Engagement Is the Outcome of Design: Supporting Teachers and Students Through Autonomy, Competence, and Relatedness

Teaching AI Literacy in Any Class: A Conversation with Matt Miller

In this episode, I chat with Matt Miller about his new book, AI Literacy in Any Class, and what it means to prepare students for a future shaped by artificial intelligence. We explore practical ways teachers can integrate AI literacy into everyday lessons without losing focus on meaningful learning, strong instruction, or core content. Matt shares approachable strategies educators can use across grade levels and subject areas to help students think critically about AI, ask thoughtful questions, evaluate information, and engage responsibly with emerging technologies. We also dig into some of the more challenging conversations happening in education right now, including concerns about screen time, technology use in classrooms, and the growing pushback against devices in schools. Instead of framing technology as simply good or bad, we discuss the importance of intentional instructional design and how the way technology is used ultimately shapes the learning experience. Episode Resources * Check out Matt’s New Book! AI Literacy in Any Class [https://www.amazon.com/AI-Literacy-Any-Class-Preparing/dp/1968898077/ref=sr_1_1?crid=127KQO2VN7RLP&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.w0C9Mm1A2QVABJwoOKGtl_6HFqtjueuFiKT3teHCz7WnqgxzaErOC6Ci6OrgGqLFyDyoEGaLEQkn77i_aacyaQ.lxsHgYrJinXu7YLdtwEUeTONi0Xxrm0zMMg2N3K_9vY&dib_tag=se&keywords=matt+miller+ai+literacy&qid=1779386169&s=books&sprefix=matt+miller+ai+literacy%2Cstripbooks%2C164&sr=1-1] * Connect with Matt Miller [https://ditchthattextbook.com/about/] * Skills Before Tools: K-12 AI Implementation Guide [https://thoughtful-speaker-6613.kit.com/ba4ae50193]

Using 360 Feedback to Increase Accountability in Small Group Work

In this episode, I explore how a simple 360 feedback protocol can increase accountability and reflection during collaborative learning experiences. Inspired by feedback systems used in corporate settings, this strategy gives students structured opportunities to assess their own contributions and provide thoughtful peer feedback after small group discussions, reciprocal teaching, project-based learning, and other cooperative tasks. I share how asset-based rubrics and peer reflection can help teachers gather meaningful formative data without adding more grading to their workload. I also discuss why collaboration, communication, empathy, and self-regulation are increasingly important human skills in an AI-driven world. If you want to make group work more equitable, reflective, and student-centered, this episode offers practical strategies you can implement right away. Episode Resources * [Resource] 360 Feedback Routine [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1i16imtmMSHPj86bss4cFcposOk8SFgbT-8-scrAJ1bM/copy]

Guided Notes vs. Cloze Notes: Are Your Notes Supporting or Stifling Learning?

In this episode of The Balance, I unpack a classroom trend I’ve been noticing across middle and high school classrooms: teachers using what they call “guided notes” that are actually closer to cloze notes. I explore the difference between guided notes, cloze notes, and completed notes, and why those distinctions matter for cognitive engagement, meaning-making, and long-term learning. I talk about how note-taking scaffolds can support students without reducing learning to task completion and compliance. I also address questions teachers are asking about fairness, accommodations, inclusion, and how to normalize differentiated supports in diverse classrooms. Finally, I share practical strategies for designing guided notes that actively engage students in thinking, processing, discussing, and making meaning during direct instruction. Related Blog: Are Your Guided Notes Supporting or Stifling Learning? Designing Notes That Promote Active Engagement [https://catlintucker.com/2026/05/guided-notes-supporting-or-stifling-learning/]

AI Tools That Give Teachers Time Back with Robert Mayfield

In this episode, Robert Mayfield and I continue our conversation about deep work in education by exploring specific AI tools that can help teachers reclaim time and focus on more meaningful instructional work. We discuss how AI can streamline tasks like creating slide decks, writing student-facing directions, designing higher-order questions, generating review activities, providing feedback, planning units, and managing communication with families. Throughout the conversation, we emphasize that the goal is not replacing teachers, but reducing the shallow, repetitive tasks that consume so much of their time and energy. We also talk about the importance of teachers remaining thoughtful evaluators of AI-generated content and building a small, purposeful toolkit that supports student-centered learning. Related Blog: Deep Work in the Age of AI (Part 2): AI Tools That Give Teachers Time Back [https://catlintucker.com/2026/04/deep-work-in-the-age-of-ai-part-2/]

Deep Work in the Age of AI: Protecting Teacher Thinking with Robert Mayfield (Part 1)

In this episode, I chat with Robert Mayfield about a growing tension in education: teachers aren’t necessarily resistant to AI, they’re resistant to more fragmentation. We explore how the structure of teaching leaves little room for the deep thinking required to design meaningful learning experiences and why AI should be used to create space for that work, not add to teachers’ cognitive load. Robert shares powerful examples from classrooms, including how one teacher’s perspective on AI completely shifted when she saw its potential to support student thinking and reclaim teacher time. We also discuss the difference between simply putting together lessons and intentionally designing them, along with small, realistic ways educators can begin protecting time for reflection, analysis, and instructional decision-making. Related Blog: Deep Work in the Age of AI: The Case for Protecting Teacher Thinking (Part I) [https://catlintucker.com/2026/03/deep-work-in-the-age-of-ai/]