Dr. Zachary Stein is the Co-President of the Center.
He studied philosophy and religion at Hampshire College, and then educational neuroscience, human development, and the philosophy of education at Harvard University. While a student at Harvard, he co-founded what would become Lectica, Inc., a non-profit dedicated to the research-based, justice-oriented reform of large-scale standardized testing in K-12, higher-education, and business.
He has published two books. Social Justice and Educational Measurement was based on my dissertation and traces the history of standardized testing and its ethical implications. His second book, Education in a Time Between Worlds, expands the philosophical work to include grappling with the relations between schooling and technology more broadly. He also writes for peer-reviewed academic journals across a range of topics including the philosophy of learning, educational technology, and integral theory. His work has appeared in a variety of journals including, American Psychologist, New Ideas in Psychology, Mind, Brain, and Education, Integral Review, and the Journal of Philosophy of Education.
Teaching is one of his greatest pleasures, which he has enjoyed doing at Harvard University, Meridian University, and JFK University. His invited speaking engagements span a wide range of venues, from metamodern podcasts to the National Security Agency and off-the-grid spiritual retreat centers. Partial curriculum vitae: CV_Stein_Winter2015
These days:
- He is co-founder of The Consilience Project, which is dedicated to improving public sensemaking and building a movement to radically upgrade digital media landscapes.
- He is a scholar at the Ronin Institute, where he researches the relations between education, human development, and the evolution of civilizations.
- He serves as Co-President and Academic Director of the activist think tank at the Center for Integral Wisdom, where he writes and teaches at the edges of integral meta theory.
- He acts on the scientific advisor boards of technology start-ups, where he uses his expertise in ethics and human development to help guide innovation.
- He offers human development and learning science consultations to schools, organizations, and educational technology companies.
A List of Publications from His Website
Stein, Z. (2019). If education is not the answer you are asking the wrong question: why it’s time to see planetary crises as a species-wide learning opportunity. Transformative Educational Alliance. London: Perspectiva Press. [pdf]
Stein, Z. (2019). The education commodity proposition. Allies for Education. 2(2). [full text]
Stein. Z. (2019). Education in a Time Between Worlds: Essays on the Future of Schools, Technology, and Society. San Fransisco: Bright Alliance. [intro]
Stein, Z. (2018). Love in a Time Between Worlds: On the Metamodern “Return” to a Metaphysics of Eros. Integral Review, 4(1). [pdf]
Stein, Z. & Gafni, M. (2017). The Apocalypse of the modern world system and related possibilities for democratizing enlightenment. Spanda Journal. 2(1) pp.93-103. [pdf]
Stein, Z. (2016). Social justice and educational measurement: John Rawls, the history of testing, and the future of education. New York: Routledge. [intro]
Stein, Z. & Gafni, M. (2015). Reimagining humanity’s identity: responding to the second Shock of existence. World Future Review. 7(1) 1-10. [pdf]
Stein, Z. (2015). Beyond nature and humanity: reflections on the emergence and purposes of metatheories. In Bhaskar, Esbjorn-Hargens, Hedlund-de Witt & Hartwig (Eds.) Metatheory for the 21st century: critical realism and integral theory in dialogue. New York: Routledge. [pdf]
Stein, Z. (2015). Integral theory, pragmatism and the future of philosophy. In Dancing with Sophia: Integral approaches to philosophy. Schwartz & Esbjörn-Hargens (Ed.). SUNY press. [pdf]
Stein, Z. (2015). On the use of the term Integral. Journal of Integral Theory and Practice. 9(2) 103-113. [pdf]
Stein, Z. (2014). Tipping the scales: social justice and educational measurement. (doctoral dissertation). Harvard University Graduate School of Education. Cambridge, MA. [pdf]
Despain, H. & Stein, Z. (2014). Financialization and crises tendencies in higher education: what is college for anyway? Post-Keynesian Economics Forum. August, 12. Available at: pke-forum.com
Stein, Z. (2014). Social justice and educational measurement: a thumbnail sketch. International Objective Measurement workshop, Philadelphia, PA. [pdf]
Stein, Z. (2014). On spiritual books and their readers: a review of Integral Kabbalah. Integral Review. (10)1, 168-178. [pdf]
Stein, Z., Dawson, T., Van Rossum, Z., Hill, S., & Rothaizer, J. (2014). Virtuous cycles of learning: using formative, embedded, and diagnostic developmental assessments in a large-scale leadership program. Journal of Integral Theory and Practice. 9(1) 1-11 [pdf]
Stein, Z. (2013). Ethics and the new education: psychometrics, biotechnology, and the future of human capital. Journal of Integral Theory and Practice. 8(3-4) 146-163 [pdf]
Connell, M., Stein, Z., & Gardner, H. (2012). Bridging between brain science and educational practice with design patterns. In Della Sala & Anderson (Eds.) Neuroscience in education. (pp. 267-286). Oxford University Press. [pdf]
Dawson, T.L. & Stein, Z. (2011). We are all learning here: cycles of research and application in adult development. In Hoare (Ed). Oxford Handbook of Reciprocal Adult Learning and Development. (pp. 447-461). Oxford University Press. [pdf]
Stein, Z. (2011). On spiritual teachers and teachings. Journal of Integral Theory and Practice. 6(1), 57-77. [pdf]
Stein, Z., della Chiesa, B. Hinton, C., Fischer, K.W. (2011). Ethical issues in Educational Neuroscience: Raising Children in a Brave New World. In Illes & Sahakian (Eds). Oxford Handbook of Neuroethics. (pp. 803-823). Oxford University Press. [pdf]
