The K12 Breakdown with Brooks and Bronder

Welcome to the K12Leaders K12Breakdown, with your hosts Suzy Brooks and Michael Bronder!

We readout and breakdown the top education headlines from across the web every weekday morning so you stay up to date on everything affecting K12 education. Click to read the highlighted stories we discuss and weigh in with your insights. Your perspective matters, and this podcast is all about fostering a vibrant community of K12 leaders.

And in other breaking K12 education news…

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  • The Power of Networking Reimagined: Purpose Over Popularity

    The Power of Networking Reimagined: Purpose Over Popularity

    The Power of Networking Reimagined: Purpose Over Popularity In education, relationships matter. But too often, “networking” has come to mean collecting followers, chasing clout, or participating in transactional exchanges that never quite lead to growth. For educators, people whose days are built around authenticity, collaboration, and shared mission..that old definition just doesn’t fit. K12Leaders 2.0…

  • Exploring the Ocean’s Final Frontier: How Kids Are Building Robots for the Twilight Zone

    Exploring the Ocean’s Final Frontier: How Kids Are Building Robots for the Twilight Zone

    Real-World Science in Action—And in the Classroom “We know more about the surface of Mars than we do about the depths of our own oceans.” Oceanographers repeat this often, and for good reason. The Ocean Twilight Zone (OTZ)—a vast, dimly lit layer between 200 and 1000 meters deep—remains one of the least understood parts of…

  • Vibe Coding Solutions

    Vibe Coding Solutions

    As my first blog post on K12Leaders, I’m excited to start with such an interesting topic. The ability to create whole websites and applications without writing a single line of code will dramatically change how we find solutions to problems. Let’s quickly define what vibe coding is: “Vibe coding is a fresh take in coding…

  • The Next Era of Education Starts with YOU!

    The Next Era of Education Starts with YOU!

    Education is entering a new era—one driven by innovation, authenticity, and human connection. And at the center of it is K12Leaders 2.0 , a vibrant professional space where educators can grow, collaborate, and lead without the digital distractions that weigh down traditional platforms. Built with educators, for educators, this platform doesn’t just meet the moment.…

  • High School to College: Arts-based SEL & Student Success Planning

    High School to College: Arts-based SEL & Student Success Planning

    This article discusses one of the most effective, yet often overlooked vehicles for fostering Emotional Intelligence (EQ) and Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) – arts education. Let’s look at 5 types of Art-based SEL and how they improve student success planning. It was originally published on the ThinkBuildLive Success website. The development of Emotional Intelligence (EQ) and Social-Emotional…

  • K12Leaders 2.0: The Future of Connected Learning

    K12Leaders 2.0: The Future of Connected Learning

    The future of education isn’t just happening in classrooms—it’s unfolding in real-time conversations, peer collaborations, and brave idea-sharing that transcends walls and zip codes. And leading that evolution is K12Leaders 2.0 —a platform purpose-built to redefine what it means to learn, grow, and lead together. From Isolation to Collaboration Educators have always been innovators. But…

  • Goodbye Spam. Hello Productivity: Why K12Leaders 2.0 Is the Educator Space You’ve Been Waiting For

    Goodbye Spam. Hello Productivity: Why K12Leaders 2.0 Is the Educator Space You’ve Been Waiting For

    In today’s digital world, most professional networks are designed for maximum reach , not maximum relevance . As educators, we log in seeking meaningful conversations and useful resources—only to be met with autoplay ads, automated DMs, and endless notifications that cloud our focus. These platforms weren’t built for our workflow, our priorities, or the way…

  • Breaking Down Barriers: Why AAC Access is Critical for Educational Equity

    Breaking Down Barriers: Why AAC Access is Critical for Educational Equity

    Communication is more than just words—it’s the foundation of human connection, learning, and self-expression. For many K-12 students with communication disabilities, Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) devices and software represent the difference between silence and having a voice, between isolation and inclusion, between academic struggle and success. Yet across our educational system, a troubling disparity…

  • Tech’ing it One Step at a Time: Reflections on supporting diverse learners to thrive in a digital world

    Tech’ing it One Step at a Time: Reflections on supporting diverse learners to thrive in a digital world

    As someone who transitioned from a career in medical speech language pathology to K-12 education, I’ve witnessed firsthand the disconnect between students’ brilliant ideas and their ability to express them through traditional means. This gap is particularly evident for students with language disabilities and learning differences who have so much to contribute but lack the…