The MCRSD Algorithm

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Throwback to the blog post I did in December listing my favorite things:

  • Happy Socks.

  • Verb Energy Bars.

  • The Dinersaur Bakery.

  • Cariuma Shoes.

  • All Too Well, Taylor's (10-minute) Version.

None of those things matter anymore. Now I do TikTok.

I am one with the TikTok and the TikTok is with me.

It's all I care about and pretty much all I do when I am not being forced to work for The Man. Or do parent stuff. Apparently, I still have to do that.

If you are one of the 79 million Americans that use TikTok, you know what I'm saying. If you are not, what are you waiting for? Get out of this boring email and watch Zach King ride a Nimbus 2000.

What makes TikTok so compelling (and addictive) is its highly personalized algorithm. Hundreds of user interaction data points are collected by TikTok and calculated to deliver hyper-personal content. No two feeds are the same. TikTok knows where I am, what kind of phone I have, what times of the day I am on the app, where I am when I use the app, what videos I like, what content creators I like, and on and on to build a very specific profile of me. It's actually kind of spooky.

Here's the thing. TikTok is very "on-brand" for MCRSD. Now I know that may be a blasphemous statement since TikTok is also education's public enemy number one (well, maybe number two, after COVID). But if you consider that the first descriptor of our first pillar, Caring Culture, is: "We know our students. From their favorite color to their preferred learning styles, we are in the business of knowing and caring for every one of our students..." That is our commitment to creating a "highly personalized algorithm."

Since we don't have a supercomputer to analyze our students' preferences, we must ask the right questions to uncover their thoughts and feelings about school. Here are several questions created by the XQ Institute:

  • What kind of future do you see for yourself?

  • What are your life goals?

  • What kind of job or career do you want to pursue?

  • What problems in the world do you want to solve?

  • Who are the role models you admire most?

  • Tell me about something you're really interested in right now.

  • What is something you would love to teach?

  • What impact do you want to have in your community? In the world?

  • How do you define success for yourself?

  • If you could build a school or a learning experience that was specifically designed for how you learn, what would it look like? Sound like? Feel like?

  • How would your dream school better prepare you for high school, college or career?

You can see more student interview questions here.

Alright, that's enough of that. I gotta get back to TikTok!