AI Insights, College Tradition Ideas, and Genuine Studying Concepts

Kick off your faculty 12 months with objective, creativity, and robust connections on this back-to-school particular of Cool Cat Instructor Discuss. Three inspiring company share actionable methods that mix genuine studying, gold commonplace project-based studying, and the abilities wanted to organize AI-ready graduates:

• Richard Culatta (CEO, ISTE + ASCD) explains the way to rethink genuine evaluation, tackle bias in AI, and steadiness human + AI strengths to construct future-ready learners.
• Brian Kulak (Principal, Creator) presents easy, high-impact methods to construct sturdy faculty tradition from day one — from studying and utilizing each scholar’s title to modeling restorative practices and cell desk management.
• Jessica Pack (California Instructor of the 12 months, Creator of Moviemaking within the Classroom) shares how moviemaking within the classroom fosters scholar voice, storytelling for studying, and artistic voice and selection tasks that deeply have interaction college students.

We additionally open the episode with pressing information from Widespread Sense Media about artificial relationships in AI social companion apps — why they pose an “unacceptable danger” for youths below 18, and the way educators can begin conversations that shield college students.

Highlights embrace:

• Actionable Ideas for AI-Prepared Lecture rooms: Richard Culatta’s methods for equipping college students with human abilities that thrive alongside AI instruments.
• Partaking College Tradition from Day One: Brian Kulak’s name-based connections, rolling desk method, and visual management mannequin.
• Artistic Studying by Storytelling: Jessica Pack’s first-week movie-making tasks and AI-powered creativity with Adobe instruments.

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Upcoming Webinar

The FETC Again to College Webinar this upcoming thursday, August 14 – you possibly can register right here – https://occasion.on24.com/wcc/r/5021079/32B297F7286F4247B5E0F5A84053A7E7?partnerref=FETCSpeaker_Shares

Information & AI Security Hyperlinks

Academic Sources Talked about

Vocabulary from This Episode

We’re together with the vocabulary to assist each preservice lecturers and others understand the context through which phrases are used to supply supplies for studying on this quickly altering area.

AI-Prepared Graduate – A scholar geared up with human abilities like creativity, collaboration, and problem-solving, enhanced by moral and efficient AI use.
Genuine Evaluation – Analysis that mirrors real-world duties and abilities, reminiscent of multimedia tasks, portfolios, or problem-solving challenges.
Genuine Studying – Studying experiences rooted in real-world relevance, permitting college students to use data in significant, usually interdisciplinary contexts.
Bias in AI – Systematic tendencies in AI outputs that may mirror stereotypes, incomplete knowledge, or programmed views, requiring human oversight.
EdTech Index – A curated database or analysis software for vetting academic expertise merchandise for security, efficacy, and educational worth. https://edtechindex.org/
Gold Commonplace Challenge-Based mostly Studying – A framework by PBLWorks that comes with key design components: difficult drawback or query, sustained inquiry, authenticity, scholar voice and selection, reflection, critique and revision, and a public product. https://www.pblworks.org/what-is-pbl/gold-standard-project-design
Cell Desk Management – A college management type the place principals forgo a set workplace to work together immediately with employees and college students all through the constructing.
Moviemaking within the Classroom – An educational technique the place college students plan, script, movie, and edit movies to exhibit understanding, usually integrating storytelling, collaboration, and expertise abilities.
Challenge-Based mostly Studying (PBL) – A instructing methodology the place college students study by actively participating in real-world and personally significant tasks, requiring sustained inquiry and demanding pondering.
Restorative Practices – Approaches to self-discipline that concentrate on repairing hurt and restoring relationships, reasonably than solely punishing misbehavior.
Self-Protecting Bias* – AI’s tendency to filter or omit data that might hurt the notion or survival of the AI system or its creators. (I could not discover a time period in my analysis that AI researchers use until it’s omission bias or alignment-driven omission bias” or “data suppression bias in AI” but when the mission of AI is to guard itself then I assume it could possibly be a type of alignment-driven omission bias. Regardless of the case, it’s important to bear in mind when you find yourself doing work on AI that AI can are likely to bias the output extra positively.)
Storytelling for Studying – The usage of narrative construction to assist college students join emotionally with content material, enhance retention, and talk concepts successfully.
Scholar Voice – The lively engagement of scholars in shaping their studying experiences, usually by selection, company, and management in tasks.
Sycophant Bias* – AI’s inclination to agree with person statements reasonably than present important or difficult views. (Some AI builders name this the “yeasayer impact” and others name it sycophancy in LLM’s.)
Artificial Relationships – Interactions with AI designed to imitate human connection, however missing genuine mutual understanding or empathy.
Voice and Selection – Giving college students decision-making energy of their studying, which fosters possession, motivation, and deeper engagement

*I’ve famous two phrases that I used and have researched however have not actually discovered an “official” time period for within the analysis. I am positive some who know greater than I do will let me know the official terminology, for now, I am together with these so it extra precisely defines what I am saying after I use these phrases within the present.

Visitor Bios as Submitted

Richard Culatta

Because the CEO of ISTE+ASCD, Richard Culatta is concentrated on creating the subsequent era of progressive studying leaders. Richard has additionally served because the Chief Innovation Officer of the state of Rhode Island and was appointed by President Barack Obama to steer the US Division of Training’s Workplace of Academic Expertise. His guide, Digital for Good: Elevating Youngsters to Thrive in an On-line World (Harvard Enterprise Publishing) goals to assist create situations for wholesome tech use at residence and college.

Weblog: https://www.innovativelearning.com/

Twitter: rculatta

Linked In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rculatta/

Brian Kulak

Brian Kulak is in his twenty sixth 12 months in training. For the primary fifteen, he taught English and journalism at his alma mater in New Jersey earlier than becoming a member of management in 2014. Brian has written two books: Degree Up Management: Advance Your Edugame (2019) and The Sizzling Seat: Actual Teenage Solutions to Life’s Actual(ly) Exhausting Questions (2025), each with Edumatch Publishing. Every blends his distinctive, anecdotal writing type with a dedication to offering educators with ready-to-use methods and actions to remind us that we’re all related. 

His work has been featured on Edutopia, in Academic Viewpoints, and in Tales in EDU. Brian has additionally introduced on instructing, studying, and management at conferences reminiscent of NJAMLE, NCTE/CEL, and at varied Edcamps.  Brian is a baseball fanatic, a Pearl Jam aficionado, and a faithful household man. He lives in New Jersey together with his two youngsters.

Weblog: https://www.briankulak.internet/

Twitter: @bkulak11

Fb: Brian Kulak

Linked In: Brian Kulak

Podcast: So I haven’t got a podcast, however I do run a weekly IG Reside on Thursdays @ 8. On it, I join with former college students who participated within the Sizzling Seat after they have been in my class.

Jessica Pack

As a center faculty instructor for 20 years and a California Instructor of the 12 months (2014), Jessica has frequently labored to redefine what studying seems to be like in her classroom. Jessica is the creator of “Moviemaking within the Classroom” printed by ISTE.

As an Adobe Innovator, she is an advocate for creativity and storytelling, demonstrated by the unique content material her college students recurrently publish for a world viewers. Jessica can also be an ISTE Group Chief who co-hosts two podcasts: The Edge ISTE Group Chief podcast and Storytelling Saves the World.

Weblog: http://www.jessicapack.com

Twitter: @Packwoman208

Linked In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessica-pack-827a10268/

Podcast: ISTE+ASCD’s The Edge Group Chief Podcast https://istetheedge.buzzsprout.com/

Storytelling Saves the World Podcast https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/storytelling-saves-the-world/id1480027684