Beyond My Years – Details, episodes & analysis

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Beyond My Years

Amplify Education

Education

Frequency: 1 episode/22d. Total Eps: 36

Host Ana Torres knows firsthand how hard it is to be a teacher. That's why on Beyond My Years, she seeks out the people who have thrived over decades in the classroom: seasoned educators. You'll hear stories that make you cry, make you laugh... and may change the way you think.

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Apple Podcasts

🇨🇦 Canada - howTo
20/08/2026
#92
🇺🇸 USA - howTo
20/08/2026
#66
🇨🇦 Canada - howTo
19/08/2026
#53
🇺🇸 USA - howTo
15/08/2026
#92
🇺🇸 USA - howTo
13/08/2026
#100
🇺🇸 USA - howTo
11/08/2026
#53
🇺🇸 USA - howTo
10/08/2026
#48
🇺🇸 USA - howTo
09/08/2026
#98
🇺🇸 USA - howTo
08/08/2026
#71
🇺🇸 USA - howTo
07/08/2026
#92

Spotify

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https://www.ericcross.org/
37 shares
https://amplify.com/beyond-my-years
33 shares

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Score global : 48%

Publication history

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No broken children—only broken systems, starring Kareem Weaver

Season 1 · Episode 12

Wednesday, February 5, 2025 • Duration 49:17

Today on Beyond My Years, host Ana Torres soaks up wisdom from Kareem Weaver, an educational powerhouse who has spent over 30 years working toward the end of illiteracy. Kareem levels with Ana about the hard truths of education reform. Together, they get vulnerable about the personal costs they’ve paid in being committed to their work and the belief they share that no teacher should have to make those sacrifices. Kareem also discusses his time working in juvenile detention facilities, how a frightening diagnosis changed the way he approaches education, and how administrators can best help create sustainable careers. Taking all those lessons back to the classroom, Ana and Beyond My Years Classroom Insider Eric Cross talk about preparing more than just lesson plans, developing focused skill improvement, and making the connections between academic success and behavior reform.

Show notes:

FULCRUM website: https://www.fulcrumliteracy.org/kareem-weaver
Research for Better Teaching: https://www.rbteach.com/
Subscribe to Beyond My Years: https://amplify.com/beyond-my-years
Follow us on Instagram: @amplify.education
Connect with Eric Cross: https://www.ericcross.org/
Connect with Ana Torres: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anayansi-ana-torres-m-ed-26a10654/

Quotes:
“Where do we want our young people to go? What opportunities, what paths do we want them to have access to? Reading is a gateway for life.” —Kareem Weaver

“If you can't grow people, what are you doing in a seat? If you're an administrator and you can't grow teachers' practice, then you're a manager, not an administrator.”—Kareem Weaver

“Hope is wonderful, but that's not a strategy. You have to be very specific about what you're going to fix, what you're going to address, and what you're going to master.” —Kareem Weaver

“There are no broken children; there's broken systems.” —Kareem Weaver

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Building an education network to make change, starring A. Simone McQuaige

Season 1 · Episode 11

Wednesday, January 22, 2025 • Duration 49:39

Today on Beyond My Years, host Ana Torres absorbs wisdom from A. Simone McQuaige, winner of Amplify's Science of Reading Changemaker Star Award in 2024. Simone teaches Ana about what it takes to support wider change across an entire district, and about the common traits she sees in all seasoned educators. She also shares stories about how her mother tried to convince her not to become a teacher, about learning to be calm and reflect, and about how she thinks about her legacy as an educator. Taking all those lessons back to the classroom, Ana and Classroom Insider Eric Cross discuss creating a teacher network, building buy-in, and student-designed projects.

Show notes:

Connect with A. Simone McQuaige
Subscribe to Beyond My Years https://amplify.com/beyond-my-years
Follow us on Instagram @amplify.education
Connect with Eric Cross: https://www.ericcross.org/
Connect with Ana Torres: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anayansi-ana-torres-m-ed-26a10654/

Quotes:
“There are a lot of lessons to be learned from ‘back in the day’. It doesn't mean we always had it right. We were learning along the way and we recognize that our students are not the same students that were sitting in front of us ‘back in the day.’” —A. Simone McQuaige

Teaching with determination, starring Khamphet Pease

Season 1 · Episode 4

Wednesday, September 25, 2024 • Duration 49:56

Today on Beyond My Years, host Ana Torres learns all she can learn from the life stories and lessons of Khamphet Pease. While other teenagers might have been sneaking around to go to late night scary movies, Khamphet was applying for scholarships and submitting college applications. As a refugee from Laos, Khamphet shares the difficulty she experienced navigating a home culture that did not encourage education or career ambitions for women. Despite that, she laughs over her stubbornness that she sees as an integral part of what has motivated her to chase her dreams, spend over 20 years as a STEM teacher, and what earned her the presidential award for excellence in mathematics and science teaching. Due to gendered norms and expectations, she almost lost out on the future she truly wanted. Since then, she has made it her mission to champion a learning environment where young girls feel they belong and can thrive in STEM fields. Khamphet takes Ana on a journey through all the lessons she learned along the way of managing work/life balance, creating a classroom culture of trust, and the importance of finding a mentor during the hardest teaching years of your life. Once back in the classroom, Eric Cross and Ana check in on Eric’s first two weeks of back-to-school and discuss practical ways to take care of yourself first so you can then take care of your students.

