Last weekend, my husband and I traveled to Las Vegas for the a late anniversary trip and for me to present at Innovative Schools Summit. This was my first time attending and presenting at this conference. I was very excited to present in Las Vegas (my first ever visit there) and share my "Empowering Student Voice using UDL and Tech Tools" session. I was also excited to reconnect with some amazing members of my PLN like Darrin Peppard, Dave Schmittou and Charles Williams, plus make new connections. My session went amazing- I had about 100 participants and got great feedback.

This coming week is also full of excitement as I travel to the Upstate Technology Conference in Greenville, SC. I have presented at this conference virtually, but this is my first time attending and presenting there in person. I will be presenting each of my three sessions twice there. In addition, I am looking forward to reconnecting with many members of my PLN. Speaking of my PLN, also be on the lookout for my podcast episode with Monica Burns on the Easy EdTech Podcast. It is coming out this week.

Reviewing what are the ABCs of Transforming Learning are-

ABCs of Transforming Learning graphic

Two weeks ago, I shared a blog post called V = Value Your Growth and Visualize Next Steps. As I returned from ISTE 2023 in Philadelphia, I couldn't help but consider how I have grown since I attended ISTE 2019 in Philadelphia. On 6/19/2021, I shared my post, "Top Ten Takeaways from ISTE 2019," so I thought that week's post could focus on how I have grown since 2019 and share my next steps.

This week, we will focus on W= Wonder how AI Can Help You. As we approach another school year, it can be easy to feel overwhelmed by the amount of tasks you need to complete every day as an educator. Being an educator is harder than ever and acknowledging that is important. However, there are many tools at an educator's disposal to help them manage the overwhelm. This week's post begins to explore how we can use AI or Artificial Intelligence tools to do just that.

W = Wonder how AI Can Help You

As educators, AI is one of those words that often scares us. What if our students use AI to write their papers? What if AI takes over our jobs? These are all valid thoughts, but what if we looked at it differently? What if AI could help us in our work as educators? What if we can use it for good and not evil?

Recognizing the AI we use all the time

During the Elementary Technology Conference, I attended a session on AI in Education by Bruce Ellis. As I listened in on his session, it hit me how much we are already using AI in our daily lives. It reminds me of teachers who say they are bad at technology, yet they use their iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch daily. 


Here are some great examples:


These examples are things that we use without even things about that we are using AI. They help us streamline tasks and be more efficient. They help us brainstorm and generate ideas.

Considering how we can use ChatGPT

Like most educators, when I thought about AI, ChatGPT was one of the first things I explored. I remember thinking it was a "bad tool" at first and not really sure how I would use it. Then, during a tech coaches' meeting in March, I logged in for the first time and started playing around. 

I was fascinated and asked it to write a bio for myself in 50 words. What I got in shown in the image to the left.


Needless to say, there were a lot of facts shared in this bio that are not true for me. I do not have background in computer science or business administration. So then I began to explore how I could make ChatGPT work for me.


So I tried something different. I copied my presenter bio into ChatGPT and asked  it to rewrite it sharing facts about my ISTE Certification, being an author and being a blogger first: Here is what I started with and what I got is shown on the image to the right...


An educator with over twenty years of experience, Debbie Tannenbaum works each and every day to “transform” learning using technology. During her time in education, she has served both as a classroom teacher in various grades and as an elementary technology coach. Outside of the classroom, Debbie promotes using technology tools to amplify student learning in her work as an educational technology consultant, ISTE Certified Educator, author, blogger and speaker. You can connect with Debbie at TannenbaumTech.com .


This one  to the right is 100% true and by asking ChatGPT to rewrite it, I was able to better refine my ideas. So how else can you use ChatGPT as an educator? I decided to reach out to some "experts".

Ditch That Textbook (Matt Miller)

I am amazed by the amount of resources that Matt Miller has shared on his Ditch That Textbook website. In addition, he has also written a book on this subject called AI for Educators. After both reading his book and reviewing his website, here are some blog posts and a video to the left to start your AI learning journey. 

The AI Infused Classroom (Holly Clark)

Another great way to learn more is to read the AI Infused Classroom  by Holly Clark and/or sign up for her FREE learning event sharing about shifting learning in a world of AI. I am signed up and looking forward to participating in the 10 sessions and completing the 10 challenges. You can sign up for this event using this link. You can also check out her starter kit here or watch some of her Take Lessons session with Flip.

AI Exploration for Educators (ISTE)

ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education) has also compiled a ton of resources to help educators learn more about AI. They have even developed their own AI education focused chat-bot called Stretch which is coming out soon. Not to mention all the amazing resources available on this page. Their Hands-On AI Projects for the Classroom guides offers educators at all levels ways to engage students in AI exploration and are available in English, Spanish and Arabic. It also links to other resources like blogs, podcasts, case studies, research papers, and even a FREE course.

 Next Steps

With so many resources available, it can truly be overwhelming, which is why I started by sharing just 3 resources. Select one of them to start your learning journey based on how you learn best. Start small like I did and build on. Wonder how AI can help you as an educator and try a few things you learn. See the impact and reflect on its impact. I can't wait to hear all about it!