EdTech Links - Week of 8-25-2025

Each week I keep an eye out for the latest edtech resources through blogs, social media, podcasts, videos, user groups, and more. I then try to reshare these resources in many ways.

One way I share these is here on the blog in these "EdTech Links of the Week" posts. See below to explore the latest batch of resources, and be sure to share with others who may benefit.

If you want to make sure you don't miss new resources, you can:

🔗 View all EdTech Links of the Week: bit.ly/caa-links

📰 Sign up for my weekly email newsletter: bit.ly/curts-news
📧 Join the "Control Alt Achieve" email discussion group: bit.ly/caa-emailgroup

🔔 Get new blog posts automatically through email - FollowIt link

And as always, please let me know of any resources that you recommend. I would love to learn from you!

AI Deep Dive with the Digitize Fully Charged Podcast

I recently had the pleasure to be a guest on the "Digitize Fully Charged Podcast" hosted by Pam Currie and Niall Ridgway.

Anyone who knows me, knows how much I love podcasts and am always mentioning something new I learned from one of them, so I was super excited to get to join an episode of this podcast.

The podcast is described as follows:

Welcome to the Digitize Fully Charged Podcast – where Scottish humour meets digital transformation. Hosted by Pam Currie and Niall Ridgway, we’re here to spark real conversations about how technology is shaking up classrooms, schools, and local businesses across Scotland (and beyond).

I had a wonderful time chatting about AI topics including:

• Why AI must move beyond helping staff, and reach students too.
• The big question: Will AI ever replace teachers?
• Creative classroom ideas: AI guest speakers, debates and choose‑your‑own‑adventure games.
• How to get started with AI as a teacher, even if it feels intimidating.
• The dangers of bias, mistakes and misinformation in AI – and why that’s exactly why it belongs in the classroom.
• Data privacy, student safety and why I recommend Gemini for schools.
• Why AI is your new teaching assistant, not your replacement.

Take a look below to listen to the episode, access the resources that I shared in the episode, and explore more about the podcast.

The Bionic Educator - Banzai Recorded Webinar

A few weeks back I had the privilege of presenting my "Bionic Educator" keynote to kick off Banzai's virtual "Back-to-School Bootcamp".

If you are not familiar with Banzai - https://banzai.org/ - here are some quick details about them:

• They provide totally free online courses for students in grades 3 through 12.
• The courses cover personal finance, digital citizenship, college and careers, and more.
• The courses are highly interactive with games and resources that allow students to make mistakes, learn, and succeed from the safety of their classroom.
• Teachers instantly view student progress with a powerful grading interface.
• Banzai complies fully with restrictions set by COPPA and FERPA, and does not store any personally identifiable information.
• And it really is free, thanks to the support of banks, credit unions, and other organizations.

My keynote was "The Bionic Educator" which explores the impact of AI on education, with the key question being "Will AI take our jobs, or help us do our jobs better?" The recording of the keynote is now available! See below to watch it and access more resources from Banzai.

My Sun City EdTech Sessions

I am excited and honored to be a featured speaker at the 2025 Sun City EdTech Conference hosted by ESC19 and TCEA in El Paso, Texas on September 11th.

I always look forward to an opportunity to see old friends, make new friends, share some ideas, and learn so many new things from others.

You can get all of the details about the conference including registration, presenters, sessions, and more on the conference website at:

esc19.net/conferences/sun-city-edtech-conference

Below is a list of sessions I will be presenting at the conference, along with any associated resources. Please feel free to join me for any of these sessions. I look forward to sharing, learning, and chatting with you!

EdTech Links - Week of 8-18-25

Each week I keep an eye out for the latest edtech resources through blogs, social media, podcasts, videos, user groups, and more. I then try to reshare these resources in many ways.

One way I share these is here on the blog in these "EdTech Links of the Week" posts. See below to explore the latest batch of resources, and be sure to share with others who may benefit.

If you want to make sure you don't miss new resources, you can:

🔗 View all EdTech Links of the Week: bit.ly/caa-links

📰 Sign up for my weekly email newsletter: bit.ly/curts-news
📧 Join the "Control Alt Achieve" email discussion group: bit.ly/caa-emailgroup

🔔 Get new blog posts automatically through email - FollowIt link

And as always, please let me know of any resources that you recommend. I would love to learn from you!

Chromebook Accessibility Tools with the Innovation Squadcast

I recently had the pleasure to be a guest on the "BCSD Innovation Squadcast Podcast" hosted by Pam Hubler and the team at Berkeley County School District.

Anyone who knows me, knows how much I love podcasts and am always mentioning something new I learned from one of them, so I was super excited to get to join an episode of this podcast.

The podcast is described as follows:

In this podcast, the district’s Innovative Learning Coordinators delve into the newest technology and innovations to equip our schools, teachers, and students with advanced resources and support. Produced by the Berkeley County School District’s Office of Technology in Goose Creek, South Carolina.

I had a wonderful time chatting about Chromebook accessibility topics including:

• Built-in accessibility tools such as select to speak, dictation, docked magnifier, face control, quick answers, reading mode, and more.
• Recording tools for students including the Chromebook Screencast tool
• Helpful extensions to support learners such as Read&Write, Helperbird, Google Translate, Beep, Mote, and more.

Take a look below to listen to the episode, access the resources that I shared in the episode, and explore more about the podcast.

Why Every School Should be Using Gemini - Data Privacy

There are a wide range of excellent AI tools that can benefit educators and students. I have shared many of these on this blog, and I routinely provide training on them for schools around the world.

One of the AI tools that has consistently improved over the last few years is Google's AI chatbot - Gemini.

Google has added so many useful features to the free version of Gemini including Deep Research, Fact Checking, Guided Learning, image generation, Gems, Canvas, Audio Overviews, Quizzes, and more.

However there is one feature that is the number one reason why Gemini should be a part of every school's AI toolbox. It may not be the most exciting or flashiest feature, but it is arguably the most important for schools and educators.

And that is data privacy.

As educators we are required to protect student data privacy and to comply with laws such as FERPA and GDPR. Well thankfully, for free, Google provides schools with built-in data privacy and protections in Gemini.

See below for a short video and write-up that covers the details of what is included in this.