Faster than my March Madness bracket will implode this weekend (Saint Francis was a lock, I swear!), here are the week’s best articles from Tech & Learning!
- GPT-4.5: What Educators Need To Know About The New ChatGPT Model - Educator Erik Ofgang tested GPT-4.5 for education. His verdict: “GPT-4.5 is an impressive piece of technology, but it doesn’t represent any major jump from other AI tools available both by OpenAI and other tech companies.” And again, no additional cupholders!
- Best Free AI Image Generators - We test the best free AI image generators to see which are best for teachers. Spoilerz: Although improved, there are still plenty of disturbing and hilarious mistakes. Five-legged floating felines, anyone?
- Using AI for Icebreakers In The Classroom - Using AI tools in platforms such as Padlet can be fun and help teachers make connections with students. Although my favorite icebreaker still is “two truths and a lie.” So: I’ve been a best man five times; I’ve interviewed two U.S. Poet Laureates; I broke my left ankle while playing football with my friends, and because cellphones hadn’t been invented yet, had to ride my bike home afterward. (*Lie revealed at the end)
- Using Chatbots To Create Personalized Learning Experiences - “Chatbots, in the educational realm, give teachers an opportunity to create a personal learning environment for the student,” says Travis True, Curriculum Technology Specialist for USD 501 Topeka Public Schools.?
- Ransomware 2.0: Recent Hacking Trends and How To Guard Against Them - A troubling 82% of K-12 organizations recently experienced cyber incidents, and yet, not one African prince reclaimed a throne!
- SEN Teacher: How to Use It for Special Needs Education - For 25 years–longer than iPhones, Facebook, and even Billie Eilish have been around–SEN Teacher has catered to special educational needs by providing a host of resources for teachers.
- Actively Learn: How to Use It to Teach Reading - Actively Learn is a standards-aligned reading platform featuring more than 10,000 ebooks, although once again, a pair of literary classics seem to be missing. (Just a simple oversight, I’m sure.)
Embrace the Madness–and enjoy your weekend!
(*It was my right ankle.)
