Soundbytes is a weekly newsletter that explores the reality of teaching in an AI world.
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Welcome to SoundBytes! A weekly newsletter about the realities of teaching in the AI world. SoundBytes is written by me, Maria Andersen, I’ve been a teacher and science-of-learning enthusiast for 20 years in both K12 and Higher Ed. These days, I teach middle school at Beehive Science & Technology Academy while also co-founding Socrait (a new voice-based class companion for teachers).
At Socrait, we periodically evaluate the types of warnings we collect from teacher voices. In this case, we looked at a representative sample of 1,000 teacher warnings in classrooms and then human-categorized the warnings – funny that we have to say that now, huh? This week we’re looking at the biggest category, 30% of the data, warnings about talking in class or not listening.
If we could reduce warnings for students who need to stop talking and listen, we could make a serious dent in the “warning” interruptions to learning. Still, it’s worth remembering that not all talking is bad. In fact, when it’s guided and purposeful, student conversation can be a powerful part of learning. The real challenge is helping students understand when and how to talk productively.
In my own classroom, I’ve found that starting with five minutes of boardwork at the beginning of class makes a huge difference. My middle schoolers stand up, move around, and get a quick dose of social time while they work. By the time they sit down, they’ve burned off some energy (and a little gossip) and are much more ready to focus.
If you’re looking for more ways to reduce off-topic chatter while keeping students engaged, here some great resources to spark ideas and strategies for managing classroom talking:
Want to guess the next largest warnings category? We’ll share more in next week’s newsletter!
[insert survey: Take a guess at what gets 21% of classroom warnings from teachers.
Disrespect to Others or Rules, Technology Infraction, Not Participating, Disrupting Class, Being Properly Seated]
As a middle school teacher, I’ve found myself increasingly frustrated with the rise of schoolslop, the flood of AI-generated submitted student work that competes with authentic student work and wastes my time and the student’s potential to learn.
When I first read this two-page article from David Wiley, Asking a More Productive Question about AI and Assessment, I felt seen. It gives teachers the language to describe what’s happening to the old reality they are mourning without jumping straight to words like “cheating.” I’ve used this article to kick off multiple PDs on AI in Education and it opens space to talk about the real mourning that teachers are doing for “the way it used to be” with better words for their frustration. Once this reality is recognized and we have better words to discuss it, it’s easier to confront the reality that this genie is not going back into the bottle. We are in a new “messy middle” in education and it might be years before we truly adjust to it.
This article is gold. Take 5 minutes ⏲️from your hectic day, grab your favorite beverage ☕, and just slow down 🦥to read this one. And then pass it to a teacher who is struggling with the new AI reality in education.
Shoutout to mamakim on TikTok who made me laugh out loud with this post about Introverts, Extroverts, and Crazyverts. I am now self-identifying as a Crazyvert.
Socrait is your voice-based classroom companion. It listens while you teach and gives back your data after class, in a confidential, fully secure manner, giving your brain time to breathe during the day. After class, Socrait can draft your parent emails, create class summaries for absent students, help you remember where each class left off, and remember your spoken aloud to-dos. See Socrait in action here!
Tip: When you’re using Socrait, a phone call can come through to your device. And you can even answer it! Doing this will interrupt Socrait’s streaming. When your call is over, make sure to restart the streaming.
