The Creative Classroom with John Spencer

In this week’s episode, I interview Dr. Katie Novak. She shares the basics of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and how to make it work in a K-12 setting. I gained so many key insights from this interview and I hope you find it as... The post Katie Novak on How to Make Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Work in Your School appeared first on John Spencer.

For all the talk of students using Artificial Intelligence to cheat, we can easily miss the reality that A.I. has made differentiated instruction more feasible for educators. In this week’s article and podcast episode, I explore how we can leverage A.I. tools for differentiated instruction.... The post How to Use Generative A.I. to Design Better Scaffolds and Supports appeared first on John Spencer.

In this latest podcast episode, I talk to an expert in technology, information literacy, and education. Kristina Holzweiss shares her insights into how machine learning can improve outcomes and increase equity if we leverage it the right way. Listen to the Podcast If you enjoy... The post Kristina A. Holzweiss on How Librarians Can Leverage AI to Reach All Students appeared first on John Spencer.

A.I. is changing learning in profound ways. In this week’s podcast episode, I interview Sal Khan from Khan Academy. He shares his thoughts on how A.I. will impact personalized learning and what they are doing at Khan Academy with Khanmigo. Listen to the Podcast If... The post Sal Khan on A.I. and Personalized Learning appeared first on John Spencer.

In 2014, Microsoft launched a hugely successful A.I. bot named Xiaoice in China. With over forty million conversations, users often described feeling as though they were interacting with a real human. Microsoft founder Bill Gates described it this way, “’Xiaoice has attracted 45 million followers... The post Students Need to Explore the Nature of A.I. appeared first on John Spencer.

In this podcast episode, I interview educator and author Jessica Lander. I really enjoyed her book Making Americans and the many lenses she uses in thinking about innovation within immigrant education. More than anything, she is human-focused and centers the thinking in stories from the... The post Jessica Lander on Innovative Approaches to Immigrant Education appeared first on John Spencer.

Generative A.I. has created some very real challenges with academic integrity. Schools have been scrambling to create systems and policies that address the potential for cheating. In the past, I’ve written about how we might redefine the essay in an age of A.I. or how... The post 5 Ways to Leverage A.I. for Student Supports and Scaffolds appeared first on John Spencer.

In this podcast episode, I interview Angela Daniel who works at the MIT Step Lab. In this in-depth interview, Angela discusses AI, deeper learning, and the need for students to think about the nature of the technology itself. Listen to the Podcast If you enjoy... The post Angela Daniel on Deeper Learning in the Age of A.I. appeared first on John Spencer.

The following is a short story I wrote about AI, teaching, learning, heroes, and superpowers. This is a pretty sharp departure from my typical blog posts but I hope you enjoy reading this story as much as I enjoyed writing it. You can listen to... The post Mending the Tears in a Super Suit (A Short Story) appeared first on John Spencer.

When I do workshops on student-centered assessment practices or teach the Assessment Design course as a professor, I’ve noticed that people feel strong emotions about assessment. As educators, all of our assessment practices come from a set of values and beliefs that we hold. Do... The post 5 Ways Artificial Intelligence Might Transform Assessment Practices appeared first on John Spencer.