Show notes:

Connect with Khamphet Pease on LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/phet-pease
Connect with Khamphet Pease on X @PhetPease
Watch: California Teachers Association commercial (short version)
Watch: Steve Hartman’s On the Road series
Subscribe to Beyond My Years https://amplify.com/beyond-my-years
Follow us on Instagram @amplify.education
Connect with Eric Cross:

Teaching with resilience, starring Fawn Nguyen

Season 1 · Episode 3

Wednesday, September 11, 2024 • Duration 49:19

Today on Beyond My Years, host Ana Torres learns from Fawn Nguyen, a math educator with over 30 years of classroom experience! Fawn tells Ana the story of her near-death experience being lost at sea while escaping Vietnam, and explains how it shaped the sense of gratitude she leads with in the classroom. She also discusses what it means to be yourself in the classroom, the importance of sharing your mistakes with your students, and the merits of advocacy vs. authority with students. Taking all those lessons back to the classroom, Ana and Classroom Insider Eric Cross then discuss connecting with students through shared struggles and challenges.

Show notes:

Connect with Fawn Nguyen: https://www.fawnnguyen.com/
Subscribe to Beyond My Years https://amplify.com/beyond-my-years
Follow us on Instagram @amplify.education
Connect with Eric Cross: https://www.ericcross.org/
Connect with Ana Torres: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anayansi-ana-torres-m-ed-26a10654/

Quotes:
“We spend so much time [in the classroom] day in and day out. For some of us, it's actually more interaction than we have with our own family. And it is family. So be yourself. You're going to make mistakes, but what's nice about it if we think of it as family, is that we get to apologize and tomorrow is a new day.” —Fawn Nguyen

“It has to be an exchange. We can't be just receiving, asking kids to be [themselves], and yet we ourselves are not.” —Fawn Nguyen

“[Seasoned educators] are experienced and experience means good and bad. We want to learn from both. I certainly didn't want a mentor who never made a mistake, ‘cause I'm not gaining anything.” —Fawn Nguyen

“It's about separating the behavior from the person. And another thing, separate what they don't know at the time from what they're capable of.” —Fawn Nguyen

Teaching for life, starring Eric Jones

Season 1 · Episode 2

Wednesday, August 28, 2024 • Duration 46:02

Today on Beyond My Years, host Ana Torres becomes a student of Eric Jones, an educator who came out of retirement at 80 years of age to help with a national teacher shortage—thus becoming the oldest paid teacher in Britain. Eric talks with Ana about building a collaborative classroom and what it means to teach children, not content. He also shares how the trajectory of his life changed when one man recognized and encouraged his desire to be a teacher. He’ll also discuss how going to school in the ‘50s shaped his teaching style; retiring before the age of the smartphone only to return to teaching when every kid has one; how his work in anti-bullying contributed to a national law; and why his love for teaching has lasted a lifetime.

Taking all those lessons back to the classroom, Eric Cross and Ana then discuss how they would apply the tenets of respect and collaboration in their own classrooms.

Show notes:

Connect with Eric Jones: https://ericjones41.wixsite.com/website
Subscribe to Beyond My Years: https://amplify.com/beyond-my-years
Follow us on Instagram: @amplify.education
Connect with Eric Cross: https://www.ericcross.org
Connect with Ana Torres: LinkedIn

Quotes

“You've got to love teaching, you've got to love the kids, and you've really got to want to do it. Almost, dare I say, in your blood.” —Eric Jones

“I collaborate with my students about what the rules are, and that's their creation as well as mine.” —Eric Jones

“It's nothing to do with, ‘I'm a teacher, you're a student.’ It's, ‘We are human beings together.’” —Eric Jones

“I like teaching kids things they didn't know before and now they're excited about. I love the idea that they will then move on into realms of industry and economics success that I would never dream of.” —Eric Jones

Teaching with heart, starring Joyce Abbott

Season 1 · Episode 1

Wednesday, August 14, 2024 • Duration 49:26

Today on Beyond My Years, host Ana Torres soaks up wisdom from Joyce Abbott, an educator so passionate about her students that she inspired one of them to go on and write the hit show “Abbott Elementary. Joyce tells Ana all about her experiences working in a Title 1 school and what it means to know the community of Philadelphia. They also discuss how Joyce's time serving in the military informed her work as an educator, how she transformed a challenging classroom during her first year teaching, how it has felt to witness the success of "Abbott Elementary," and the passion she sees as her driving force. Taking all those lessons back to the classroom, Eric and Ana then discuss teaching tips and strategies for connecting with students.