Stein, Z., Dawson, T.L., Fischer, K.W. (2010). Redesigning testing: operationalizing the new science of learning. In Khine & Saleh (Eds.) The new science of learning: computers, cognition, and collaboration education. (pp. 207-224). Springer Press. [pdf]
Stein, Z. & Fischer, K. (2010). Directions for Mind, Brain, and Education: methods, models, and morality. Educational Philosophy and Theory. Special issue: educational neuroscience. 43(3), 56-66. [pdf]
Stein, Z. (2010). State space model for normative systems. Paper accepted but not presented (due to the birth of my niece). Annual Meeting of the Jean Piaget Society. St. Louis, MO. [pdf]
Stein, Z. & Hiekkinen, K. (2010). Developmental differences in the understanding of Integral Theory and Practice: Preliminary results form the iTEACH project. Paper presented at Biannual Integral Theory Conference, John F. Kennedy University. Pleasant Hill, CA. [pdf]
Stein, Z. (2010). Now you get it, now you don’t: developmental differences in the understanding of integral theory and practice. In Esbjörn-Hargens (Ed.) Integral theory in action: applied, theoretical, and practical applications of the AQAL model. (pp. 175-203). SUNY University Press. [pdf]
Hogan, M. & Stein, Z. (2010). Structuring thought: an examination of four methods. In Columbus (Ed) The Psychology of Thinking. Nova Science Publishing. [pdf]
Stein, Z. (2010). On the normative function of meta-theoretical endeavors. Integral Review. 6(3). 5-22. [pdf]
Stein, Z. (2010). On the difference between designing children and raising them: ethics and the use of educationally oriented biotechnologies. Mind, Brain, and Education. 4 (2). 53-67. [pdf]
Stein, Z. (2009). Educational crises and the scramble for usable knowledge. Integral Review. 5 (2). 355-367. [pdf]
Stein, Z. & Hiekkinen, K (2009). Metrics, models, and measurement in developmental psychology. Integral Review. 5(1). 4-24. [pdf]
Stein, Z. (2009). Re-setting the stage: introduction to special sections on learning sequences and developmental theory. Mind, Brain, and Education, 3 (2), 92-93. [pdf]
Fischer, K., Stein, Z., & Hiekkinen, K. (2009). Narrow assessment misrepresent development and misguide policy. American Psychologist. 64(7). 595-600. [pdf]
Stein, Z (2008). On the possibilities of a comprehensive developmental structuralism: the natural, the normal, and the normative. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Jean Piaget Society. Quebec City, Canada. [pdf]
Stein, Z, Connell, M. & Gardner, H. (2008). Exercising quality control in interdisciplinary education: toward an epistemologically responsible approach. Journal of Philosophy of Education. Special issue: philosophies of learning. 42(3), 401-414. [pdf]
Stein, Z. (2008). Myth busting and metric making: Refashioning the discourse about development. Excursus for Integral Leadership Review. Integral Leadership Review. 8(5). [pdf]
Stein, Z & Hiekkinen, K. (2008). On operationalizing aspects of altitude: an introduction to the Lectical Assessment System for Integral researchers. Journal of Integral Theory and Practice, 3(1), 105-139. [pdf]
Dawson, T, L. & Stein, Z. (2008). Cycles of Research and Application in Science Education. Mind, Brain, and Education. Vol 2, 2. 90-103. [pdf]
Stein, Z. (2008). Intuitions of altitude: researching the conditions for the possibility of developmental assessment. Paper presented at Biannual Integral Theory Conference, John F. Kennedy University. Pleasant Hill, CA. [pdf]
Fischer, K., Stein, Z., Stewart, J. (2008) Process and skill: analyzing structures of growth. In Riffert & Sander (Eds.) Researching with Whitehead: System and Adventure. Verlag Karl Alber: Munich. [pdf]
Stein, Z . (2007). Addressing the American problem by modeling cognitive development. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Neural Information Processing Society, Workshop for the Hierarchical Organization of Behavior. Vancouver, Canada. [pdf]
Stein, Z. (2007). Modeling the demands of interdisciplinarity: toward a framework for evaluating interdisciplinary endeavors. Integral Review, 4, 92-107. [pdf]
Dawson, T. L., Fischer, K. W., & Stein, Z. (2006). Reconsidering qualitative and quantitative research approaches: A cognitive developmental perspective. New Ideas in Psychology, 24, 229-239. [pdf]
Dawson-Tunik, T. L., Fischer, K., & Stein, Z. (2004). Do stages belong at the center of developmental theory? A commentary on Piaget’s stages. New Ideas in Psychology, 22, 255-263. [pdf]
In process:
Stein, Z. (in press). Between philosophy and prophecy. To appear in True but partial: Essential criticisms of Integral Theory. Esbjörn-Hargens (Ed.). Forthcoming SUNY press. [pdf]
Stein, Z. (in review). On realizing the possibilities of emancipatory metatheory: beyond the cognitive maturity fallacy, toward an education revolution. In Bhaskar, Esbjorn-Hargens, Hedlund-de Witt & Hartwig (Eds.) Metatheory for the Anthropocene: emancipatory praxis for planetary flourishing: critical realism and integral theory in dialogue, vol 2. New York: Routledge. [pdf]
Stein, Z. (in review). Desperate measures: the global crises of measurement and their meta-theoretical solutions. Paper prepared for the 4th Biannual Integral Theory Conference, Sonoma, CA. July 2015. [pdf] [pdf_slides]
Stein, Z. (in review). Teaching, testing, and the veil of ignorance: Rawlsian thought experiments for use in the organized resistance to high-stakes testing . Pensamiento Educativo. Revista De Investigación Educacional Latinoamericana. [pdf]
Stein, Z. (still as slides). The Development of Measurement Technologies and The Evolution of Consciousness. Paper prepared for the Society of Consciousness Studies Conference. Yale University. New Haven CT. June 2015. [pdf]