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Learning Experience Design for Changemakers

Episode 005: How to Design a Learning Experience That Actually Transforms

July 1 · 11 min · Episode 5 · 10.9 MB
0:00-11:23

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You have something powerful to teach — but the moment you sit down to design it, the pull toward content takes over. You start listing everything you know, every story, every framework, every caveat. And suddenly it's a wall of water, not a river.

This week, Renee shares the origin story of the Roots to Canopy Method: what backwards design gave her, where it left a gap, and the unexpected moment that changed how she designs everything.


IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Why even heart-led educators default to content-first design — and why it stalls the learner before they begin

  • What Renee discovered in Understanding by Design (Wiggins & McTighe) and why it lit her up

  • The honest confession: she slid right back into content-first mode when building her own courses

  • The gap backwards design doesn't fully solve for generous, heart-led leaders and founders

  • How a summit freebie, a blank piece of paper, and a hand-drawn tree became the Roots to Canopy Method

  • What's coming in the next three episodes of this miniseries

  • Your 60-second listener action: one question to answer before next week

TIMESTAMPS

  • [0:00] Opening — the crashing waves metaphor for content overload

  • [0:45] Welcome and episode intro

  • [1:30] The generous educator's trap: why starting with content fails learners

  • [2:30] Backwards design: the framework that gave me direction

  • [3:30] Understanding by Design — what my instructors taught, and what the book gave me

  • [5:00] The honest confession: I slid back into content-first without realizing it

  • [6:30] The gap: what backwards design doesn't account for

  • [7:00] The summit freebie and the hand-drawn tree that changed everything

  • [8:30] How Roots to Canopy extends, not replaces, backwards design

  • [9:15] Miniseries preview: what's coming in Episodes 006, 007, 008

  • [10:00] Your 60-second listener action

RESOURCES MENTIONED

  • Understanding by Design — Grant Wiggins & Jay McTighe

  • Renee's newsletter: reneekoster.com/newsletter

  • Book a free call: https://api.leadconnectorhq.com/widget/bookings/audience-outcomes

Subscribe so you don't miss Episodes 006–008 of this miniseries.

And if something in today's episode landed for you, share it with another heart-led educator who's been trying to design their way out of content overwhelm.

Leave a review — it genuinely helps the show reach the people who need it most.