Podcasts
Grounded Conversations About AI in Education
Foundational Impact is bi-weekly conversations about responsible AI in education, grounded in pedagogy, evidence, equity and student experience. Each episode asks what the evidence actually shows, what it looks like in practice, and what school leaders should do next.
Produced for school leaders, educators and the people making decisions about how young people learn with AI.
Dr Fiona Aubrey-Smith: Stop Buying Tools Before You’ve Answered This
Our guest in this episode is Dr Fiona Aubrey-Smith, an independent researcher who studies the relationship between pedagogy and digital tools, and the lived experience of students in the classroom.
Fiona opens by explaining why identical classroom practices can produce completely different outcomes depending on the belief system behind them. Her example of two teachers greeting students at the classroom door in seemingly the same way, but for very different underlying reasons, shows how policies alone don't determine impact; the intent behind them does. The conversation moves into belonging and dignity, including research showing that struggling students typically ask for help only 1-3 times in a lesson regardless of how much support they need, while confident students almost never ask to be pushed further. Daniel and Fiona discuss the tension between protecting a student's dignity and the value of productive vulnerability.
Jonathan Baggaley: Are Young People Forming Relationships with AI?
What does AI mean for the way young people relate to each other and to technology itself? That's the focus of the conversation in this episode when Daniel speaks with Jonathan Baggaley, CEO of the PSHE Association and former head of the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre.
Jane Mann: Education on the Frontline
What does great education look like when the classroom is a refugee camp? When the teacher is under-resourced, under-supported, and still showing up? We are delighted to welcome Jane Mann, Managing Director of the Partnership for Education and Education Director for International Education at Cambridge University Press and Assessment.
Elizabeth Moore: Philanthropy Filling the AI Education Gap
The conversation between Elizabeth Moore and Daniel in this episode provides a window into how the Gates Foundation is navigating the evolving landscape of AI in K-12 education. As Deputy Director with the U.S. K-12 team, Elizabeth explains that the Gates Foundation operates at multiple levels to improve classroom instruction through research, quality standards, and strategic investments. This includes influencing frontier AI labs like OpenAI and
Calvin Eden: When Your Students Trusts AI Over You
Our guest for this episode is Calvin Eden, the founder of LoudSpeaker who works with students across the UK through high-energy and interactive workshops on topics like resilience, emotional intelligence, and healthy relationships.
Erin Mote: The AI Research to Classroom Gap No One is Talking About
In this episode, Daniel sits down with Erin Mote of InnovateEDU about how education systems are responding to AI and where current approaches are falling short. Erin challenges the assumption that progress in education operates within fixed limits. She argues that system-level change depends on collaboration, shared practice, and open infrastructure rather than competition between schools, organisations, or regions.
Dr. Biljana Scott: Language as Our Defining Asset
What makes human communication unique in an age of increasingly sophisticated AI? Daniel Emmerson invites Dr. Biljana Scott, a linguist with expertise in diplomatic communication and language analysis, to explore this question in depth. With her multilingual background and extensive experience in teaching the nuances of communication, Biljana probes the complex interplay between human language and AI interaction.
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Claire Archibald: Creating Effective AI Governance Structures in Schools
Is having an AI policy enough to protect your school? In this episode, Daniel Emmerson speaks with Claire Archibald, Legal Director at Brown Jacobson and former Data Protection Officer, about what effective AI governance in schools looks like.
Setting Visible Boundaries to Safeguard our Students in an AI-infused World
Daniel's conversation with Gemma Gwilliam, Portsmouth's Head of Digital Learning, Education and Innovation, explores transparency, privacy and safeguarding in AI education. The discussion takes a dramatic turn when Gemma puts on a pair of AI-enabled glasses which she purchased easily for under £10 right in the middle of the recording, bringing theoretical concerns into stark reality.
Hult Prize Accelerator Startups: How the Next Generation is Solving Global Problems with AI
What skills will our students genuinely need to thrive in a future driven by AI? To find the answer, Daniel Emmerson goes straight to the source and sits down with brilliant young minds behind seven teams from the Hult Prize Global Accelerator, one of the final stages of the world’s largest student startup competition.
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