#408 Choosing to Keep Teaching (Pam Ochoa pt.2)

#408 Choosing to Keep Teaching (Pam Ochoa pt.2)

From Teach Me, Teacher by Teach Me, Teacher LLC

February 23, 2026 · 41 min · Season 10

About this episode

Jacob and Pam Ochoa discuss the challenges and changes in education, focusing on professional development and the importance of student voice.

This week on Teach Me, Teacher , Jacob sits down with lifelong educator and friend Pam Ochoa — former cohost of the Craft & Draft podcast — who has stepped back into the high school classroom after retirement. Why now? What pulled her back? Together, they wrestle with big questions facing the profession: Where has quality professional development gone? Has the era of student voice and choice quietly faded? And what happens to schools when the champions of that work leave? Jacob and Pam dig into real data from schools where student voice and choice once thrived — and examine what happened after they stepped away. The results are sobering. This is part 2 of the discussion from last week. This is an honest, sometimes uncomfortable conversation about leadership, sustainability, and whether we're losing something essential in today's classrooms. If you care about student agency, teacher autonomy, and the future of the profession — this episode is for you.

People in this episode

Host: Jacob

Guest: Pam Ochoa

Topics covered

  • education
  • professional development
  • student voice
  • teacher autonomy
  • classroom leadership

Keywords

  • education
  • professional development
  • student agency
  • teacher autonomy
  • classroom leadership

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Craft & Draft

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