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Stories on the trials, tribulations and triumphs of lifelong learning in a changing world

Unlocking the Great Navigator Within
A Thought Sam Frankel A Thought Sam Frankel

Unlocking the Great Navigator Within

"Unlocking the Great Navigator Within" offers a compelling bridge between literary history and modern pedagogy, using Constantin Héger’s description of Emily Brontë as a metaphor for human agency. Through the innovative "H5 Framework for Change," Learning Allowed® provides a practical and inspiring blueprint for learners and leaders to cultivate the curiosity and resilience needed to chart new horizons in an increasingly complex world

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Embracing a Non-Linear Journey Through Critical Friendship
What's Happening Sam Frankel What's Happening Sam Frankel

Embracing a Non-Linear Journey Through Critical Friendship

What if your career path wasn't a ladder to climb, but a spirograph to draw? Educator and author Courtney Anne Brewer shares how rejecting competitive norms in favor of "critical friendship" can transform both your professional journey and your sense of purpose. Discover the power of gentle disruption and lifelong learning in this conversation on collaboration, connection, and leading with conviction.

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Choice, Agency, and the "Year 9 Slump"
What's Happening Sam Frankel What's Happening Sam Frankel

Choice, Agency, and the "Year 9 Slump"

Find out how Learning Allowed® Bronze Ambassador Programme helped shaped University of Bedfordshire PGCE student, Gabrielle Phillips’s professional teacher persona. Gabrielle’s learning journey demonstrates how equipping educators to recognize individual student motivations can transform classroom dynamics and foster more engaged learning communities.

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Future Talent Council
A Thought Sam Frankel A Thought Sam Frankel

Future Talent Council

The Future Talent Council Summit emphasized that mastering "metalearning" - the foundational skills that shape how we learn - is essential for positioning humans as key partners in an AI-driven world. What does this mean for the ‘talent’ needed in the workplace? 

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The Importance of Authenticity
A Thought Sam Frankel A Thought Sam Frankel

The Importance of Authenticity

Alexander Kopelman’s book, For Real: Helping Children Remain Their Authentic Selves in a Limiting World, offers valuable insights and practical tools for parents and educators to help children maintain their authentic selves by moving away from compliance-driven authority. Emphasizing empathetic communication, this work highlights the vital need for dismantling shame in adult-child dynamics to create spaces where authentic dialogue can truly thrive,

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The Ecosystem for Change
A Thought Sam Frankel A Thought Sam Frankel

The Ecosystem for Change

You can’t fix a plant by shouting at the leaves; you have to nurture the ecosystem. Learning Allowed’s Five Elements framework is inspired by Inner Development Goals (IDGs) bridging inner growth for outer change in everyday learning environments.

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The Future of Sport in Canada: We must do better!
What's Happening Taunya Wideman-Johnston What's Happening Taunya Wideman-Johnston

The Future of Sport in Canada: We must do better!

Sport mandates in Canada aim to create safe, inclusive, and equitable spaces for children and youth, yet a recent Commission found that for far too many, sport has been an environment marked by abuse and insecurity, where no one has been held accountable. The core message from the Commission's 98 calls for action is clear: this culture of harm, reinforced by a long-standing culture of silence and the belief in "sport exceptionalism," must be stopped.

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The Educator Identity
A Thought Sam Frankel A Thought Sam Frankel

The Educator Identity

Whether you are an educator at home, at school, in the office or in community spaces - education needs to be reclaimed as the task of enabling human potential.

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Why we need a Relational Approach to Research with Children
What's Happening Sam Frankel What's Happening Sam Frankel

Why we need a Relational Approach to Research with Children

The prevailing ethical framework for research with children is often built on outdated, adult-centric assumptions, viewing the child as a passive object and compromising genuine engagement for the sake of control and protection. To generate richer, more meaningful research, a fundamental reform based on a relational model is required. Our book, The Ethics of Unlocking Research With Children provides innovative solutions that recognises children's competence as "beings" and prioritises the meaning of their involvement over adult-centric risk assessment.

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The Value of ‘Face to Face’ time
A Thought Sam Frankel A Thought Sam Frankel

The Value of ‘Face to Face’ time

The "screen time emergency" often masks a deeper "disconnection" crisis, where adults must lead by example to foster genuine belonging within the home. Instead of focusing on bans, reclaim meaningful encounters by choosing to PLUG IN to one another through curiosity, shared learning, unified language, growing opportunities, and inspiring change. This collaborative approach moves beyond simply controlling devices to investing in the quality of relationships.

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