also explores: 🔥 the significance of explicit instruction, guided practice, and frequent retrieval practice🔥 the link between screen time, family dynamics, and academic success🔥 the importance of having a good curriculum🔥 the systemic challenges that teachers face 🔥 and so much more!So, don't mis...2024-04-161h 09