Hi, my name is Brett van Zuiden.
I am a maker, a hobbyist, and an optimist.
I live in Oakland.
About
- CIO at Summit Public Schools
- Former PM Lead at Clever, Outschool
- Founding CEO of Filestack
- Studied EECS, Math, and Mechanical Engineering at MIT
Posts
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Teachers as craftspeople
As much as people proclaim schools operate a “factory model of education,” a teacher in a classroom today is more akin to a 16th century cobbler than a worker in a Nike shoe factory, for better and for worse. ›
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Measure schools on student growth
School accountability frameworks measure schools on the aggregate performance of current students on standardized tests rather than the growth students demonstrate between years. As a result, “school quality” measures can fluctuate up or down based on the preparedness of incoming students even if the actual instructional quality remains constant. ›
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Awareness, Successful usage, and Outcomes: An opinionated framework for project metrics
Before starting on a new project, teams should write down target metrics that they expect to hit if the project is successful. A helpful format is to measure and set goals around the following three metrics: are people aware of the project, are they using it as expected, and is it producing business outcomes. ›
Projects
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Treehouse
My dad and I built a treehouse on my parent’s property
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UpNext
A glanceable ePaper calendar for your desk
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Internet Radio
Streaming music through a vintage 1930's radio
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SoundByte
A speaker with a computer inside and a uniquely physical interface
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Exploring Epicycles
Using the fourier transform in art
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Uber Button
Summon a car with a big red button.