The Activist Educator
Belgravia is proud to announce a bold new vision from one of our key consultants, in The Activist Educator: A Blueprint for AI in Education, Alexander Harris, forges a timely and incisive manifesto that challenges every teacher to step beyond the classroom and become a catalyst for change, harnessing artificial intelligence not as a replacement but as a partner in crafting learning environments where psychological safety, genuine engagement and human connection flourish. It’s the call to arms our schools have been waiting for.
To celebrate the arrival of this important book, Belgravia Press has partnered with Staten House Publishing to give away a limited number of e-books (see below).
Synopsis
The Activist Educator is a bold call to action for teachers, parents, and policy-makers navigating the age of artificial intelligence. Rather than treating AI as a threat or technological inevitability, the book reframes it as a once-in-a-generation opportunity to rebuild education systems that are more human, more just, and more effective. Rooted in the author’s global leadership experience across IB and Cambridge schools, and drawing from real-world case studies and emerging AI tools, the book offers a practical yet visionary framework for reshaping how we teach, assess, and support learners.
At its heart are the “Big Six” principles of learning: Psychological Safety, Relevance, Engagement, Practice & Application, Metacognition, and Feedback. These six pillars serve as the ethical and pedagogical compass for the responsible integration of AI in classrooms and schools. Rather than advocating for top-down policy or techno-solutionism, the book equips readers to take localised, meaningful action — whether rethinking assessment, building trust in data systems, or redesigning the role of the teacher in an AI-supported environment.
The Activist Educator is not a manual for using AI in the classroom. It is a manifesto for reclaiming education in an era of automation — and an invitation to co-create systems that genuinely serve all learners.
Key insights from the Activist Educator
The Big Six
Outlines six foundational elements - psychological safety, relevance, engagement, practice & application, metacognition and feedback - that, when woven together, transform classrooms into dynamic ecosystems where students take charge of their own learning and mastery flourishes.
Posthuman Education
Reframes AI not as a cold tool but as an evolving partner in education, co-shaping learning pathways in real time and breaking down the false divide between human empathy and algorithmic precision.
Vertical Helix Schools
Presents a replicable blueprint for schools where AI and human mentorship form a dynamic loop, aligning personalised learning pathways with collaborative communities. Vertical Helix Schools ensure that mastery and wellbeing scale seamlessly, delivering equity and innovation from the classroom to the wider system.