The LearnZillion Story
We started LearnZillion at E.L. Haynes Public Charter School in Washington, D.C. because we wanted to solve a problem. We knew what lessons our students needed but we didn’t have enough time to teach each student the right lesson. To create more time, and to share best practices across classrooms, E.L. Haynes’ teachers began to capture their expertise on screencasts. We posted them on a homemade website and coupled them with a short quiz to help us track student progress.
Soon the idea grew.
What if teachers from across the country could contribute to the site? What if new teachers could learn the new Common Core standards from the wisdom of experienced teachers? What if students could get a playlist of lessons that matched their needs? What if, over time, the video lessons got stronger and stronger, as more teachers contributed and the data showed which lessons had the biggest impact? Thanks to funding from the Next Generation Learning Challenge, NewSchools Venture Fund, Achievement Network, and others, we are about to find out!
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LearnZillion In The News
From the Blog
LearnZillion Featured on NPR show Marketplace
Marketplace reporter, Amy Scott, tells the story of LearnZillion’s origin and explains how it is being used to help students and teachers in schools. Check out the story at http://bit.ly/tAkeHX.
Visit LearnZillion’s BlogThe Dream Team
This summer we recruited a Dream Team of talented teachers from across the country to create the initial crop of video lessons. Members of the dream team hail from 10 states and represent Nashville, San Jose, Denver, Houston, Greensboro, New Orleans, Fairfax County, Ann Arbor and Washington, D.C. To learn more about other members of the dream team, visit the blog. Here are a few of these great teachers:
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Brian Vannest
7th Grade, Houston, TXBrian loves college football, pushpops, his dog Axle, and his lovely wife Breanne (in reverse order of importance). Brian’s parents are both teachers in Ohio, and he caught the teaching bug his senior year at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. He joined Teach For America, which shipped him to hot, humid, howdy-there Houston. After adjusting to the heat, Brian began to call Houston his second home. He teaches at YES Prep Public Schools and is working on his MBA at Rice University.
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Julie Sara Boyd
8th Grade, Washington, DCJulie Sara has a double name, which means that her parents are either indecisive or from the South. The latter is true. She lives in Northern Virginia and actually says Northern Virginia versus DC because she likes to be specific. When she is not teaching math or teaching math teachers, you can find her hiking in the Shenandoah Valley. And if you actually find her, she will be impressed.
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Rachel McClam
5th Grade, Washington, DCRachel went to Duke University with ambitions of becoming an Investment Banker; she liked this career choice because it sounded fancy, had something to do with math and economics, and would make her a lot of money. One semester of tutoring children later, and she had completely changed her life’s trajectory. Upon graduating in 2008, Rachel became a Teach for America corps member in the DC Metro region and taught 2 years of 3rd grade. She quickly realized that her place was with older children — and that she really only wanted to teach math all day — so upon completion of TFA she secured a position as a fifth grade math teacher and has loved every minute since. When not teaching, or lesson planning, or grading, Rachel gets her zen on by practicing yoga. Om.
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Orly Friedman
3rd Grade, Murch Elementary School, Washington, DCOrly Friedman grew up in Bethesda, MD, attended Yale University and became a Teach for America corps member in 2007. She has worked her way from pre-k to kindergarten to second grade, and has now found her rightful place among eight-year-olds in third grade, which is the oldest kids get before they may outgrow her, in height if not math ability. Orly has taught at schools in the DC area, as well as a stint in India during college. Her time in India led her to an appreciation of Bollywood movies and dance, which she tries to incorporate into her classroom as often as possible. When not exploring the wonders of prime numbers with her third graders, Orly enjoys exploring the wonders of the mountains. She is still scheming how to meld her ski bum aspirations with those of an educator.
LearnZillion will select 100-200 ultra-talented teachers from across the country for its summer dream team. We’re looking for teachers who want to have a broader impact and who have the talent and enthusiasm to craft dynamite video lessons. We are currently recruiting math and literacy teachers in grades 3-10.
Join the Dream TeamThe Founders
Eric Westendorf, Co-Founder
Eric was most recently a principal and the Chief Academic Officer of E.L. Haynes Public Charter School in Washington, D.C. E.L. Haynes Public Charter School (www.elhaynes.org) is known locally and nationally for its outstanding results and programs. Prior to E.L. Haynes, Eric taught for seven years in North Carolina, New York, and Yogyakarta, Indonesia. He also founded a non-profit focused on teacher leadership development and was the Assistant Principal of St. Josephʼs School in Harlem, where he raised over $1 million dollars for technology and other programs. Eric has an MBA from Stanford's Graduate School of Business, a Masters in School Administration from Trinity University, and a Masters in Teaching from Brown University. He graduated from Princeton University with a Bachelors of Arts in Public Policy. He lives with his wife and three children in Washington, D.C.
Alix Guerrier, Co-Founder
Alix was most recently a consultant in McKinsey & Companyʼs Education Practice, where he advised school systems and foundations on strategic matters. His previous work experience includes: teaching in and directing an after-school program in one of Bostonʼs public housing projects; working as a member of the housing group in the public finance department of an investment bank in New York; and teaching full-time for several years, including in an international school in Brazil. He most recently taught math at a public charter high school in San Francisco, and subsequently served on the Board of Trustees for the school. He is a newly elected member of the board of Capital City Public Charter School in Washington, D.C. Alix has an MBA from Stanfordʼs Graduate School of Business and a Masters in Education from the Stanford University School of Education. He graduated from Harvard University with an AB in physics. He lives with his wife and daughter in Washington, D.C.