🐴 The Hidden Power of Feedback Loops (#123)

Discover how shrinking the gap between action and feedback revolutionizes education - from skate parks to classrooms. Plus: Your guide to college-ready transcripts.

Author

Charlie Deist
January 29, 2025

In this edition:

  • 🎓 Why shrinking feedback loops accelerates the way we learn

  • 🛹 How a Florida skate/surf program is revolutionizing STEM education

  • 🎯 Fast Transcripts: an easy-to-use tool for admissions-ready documentation

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💡 THOUGHT

Learning, distilled

Learning = reducing cycles between feedback loops.

☝️ A deceptively simple formula from our COO, Jared Fuller, who recently joined the Deskooled podcast to share OpenEd's vision for transforming education.

When you understand this principle, you start to see why traditional schooling might be missing the mark with long gaps between lessons and feedback.

Catch the full podcast here.

📊 TREND

When Physics Meets the Pavement

In Florida’s Surf Skate Science program, Newton's Laws aren't abstract concepts – they're the difference between landing a kickflip and eating concrete. Students learn physics and other STEM concepts through direct experience: each attempt, success, or fall provides instant feedback that no textbook can match.

Instead of schools trying to be everything to everyone, we're seeing the rise of specialized, part-time ‘a la carte’ programs like Surf Skate Science that do one thing exceptionally well. These programs work precisely because they shrink the time between learning and application. When you can immediately see how force and momentum affect your ride, concepts stick.

🛠️ TOOL

Create College Approved Transcripts

If you can teach your kids at home, you can make a professional transcript.

Fast Transcripts turns your educational choices into admissions-ready documents.

Used by 70,000+ homeschool families.

That’s all for today!

– Charlie (the OpenEd newsletter guy)

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