#338 – AI in the K-12 Classroom, with Eric Curts

In this episode, instructional technology expert Eric Curts helps us unpack the power of technology in the classroom. Specifically, we dig into generative AI and how it can be used in K–12 classrooms. Eric shares specific examples of AI tools that you can try and practical classroom activities that can make a real impact with your students. He shares ideas for those new to AI as well as those looking to push to the next level. Additional ideas and resources can be found on his website, Control Alt Achieve.

AI in the K–12 classroom isn’t just a tool; it’s a partner in curiosity, helping both teachers and students explore new ways of thinking and learning.

From ChatGPT, when asked to write a quote about AI in K–12 education that could open the episode

Resources

The following resources are available from AVID and on AVID Open Access to explore related topics in more depth:

• AI in the K–12 Classroom (article collection)
• AI Prompt Engineering Tips for Teachers (article)
• Brisk Teaching: An AI Teaching Assistant and Writing Feedback Tool (article)
• SchoolAI as an Entry Point to AI in Schools (article)
• Developing AI Policy in K–12 Schools, Step 1: Setting the Stage (article)
• aiEDU (podcast episode)

AI as an Assistant

While our quote for this episode refers to generative AI as a partner, Eric Curts likes to think of it as more of an assistant. Rather than pairing teachers and AI as equals, Eric believes keeping the teacher in the lead role. Eric says, “AI is not here to do your job. It’s here to help you do your job better. It’s all about extending us. It’s being that assistant for us and for our students.”

This type of support can be transformational and help teachers achieve best practices that reach all students and that have not previously been scalable. Eric says, “With generative AI, if you so choose, every teacher can have a 24-hour personal assistant, and every student can have a 24-hour personal tutor.” The following are a few highlights from the episode:

• About Our Guest: With over 30 years of experience, Eric Curts works as a Technology Integration Specialist in Ohio and provides training to schools and organizations around the world. Eric is a Google Certified Trainer and Innovator, and for many years, he has been sharing all of his technology resources on Control Alt Achieve, his award-winning blog.
• Why Tech?: Eric says that the value of technology in the classroom is in “helping us be the best teacher we can be, helping our students be the best learners they can be.” That might include something as simple as saving time with an administrative task so that we can spend more time directly with our students. It could also mean finding new ways to reach all students and transforming what is possible in the classroom. Eric emphasizes that AI is not here to replace teachers.
• Teacher’s Role: It’s important to keep a human role in the process of using generative AI. Eric reminds us, “AI can assist you. It can help you, but you have to vet what it shares, and you have to make sure it aligns to what you’re covering in class, and you have to put your personality into it, and you’ve gotta make sure that whatever you’re generating is something that’s going to be appropriate for your students.”
• Uses: There are many ways to use generative AI. A few applications include completing routine daily tasks, creating a rubric, developing lesson plan ideas, using it as a subject refresher, and generating fresh ideas for an old lesson.
• Transforming: AI can also help us transform what is possible in our classrooms. Eric says that you can use AI “to make practical good educational practices that otherwise we might not be able to do.” For instance, School.ai can be used to build custom chatbots to give your students. These are school safe and provide the teacher with a record of student interactions. “Not only are now the student getting met where they are at, but you’re getting insights that you might have missed otherwise,” says Eric. “It’s about taking something that we know is good and say, you know what? We can finally do it!”
• The Human Element: Eric says, “It’s not that AI is, you know, pulling people further apart. No, it’s actually helping you make connections now.” This happens by saving time and gaining more, insightful feedback into student performances.
• Prompting: Eric shares, “There’s no magic prompt.” He adds, “Keep in mind, it’s a conversation. . . . You can talk to the AI just like you’re talking to a person, and if you don’t get the response you’re looking for, you can just ask follow-ups.” If you do want to try a specific technique for prompting, consider using Eric’s collaborative prompt technique or check out his blog post about creating a super prompt.
• Tools to Help With Prompting: If you’re not comfortable generating prompts on your own, tools like MagicSchool and Khanmigo can help “craft the prompt for you.”
• School Expectations: Before using AI with students, be sure to review your applicable school district guidelines.
• An Intro to AI: If you would like to begin your classroom’s venture into AI with a higher degree of control, you can have your students interact with AI through you. To do this, you might lead full-class activities using AI in front of the class. They can even help generate the prompts and questions. One great entry activity is to conduct an AI interview with a historical figure or a character from a book. You could also facilitate a debate with AI. This is not only exciting for students but also motivating because they are asking the questions of interest to them.
• Critical Skills: Eric reminds us, “Our students are gonna be interacting with AI the rest of their lives. They need critical thinking skills. They need to know how to identify what is accurate, what is not, how to challenge things, how to be skeptical. What better place to learn than our classroom?”
• Favorite Tools: Eric shares a few of his favorite AI tools, including SchoolAI, Brisk Teaching, and Snorkl.
• Toolkit: For the item in his toolkit, Eric suggests the use of song generators, such as Udio and Suno. These can be used to generate full songs from a prompt. He is also excited about the tool that Paul shared, Google’s NotebookLM, which can generate a podcast from your notes with one click of the mouse.
• One Thing: For his “one thing,” Eric appropriately says, “Just pick one thing. Try something.” This can help you from feeling overwhelmed by all of the available options and choices.