If you’ve ever wondered whether AI has 'broken' school, this conversation with Stanford associate professor Victor Lee cuts through the noise and gets to the heart of the issue.

We start by mapping out three lenses every learner needs:

1. The user who applies tools well.
2. The developer who grasps core concepts like models and training data.
3. The critic who sees bias, persuasion, and societal impact.

That trifecta becomes a practical compass for teachers, parents, and leaders trying to decide what matters by the time students graduate.

Victor also shares fresh findings from his widely-cited study on AI and academic integrity:

• Cheating didn’t spike after ChatGPT arrived. The baseline was already high.
• When work is irrelevant or purely procedural, students seek shortcuts.
• When tasks demand interpretation, personal voice, and real evidence, AI becomes a helper rather than a loophole.

We also explore how to rethink writing beyond the five-paragraph essay, turning “writing is thinking” into prompts that reward judgment over regurgitation. Think role-play, multimedia analysis, and context-rich arguments that students can own and AI outputs can’t fake.

Lastly, Victor examined computer science in a world of copilots. Coding isn’t going away, but the value shifts from syntax to decomposition, abstraction, testing, and reasoning about systems. The best AI-assisted developers have strong fundamentals and the same is true in every field — domain knowledge multiplies AI. That’s the essence of AI readiness: deep subject-grounding plus AI fluency and skepticism.

If you care about smarter classroom assessment, meaningful tasks, and preparing students for an AI-shaped world, this episode offers a grounded and hopeful roadmap.

aiEDU: The AI Education Project

• aiEDU.org
• linkedin.com/company/aiedu/

The hardest part of AI in education isn’t picking a tool. It’s deciding what kind of learning we want to protect, elevate, and scale.

On this episode of aiEDU Studios, we dive straight into that question with Sunanna Chand, executive director of The Reinvention Lab at Teach For America.

Sunanna has a clear stance on edtech: focus on talent over technology. Instead of imagining rows of students plugged into personalized dashboards, she explains how strategic, lightweight AI use can help teachers spark curiosity while still building durable skills and making school feel meaningful again.

We talk about what it really takes to change a sprawling K‑12 system (millions of students, thousands of districts, countless constraints) and why organizations with trust and reach matter. Sunanna offers a dual mandate to improve outcomes now while prototyping the models we will need in 5-10 years as AI automates routine tasks. That work means grappling with equity and access, acknowledging that for some students the phone is the Internet, and refusing to let premium AI become a quiet advantage for the privileged.

Of course, it also means drawing clear lines between healthy shortcuts and harmful ones — writing is still thinking, and judgment can’t be outsourced.

If you care about teacher prestige, student agency, durable skills, and using AI without losing our humanity, this conversation is for you.

Learn about about Sunanna Chand and The Reinvention Lab at Teach For America:

• https://reinventionlab.org/
• https://www.linkedin.com/in/sunannachand/

aiEDU: The AI Education Project

• aiEDU.org
• linkedin.com/company/aiedu/

Teaching at Rikers Island isn’t a typical origin story for a future school district leader. And yet, it demonstrates that education works best as human development, not a test-prep machine.

Former Chicago Public Schools CEO J.C. Brizard joins aiEDU Studios to talk about modern-day school systems and what to keep, what to scrap, and how to move faster than technology that's reshaping our jobs and lives.

We got candid about why AI has finally brought school to the dinner table. When a novice can ship working software and a manager can draft team evaluations within hours, the question shifts from “Which tools?” to “What makes us human?” The answer lies in durable skills: curiosity, agency, communication, problem-solving, and the courage to navigate ambiguity.

Those aren’t “soft” skills — they are the skills that help students change jobs, create value, and lead with judgment as machines take on more tasks.

If you care about students thriving in an AI-shaped economy and building a more humane one, this conversation offers a roadmap you can use now.

After listening, let us know what route you'll take in your class, school, or district!

Learn more about J.C. Brizard:

• https://digitalpromise.org/
• https://www.linkedin.com/in/jean-claude-brizard-0080a810/

aiEDU: The AI Education Project

• aiEDU.org
• linkedin.com/company/aiedu/

Teens don’t treat AI like magic. They treat it like a wrench — something that's useful, but only as good as the person using it.

On this episode, we sat down with students who’ve put AI tools to work in surprising ways. Between all their experiences, we saw a grounded view of AI as a study aid, a creative partner, and sometimes a risky shortcut that demands stronger digital literacy.

Jeremy’s experience highlighted accessibility and caution in the same breath. He told us how AI helped him while recovering from a concussion by simplifying textbook passages, but also mentioned being fed inaccurate weightlifting advice by a chatbot. His fact-checking routine for AI (ask for links, check dates, consider the consensus, and talk to a human expert) could be a model for any family to use.

Julia pushed the limits of AI tutoring by attempting seven AP exams. She passed the exams where she already had background knowledge, but stumbled in subjects where she didn't. Her story showed how AI can accelerate learning but still can't replace it.

If you care about raising capable, critical-thinking teens in an AI-saturated world, this conversation will offer helpful insight and practical advice.

aiEDU: The AI Education Project

• aiEDU.org
• linkedin.com/company/aiedu/

Are you worried your teen is spending more time with a chatbot than with real friends?

