How can schools take advantage of powerful technology without adding more noise to an already crowded instructional landscape?

In this episode of Integrate This!, Jeremy and David sit down with Dr. Gene Kerns, Chief Academic Officer at Renaissance, to explore what effective educational technology should really accomplish.

Gene shares his journey from the classroom to more than 20 years with Renaissance and explains a principle that continues to shape his thinking about EdTech: technology should support teachers, not supplant them.

The conversation dives into instructional coherence—making sure assessments, curriculum, intervention, instructional resources, and technology actually work together rather than becoming disconnected pieces teachers have to assemble themselves. Gene also discusses personalized learning, using assessment data to determine “what’s next,” the growing role of AI behind the scenes, and why teachers must remain the ones making the final instructional decisions.

They also tackle the ongoing debate around student screen time and why the conversation should focus not simply on the amount of technology students use, but on the quality and purpose of that use.

And, of course, Gene faces the Integrate This! lightning round, where things wander from school leadership to television, becoming an ordained minister, 80s music, and whether he’d rather head to the mountains or the beach.

In this episode: • Keeping teachers at the center of educational technology • “Supporting, not supplanting” teachers • Personalized learning vs. learning that is more personalized • Instructional coherence across curriculum, assessment, and intervention • Turning assessment data into meaningful next steps • Connecting supplemental resources to what teachers are actually teaching • AI as a “24/7 digital teaching assistant” • Quality vs. quantity when thinking about student screen time • The future of Renaissance Intelligence

Resources & Links

🔗 Renaissance: https://www.renaissance.com/ 🔗 Renaissance Intelligence: https://www.renaissance.com/renaissance-intelligence/ 🔗 Renaissance Webinars: https://www.renaissance.com/resources/webinars/ 🔗 Renaissance Blog: https://www.renaissance.com/resources/blog/ 🔗 Dr. Gene Kerns on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gene-kerns-8bbb8014/

🎧 Integrate This! is a podcast exploring educational technology, effective instruction, and the ideas shaping teaching and learning.

What does it really mean to prepare every student for a future we cannot fully predict?

Jeremy and David are joined by sisters and Innovageous co-founders Shira Woolf Cohen and Alicia Woolf for a conversation about moving beyond career days, isolated programs, and technology that only gives the appearance of innovation.

Shira and Alicia explain why future-focused education is not about directing students toward one predetermined pathway. Instead, it means helping every learner develop transferable skills such as communication, adaptability, perseverance, self-awareness, leadership, and agency. They also explore why true inclusion goes beyond providing access—and what all educators can learn from the transition-planning practices long used in special education.

The conversation includes practical ways teachers can connect existing lessons to students’ futures without adding another program to their plates, thoughtful uses of AI and educational technology, strategies for building sustainable community and employer partnerships, and creative ways rural schools can expand career exploration through virtual connections.

The episode concludes with a round of “Future Focused or Future Flavored” and a sister-themed lightning round featuring cheesesteaks, Old Bay, Bravo, and keynote walk-up songs.

Learn more about Innovageous and explore their resources: https://www.innovageous.com/

Connect with Shira Woolf Cohen: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shirawoolfcohen/

Connect with Shira Woolf Cohen: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alicia-woolf-91366362/

Find Leading Future-Focused Schools: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0F9VWS8Z7

Dr. Sheldon Eakins, host of the Leading Equity podcast and founder of Purposeful Teaching Academy, joins the podcast to share his journey from history teacher to school administrator to equity consultant. He talks about what sparked his work in culturally responsive teaching after moving from the Virgin Islands to Idaho, where he served as a special education director for the Shoshone and Bannock tribes. Sheldon breaks down how cultural assumptions show up in everyday classroom moments, using a memorable refrigerator analogy to explain the difference between individualist and collectivist mindsets in group work, and previews a new tool he's building to help teachers create more balanced, engaging collaborative learning experiences. He also talks about what purposeful, intentional teaching looks like heading into a new school year. Stick around for the lightning round, including his go-to potluck dish and his walk-up song.

Check out the Purposeful Teaching Academy: https://purposeful247.com/

Follow Sheldon on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sheldoneakins/

Check out Sheldon's Books: Amazon.com: Sheldon L. Eakins: books, biography, latest update