Founder & CEO, R.E.A.L. Discussion
Liza Garonzik
Author of Conversation Comeback: A Teacher’s Guide to Class Discussion in a Distracted, Divided World
Book Time with Liza Bring R.E.A.L. to Your School
schools partnered across the US and around the world
students surveyed on how they learn discussion skills
years iterating the R.E.A.L.® model in real classrooms
Conversation Comeback published by Blue Hat Publishing
The Book
Conversation Comeback
Part field guide, part rallying cry, Conversation Comeback gives teachers the shared language, classroom routines, and assessment tools to explicitly teach discussion skills — and gives school leaders a roadmap for making conversation culture stick.
Also available from Blue Hat Publishing · Book page and companion tools
Speaking & Keynotes
An award-winning speaker on the skills technology can’t replace
Liza brings equal parts research, reflection, and laughter to conferences, school PD days, and parent communities. Popular topics:
The Conversation Crisis
Teaching Discussion in the AI Era
Building a Schoolwide Oracy Strategy
From Portrait of a Learner to Classroom Practice
“What became clear very quickly is that the R.E.A.L.® team knows discussion-based learning and understands the human work of teaching and change. Their work resonated across faculty experience levels, and the conversations they sparked feel like ones we’ll keep building on.”
Cathy Kanaday
Dean of Faculty, Episcopal School of Jacksonville (FL)
Selected Writing
Authentic Interaction: The Other “AI” Students Need Now
Why every school with an AI strategy needs an equally deliberate authentic-interaction strategy — and what that looks like in practice.
ReadHumanities and Humanity in an AI World: An Educator’s Manifesto
Co-written with educators nationwide: big ideas and concrete practices for reading, writing, and discussion in the AI era.
ReadThe Other AI: Why Independent Schools Need a Strategy for Authentic Interaction
The case for teaching human connection as deliberately as we teach technology — starting with discussion.
ReadConnect with Liza
Book, speaking, and school inquiries — one inbox for it all: hello@realdiscussion.org.
Say HelloFollow
Essays on discussion, attention, and raising articulate humans — plus the occasional conference dispatch.
LinkedIn SubstackStay in the Loop
Join the mailing list to stay up to date on Conversation Comeback — the movement to teach, measure, and celebrate conversation skills in school.
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