TALKS & WORKSHOPS
The Prisms of Inquiry:
A Framework for Student Autonomy
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A practical session introducing your six-stage Prisms of Inquiry framework showing teachers how to gradually shift from control to co-creation while maintaining rigor and clarity.
When Will I Ever Use This?:
Anti-Apathy Weapons in the Age of AI
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A workshop that helps teachers transform emerging career research into sustained inquiry, empowering students to connect coursework with real postsecondary pathways and interviews so they can see relevance and resilience beyond fears of AI-driven obsolescence.
Hollow Heartland:
Combating the Heartland Brain Drain​
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A cross-disciplinary approach that builds critical thinking, discussion, and scientific literacy through place-based inquiry to spark rich discussions about local control, student autonomy, and hometown main streets to rebuild the midwest.​
Gamification Beyond Glitches & Gimmicks:
Designing Intrinsic Motivation into the Experience
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Using examples from Tangents: Raise Failures, this session shows educators how to build gamified experiences that encourage vulnerability in learning and increase intrinsic motivation.
Read the Comments
Argumentation over Online Arguments​
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3 powerful ways to use CER with trending social media topics so students can craft informed, concise, and persuasive stances.
The Science behind Empty/Full:
Science Literacy in an Age of Memes, AI, and Misinformation
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Adapted from themes in Hourglass Science, this workshop helps educators confront short-form digital distractions while building scientific reasoning and civic responsibility.
Students as Citizen-Scholars
From the Campus to the Community​
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5 essential stages that help students separate academic evidence from social controversy and convert real-world issues into meaningful civic action.
Teaching in Tangents
Lessons from Over a Decade in the Classroom
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Tangents is a memoir of over a decade in public education, offering deeply personal and practical lessons that help teachers rediscover purpose, resilience, and student-centered practice.
Formats
Keynote-style talks (30–60 minutes)
Interactive sessions (60–90 minutes)
Half-day design labs focused on one Prism or text
Who it’s for
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Teacher teams and instructional coaches
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Pre-service and graduate programs
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Conference sessions and unconferences
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Community reading groups and libraries
If you’re curious about bringing one of these sessions to your school, campus, or event, share a few details about your goals and timeline. I’ll follow up to see if we’re a good fit and how we might tailor the experience for your context.
Participants leave with ready-to-apply inquiry strategies and discussion structures
that support autonomy, critical thinking, and interdisciplinary literacy.
Nicholas explored ideas regarding education as the host of The Delta podcast, an education-focused segment of Mid Map Media.
In episodes on leaving the classroom, teaching students to question authority, and rethinking school culture, he began shaping the stories and arguments that now underpin Tangents and Prisms of Inquiry.