On this episode, we spoke with child/adolescent psychiatrists Dr. Jeremy Chapman and Dr. Ashvin Sood to learn how AI shows up in teens’ social lives and schoolwork, and how parents can respond with clarity instead of panic. Together we map out a simple framework: curiosity first, judgment last, and functionality as the North Star for family decisions.

We explored why adolescence depends on honest, sometimes uncomfortable feedback — the kind you don’t get when a bot always agrees. You’ll hear practical ways to ask better questions about prompts, privacy, and purpose:

• "What do you ask your chatbot?"
• "How does it make you feel afterward?"
• "Did it help you prepare for a real conversation, or replace one?"

Both clinicians outlined red flags of AI overuse (falling grades, dropped activities, hostility when access is limited, and late‑night screen time pushing sleep off a cliff) and they offer calm, early interventions that will rebuild routines without power struggles.

We also got specific about safety in a world where parental controls lag behind fast‑moving features. You’ll learn why young people should avoid using AI for companionship, how to set clear boundaries on data-sharing, and how to implement reasonable guardrails like teaching teens to verify information and keep real relationships at the center.

By the end of the episode, you’ll have conversation scripts, monitoring cues, and a balanced mindset to make AI a helpful coach rather than a stand‑in for human connection.

aiEDU: The AI Education Project

• aiEDU.org
• linkedin.com/company/aiedu/

AI can sound human, but it isn’t — and that difference changes how we teach, parent, and prepare kids for a future shaped by AI.

On this episode, we dive into AI readiness: the blend of skills, ethics, and technical insight that young people need to question, adapt, and lead in an AI-powered world.

We sit down with Philip Colligan of the Raspberry Pi Foundation to unpack layered AI literacy, including what students should know about data, large language models, bias, and the social impact of automation. He shares how Experience AI (co-created with Google DeepMind) equips teachers with free classroom resources so every student can get hands-on practice with training AI models, diagnosing bias, and interpreting results. From “tomato vs. apple” misclassification to image-generation blind spots, Phil shows how simple activities can spark important conversations about fairness, accuracy, and accountability.

We also hear from Kenyan teacher Mr. Monyancha Isena, whose students crowd around limited computers yet light up as they test AI models and ask why accuracy never hits 100%. Their curiosity illustrates a bigger point of how access and equity determine who benefits from AI.

If you’re a parent, teacher, or curious listener, you’ll leave with concrete ideas on how to build AI-ready habits: teach students how AI systems learn, demonstrate model bias through classroom activities, keep privacy guardrails in place, and emphasize student agency in using AI technology.

aiEDU: The AI Education Project

• aiEDU.org
• linkedin.com/company/aiedu/

Are you worried your kids might let AI do their thinking for them?

On this episode, Alex and Dr. Aliza dig into the questions parents ask most and share a practical roadmap for raising curious, confident, and discerning kids who can use AI without losing their edge. Whether it's developing everyday habits to build critical thinking or setting clear boundaries for schoolwork, we show how to help your kids become AI ready — fluent with AI tools, appropriately skeptical, and proud of their human advantage.

We start by unpacking what AI readiness looks like at home and in class:

• Using AI as a tutor, not a shortcut
• Asking for hints and feedback instead of final answers
• Testing understanding by explaining concepts in their own words.

From there, the conversation shifts to AI ethics around cheating and why expectations should be set by teachers up front. Cheating isn’t new, but trust matters and class assignments should clarify when AI is and isn't welcome.

We also look at AI-generated misinformation and deepfakes. For this, we offer simple, repeatable checks that kids can use right away:

• Pause, ask what would make this true
• Verify the info through a second source.
• Look for who benefits if you believe it.

Finally, we talk timing and development: when to introduce AI, how to avoid leapfrogging core skills, and why creative success still depends on taste and craft. You can’t speed-run taste — hours of practice, feedback, and iteration teach judgment that AI can’t replace.

aiEDU: The AI Education Project

• aiEDU.org
• linkedin.com/company/aiedu/

Are you worried about preparing your kids for jobs that don’t exist yet?

In this episode, we dig into the changes that AI is bringing to work and school. First up, materials scientist Ashley Kaiser reveals how AI is powering “self-driving labs” to offload repetitive tasks, which gives her more time for creative planning and scientific analysis.

Next, Google’s Ben Gomes explains why the next era of education must emphasize concepts over mechanics. He also discusses why curiosity, problem-solving, and cross-disciplinary thinking will define future-ready talent.

Across both conversations, we talk frankly about the shift from jobs to tasks and why routine work is most exposed to automation. But that does not make human workers less important — it actually makes human strengths more valuable. Critical thinking, clear writing, ethical reasoning, and the ability to frame problems will become the core skills of employability in AI-driven workplaces.

We also hear practical AI guidance for parents and students:

• Build real experience through internships and authentic projects.
• Use AI to accelerate learning while double-checking outputs.
• Blend STEM with humanities to strengthen judgment and communication.

If you’re wondering what to study, how to break into a first job, or how to keep your skills relevant as technology evolves, this episode offers a clear and optimistic roadmap for thriving alongside AI.

aiEDU: The AI Education Project

• aiEDU.org
• linkedin.com/company/aiedu/