Show notes:

Quotes:
“Sometimes your bad days are going to outweigh your good days, but when you see and remain focused and see what your goal is, and you look at those students and say, ‘This is my main focus,’ that can be the greatest motivator.” —Joyce Abbott

“A lot of times they are dependent upon you to teach them in every aspect of their life. When you understand the community, you can serve.” —Joyce Abbott

“Me and my military buddies definitely had respect for each other. And we operated as a team, regardless of our differences, because sometimes you may not agree with every teacher on your team, which many times I did not. But you have to keep your focus toward our mission, [which] is to move a certain child or do this for the student body.” —Joyce Abbott

“They know when you care. And they will have a whole different level of respect for you when they know you care. And you set the bar high for them. That shows that you care, because you know that they can do it and you believe in them.” —Joyce Abbott“I think it's so important in the schools that they embrace the younger teachers, because you only get better through learning and through support.” —Joyce Abbott“When you're passionate about a profession and committed to the goal of the whole school, you're going to do what you can to help these new teachers because they have to learn. So many leave because they're encountering so many problems and they don't feel that they're supported effectively.” —Joyce Abbott

About Beyond My Years, with Ana Torres and Eric Cross

Wednesday, August 14, 2024 • Duration 10:54

Join host Ana Torres and her classroom insider, Eric Cross, to learn what the new Amplify podcast Beyond My Years is all about. Together, they dig into the essence of what it means to be an educator, the challenges that come with it, and how Beyond My Years will connect with it all. Plus, you’ll get a sneak peek into what's ahead, including conversations with legendary educators (like one who was an inspiration for a hit TV show).

Quotes:
“As lifelong learners, as educators, it's built into our profession and our DNA to want to be mentored, but there's a shrinking population of those people.” —Eric Cross

“The people who've been in the game for a long time, they can save new teachers a lot of years of trial and error.” —Eric Cross

“We're more than just the educator or the teacher. We're more than that. We're the nurturer. We're the nurse, we're mom, we're dad, we're aunt, we're all, we play different roles in their lives. And again, it is showing up.” —Ana Torres

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Beyond My Years podcast trailer

Thursday, June 27, 2024 • Duration 03:05

Listen to this trailer for our new podcast, Beyond My Years, launching August 14th.

Every day headlines tout something “new” in education—the latest research, the hottest tech, the trendiest new hacks for organizing your classroom. However, beyond all the hype there’s one underestimated resource that’s truly deserving of our attention: educators who’ve been doing this for years. In this trailer, you’ll hear from host and educator Ana Torres as she explains her season-long journey of learning from the experiences and lessons of seasoned educators from around the world. Their stories will make you laugh, make you cry, and—just maybe—change the way you think. Subscribe now so you don’t miss a thing.

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Your starter pack to mentorship, starring Serena Klosa

Season 1 · Episode 10

Wednesday, January 8, 2025 • Duration 49:28

Today on Beyond My Years, host Ana Torres gets wisdom from Serena Klosa, an educator with 37 years of experience as a teacher, principal, and now deputy chief of schools. Serena discusses what it takes to be a good mentor and to be mentored by others—stressing the humility it requires and the strength it creates. She also shares stories of the “Queens of the Third Floor” and their no-nonsense approach to mentoring, and opens up about the lessons she won’t let herself forget. Taking all those lessons back to the classroom, Ana and Classroom Insider Eric Cross discuss maintaining positive routines with students, staying humble, and valuing every role in the school.

Show notes:

Connect with Serena Klosa on X: @spetersonklosa
Subscribe to Beyond My Years https://amplify.com/beyond-my-years
Follow us on Instagram @amplify.education
Connect with Eric Cross: https://www.ericcross.org/
Connect with Ana Torres: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anayansi-ana-torres-m-ed-26a10654/

Quotes:
“Every kick in the butt is a boost up.” —Serena Klosa

“My teaching is not something I do. It's who I am.” —Serena Klosa

“Asking for mentoring is not a sign of weakness. It's saying, ‘I want to be better and I want to grow.’ And sometimes, if you don't ask, they're not going to do it.” —Serena Klosa

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The best of Beyond My Years (so far!)

Thursday, December 19, 2024 • Duration 03:25

To close out the year, we’re revisiting some of our favorite moments from the first nine episodes of the Beyond My Years podcast – and looking ahead at some of what’s to come in 2025!

Listen to Beyond My Years:

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Beyond My Years – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

Recent rankings

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

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Apple Podcasts

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Beyond My Years – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

Recent rankings

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Shared links between episodes and podcasts

Other32

RSS feed quality and score

Publication history

Latest published episodes

Similar podcasts and content

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Other32

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