Use Gemini to Check Your Lessons for UDL

AI is getting better everyday. I still remember using Google's Bard. to try to put together a data dashboard. Most of the formulas it gave me were long and convoluted. I would often have to correct the AI and question the choices it made.

The models have improved so much. Things that I was doing before, are becoming easier to get through. I haven't seen a reason to use a "specialty" AI model — one that is designed for a specific purpose. For at least the tasks I perform, the standard models work really well.

The designers of Ludia came out with an updated version. That got me thinking ... and so I decided to see how a standard AI model would handle UDL feedback for a lesson plan.

It turns out it's better than I expected.

I used Google Gemini — which has become my preferred AI model recently — since they say they do not use data. That's what the policy says at least.

I am thinking of having teachers I work with to first check their lessons for UDL ideas, then meet with me to discuss what ideas they came up with and how they might fit into their lessons.

The sample lesson plan I used:
https://www.commonsense.org/education/digital-citizenship/lesson/what-is-ai

Link to the screenshot for the above chat.

Flipping Doesn't Need to be the Whole Lesson

This morning I was talking with two teachers and we were talking about ways to record lessons. One mentioned that PowerPoint has recording built in. The teachers were wondering aloud about what it might look like. 

The recording of the lesson doesn't need to be everything you teach. In fact, I don't think it should be. It should just be the essential learning outcomes. (Which sounds strange when I read it back because learning outcomes are essential.)

For example:

Math

Is the lesson is Logarithm practice, maybe they need to know the laws and a few example problems.

Language

If you are having them write a response to an article, they might need a reminder about what the directions are, an idea for how to structure the writing, and an example is that is what you show the rest of the class.

An easy-ish way around not having PowerPoint is to use Google Vids. (vids.google.com) Google Vids is a great way to make videos out of your lessons.

MYP Design Vibe Coding Unit Reflection

I got a little behind on my grading, and I can see the issue now, and I will try not to make the same mistake next year.

This year, I allowed students to redo assignments after I graded them. I did not put any constraints on it; I just said anything. As a result, I had a hard time motivating students. 

I started the second semester with a unit in Vibe Coding. This was an assignment that I thought of based on a conversation with a friend and a podcast episode I had just heard. I had intended it to be a way to improve the students' AI skills. 

We did include a checklist at the top of the assignment, 

• I followed my specifications
• I made an adequate prompt
• I made additional prompts
• I did some actual coding
• I looked up code to solve an issue

The checklist was good for the students for sure. But for next time:

• It would be good if the students talked about the prompts with other students,
• It is necessary to ask the students to write the prompts they used,
• We should have had a lesson or two about prompting, but we were time constrained. Next time I would build that in.

Reflection

• The prompt was the most technical part of this criteria. 
• I need to be clear on the outcomes beforehand. That is what really got me. This unit was put together too quickly and next year I will watch for that.

Vibe Coding a Professional Development List

That title doesn't make much sense, but here's the scenario: in my first year teaching, a wise mentor teacher suggested I started writing down all the professional development I took. So, I started a Google Doc with a few columns and started adding to them. It's funny to look back and see that the first ones I attended were freebies put on by my school at the time. 

Thomas Hammerlund Professional Learning and Professional Development

I still think this is good practice for new teachers. (In fact, this might also be a good way for teachers to be introduced to AI.)

https://script.google.com/macros/s/AKfycbxuN0xhABzp0Vdb_4a8GG8HZnme2BlZRw7hCAkYh6VC/dev

A Snapshot in Time

When I weigh myself, I look at the scale and write down the weight that I see at that moment. Student assessments are similar. An assessment is a snapshot of the student's performance at that place and time. And then behaviors are the same. What I don't do is think of all the different weights in my life and write down the range of weights that I have weighed in my life.

When I was thinking about how to better analyze data we collect from our Student Support Data Collection form, I looked at the "Approximate time of day concerning behavior occurs" field. I have a lot of data in that field that looks like this: 

[Morning Class time 8:30 - 10:50, Morning Class time 10:50 - 12:00, Mid day class, Lunch - Lunch recess, Afternoon classes].

Data is always easier to work with when it is singular. One cell, one piece of data. I set up this form to try to make it easier for teachers to report on students, but by setting up the time field in this way, I have muddled the data set and have made analyzing data much harder. 

Next year, I am planning on reintroducing the data form in August and talking more about why data is collected in this way and how it works.