The Conversation Project

The Conversation Project is a worldwide social impact movement organized by Teach Different. The goal is to clear a path for courageous critical thinkers and problem solvers to influence society through dialogue and conversation.

We partner with community stakeholders to make a difference.

“Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.”

Hellen Keller

For eighteen months during the pandemic, we held nationwide round tables and brought together over one hundred school administrators, business leaders, teachers, and parents nationwide to identify the challenges facing our society.

Our White Paper charts a path to re-engage, re-inspire, and re-socialize our youth through meaningful dialogue and conversation. Teach Different’s Conversation Project is leading the way with powerful programs for teachers and schools.

Raise Engagement

Eliminate Disruptive Behavior

Re-Socialize Students

Authentic conversations are worth the effort. The Conversation Project charts the path.

Remember this.

Authentic conversations are not haphazard or random. They become predictable through routines and long-term commitments to personal development. The Conversation Project is committed to empowering teachers and families to help young people find their voice, think critically, and emerge as the compassionate leaders our society so desperately needs.

Did you know?

A student talking for just 1.7 minutes longer in a class increases test scores by an average of 13.7 percentage points
Student discussion is more effective than 94% of other educational influencers on student achievement (Hattie, 2018)
Student discourse increases analytical thinking and high-level comprehension (Murphy et al., 2018)
Classroom dialogue supports inter-disciplinary learning and curriculum mastery (Howe et al, 2019)

Here are Teach Different's Founders, Dr. Steve Fouts and Dan Fouts, sharing the inspiration behind the Conversation Project

Steve offers an “all hands on deck” philosophy that is needed to re-engage kids and pave the way for future leaders.

Dan breaks down the universally-designed method for conversations taught in this project.

How is the Conversation Project different from other types of personal and professional development programs?

We are practicing teachers and wanted this project to be truly enriching and meaningful for schools and teachers. Too often, there is a disconnect between the priorities of school districts and real challenges that teachers and families face to keep kids engaged.

Our Conversational Development Program for Schools and Private Coaching Program for Teachers and Families work together to make unforgettable conversations routine for students and teachers.

We develop our programming based on what helped us in our own classrooms.
Our trainings are personalized to each teacher, each school and each classroom and we give you tools to measure your own progress.
We base everything we do on collaborative thinking and conversation, not monologues.
We overcome financial barriers and seek community stakeholder support to ensure everyone can afford to participate.

This is the best PD I have had in my career.

Greg Young – 29-year veteran social studies teacher, Maine South High School, Des
Plaines, Illinois

The Method

We teach a conversation method that can be learned in minutes and perfected over time through routines and commitment. Our training is constantly updated based on feedback, research, and experimentation in our own classrooms.

Personalization

We don’t take a one size fits all approach to helping facilitate conversations. Our Online Community of Practice provides peer support and diverse classroom-ready resources for immediate use in the classroom.

Results

Master conversations over time with us. We give you an app that records conversations and generates personalized reports on conversational balance, including open-ended questions, wait time, and student-teacher talk ratios.

Simple but not Simplistic

The method taught by The Conversation Project encourages students to lead the discussion.
Students end up taking the reins, deeply examining the subject matter of their own volition, and even playing devil’s advocate, critically engaging with the ideas presented.
Students relate the ideas organically to experiences in their lives; as well as the lives of their peers.
Increased student discourse has been proven to enhance student comprehension of complex subjects (Howe et al, 2019)

See what educators are saying
about The Conversation Project

The conversation was a great opportunity for the leadership of the building to learn from the different perspectives professionally and personally. This team had the opportunity to dive into critical thinking within our leadership team and how we can funnel this process to our principals, teachers, students, and families. It was enlightening to gain perspective into the different departments and divisions within our community school district. The team appreciated the engaging conversation.

TASHA LONDON - MENTAL HEALTH AND SEL COORDINATOR, WAUKEGAN COMMUNITY UNIT SCHOOL, DISTRICT #60

The Conversation Project