TBD: Teaching Based Discussion - podcast cover

TBD: Teaching Based Discussion

Two high school seniors (Heath Monsma and James Catanzaro) talk to their teachers about a variety of topics including: what they were like in high school, how and why they developed their teaching style, and the ongoing challenges of online school.
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Episodes

Jonathan Glawe

On perhaps the final episode of TBD, Heath gets the chance to talk to Mr. Glawe, Pioneer's Director of Orchestras and 2021 Michigan String Teacher of the Year. The discussion ranges from Glawe's trailblazing partnership with Upbeat music for the virtual school year to his Red Hot Chili Peppers cover band.

Jul 14, 202146 minSeason 1Ep. 11

David Leach

On this episode of TBD, we sat down with Pioneer director of bands and music department chair David Leach. Mr. Leach has become somewhat of a Pioneer legend over the last twenty years winning countless awards for the band and himself. This run includes being part of the program that won the Grammy award for best public school band in the country not once but twice. However, we talk to him about who his idols were growing up as a band kid in Ann Arbor and which experiences from his career meant t...

Mar 31, 202136 minSeason 1Ep. 10

Jeff Kass

On this episode of TBD, we talked with Pioneer English teacher Jefferey Kass about the philosophies towards school that he developed at a young age, his career as a sports radio personality in California prior to teaching, the novels and poetry he has written, and much more. The interview provided some perspective on how the pandemic has reshaped our priorities and left us with a greater appreciation for our high school experiences.

Mar 18, 202154 minSeason 1Ep. 9

Barbara Martin (Martini)

After a two month hiatus, the TBD podcast is back and better than ever with an energy-filled interview with Ms. Martini, one of Pioneer's Spanish teachers. We discuss what it was like to grow up in a large Italian family, the origins of her teaching principles, and what happened behind the scenes for teachers over the summer.

Mar 11, 202151 minSeason 1Ep. 8

Debra Fitzgerald

On this episode of TBD we talked to Debra Fitzgerald, who is an English and Journalism teacher as well as the Newspaper Advisor. She is also a former student of Ann Arbor Pioneer, although she had a much different high school experience then either of us. We discussed her career before teaching, coronavirus, and the "real world", especially how little high school represents it.

Dec 15, 202043 minSeason 1Ep. 7

Rita (Peg Lederer)

On this episode of TBD we sit down with Rita, the Spanish Department Chair at Pioneer, who teaches Spanish 2 and Spanish AP. We discuss her roundabout way of ending up as a Spanish teacher, online school, and potentially releasing a Spanish language version of this podcast.

Nov 17, 202048 minSeason 1Ep. 6

Jennifer Wilkening

In this episode of TBD, Heath and James sit down with Ms. Wilkening who teaches 9th grade and AP Biology at Pioneer. We discuss her childhood, teaching career, and passion for swimming as well as, inevitably, online learning.

Nov 05, 202031 minSeason 1Ep. 5

Chuck White

In this bonus episode of TBD, only Heath has a conversation with Mr. White almost exclusively about virtual learning. It should be noted that this discussion took place immediately before the start of the school year.

Nov 01, 202019 min

Jodi Bullinger

On this episode of TBD we sat down with Jodi Bullinger, a Pioneer alum and AP Psychology teacher. She puts a positive spin on the online learning situation with a psychological approach. We also discuss some fascinating anecdotes from her childhood and past students.

Oct 29, 202046 minSeason 1Ep. 4

Introducing: TBD

Two high school seniors (Heath Monsma and James Catanzaro) talk to their teachers about a variety of topics including: what they were like in high school, how and why they developed their teaching style, and the ongoing challenges of online school.

Oct 29, 20204 min

Sean Sabo

We apologize for any sound quality issues on our end, we were still working out the bugs of online recording at the time.

Oct 22, 202052 minSeason 1Ep. 3

Matthew Rice

In our second episode we talked to Mr. Rice, a math teacher at Pioneer who has taught multiple levels of math. He is currently teaching AB Calculus and Pre-Calculus. Heath was sick at the time of the episode, but James was still able to sit down with Mr. Rice and learn more about him!

Oct 12, 202038 minSeason 1Ep. 2

Sarah Roldán-Dodson

On the first ever episode of TBD, we sit down with the APUSH teacher at Pioneer, Mrs. Roldán, and got to know a little bit more about her.

Oct 12, 202032 minSeason 1Ep. 1
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