EDUC 5313: Week 4

Blog Accessibility Updates 

To update my blog accessibility, I focused on the text that was paired with my image on my week three blog in addition to some visual improvements on my week one blog. The original text provided was a brief overview, but it did not contain the same information. If someone can’t view the attached image, the overview would not provide the same information. To remedy this error, I updated the alt text to better reflect the contents of the image. The new text replicates the text on the image in addition to a description of the visuals.  

In addition to adding alt text, I also added contrasting section headings to my week one blog. I added headings for introduction, Research Project Overview, and Connection to Triple E Framework. I also made the headings a darker red color to provide some contrast. Finally, I reworded some sentences to provide more clarity and conciseness. These updates make the blog easier to follow by giving readers a preview of the paragraph ahead. 

The screen reader on my blog for week 1 took three minutes and forty-five seconds. I do not think it needs to be shortened, but there are some phrases and minor edits that could help with the flow of the reading. Additional edits included rephrasing some awkward or clunky wording to benefit increased accessibility.

Magic School Lesson Plan 

Link to Magic School AI Lesson  

For a brief overview of the lesson, I asked Magic School to create a lesson to teach kids the differences between credible and not credible sources. The lesson was well aligned with content standards and ISTE standards, and the assessment is well aligned. However, I do not believe the lesson is appropriately rigorous. I found the lesson bland and lacking creativity. The improvement I would make is to get students moving. Where the AI simply wanted students to work through examples at their desk, I want to have students move around the room to indicate their corresponding responses.  

In my expert opinion, the tool is not useful in creating rigorous lesson plans. The lesson it gave me was very basic in nature. For example, the independent practice asked students to complete a source evaluation worksheet. If I’m going to use AI to create a lesson with independent practice, it’s because I want a creative option. When it gives me a simple worksheet, I don’t find that creative or rigorous. I would much rather spend my time thinking and collaborating with my team to come up with more creative ideas.  

I do believe the lesson partially reflects the act of Authentic Intellectual Work. It connects to digital literacy skills because I programmed it to create a lesson over that real world skill. However, an AI such as Magic School isn’t creative. It can only do what I tell it to do. It must be paired with the creative person giving it direction to implement best practice. 

Rubric Generator Tool 

Link to Magic School AI Rubric 

I chose the Rubric Generator tool which generates a rubric based on the standards I input and any other information I provide. I think it can be a useful tool for a teacher facing rubric, but it seems far too overwhelming for students to understand. For example, I like to give students their rubric to view so they know how to earn full credit. I wouldn’t show them this rubric. Instead, I would provide a rubric that was more student friendly and use parts of the original rubric to assist my grading. 

Reflection 

Magic School AI provides a decent framework for a lesson. It seems to offer general ideas and tips that can be used as a starting point. However, good teachers should always add their own expertise to any lesson or idea an AI provides. I would consider using it with my students and colleagues, but I would be sure to include that it’s a necessary part of the practice to apply increased rigor and engagement tools that the platform did not initially include. 

Some challenges and concerns I have with Magic School is that it doesn’t think like a teacher; it thinks like a computer program. Just like any AI, it doesn’t have real life classroom experience nor does it know my students' individual needs. These challenges and concerns should be noted if educators choose to use the platform. Additionally, when something replaces the thinking that I should be doing, I must do more work to internalize the material that the AI produced. I find it easier to create what I’m wanting in the first place.  

Magic School AI can provide a solid starting point for a teacher looking to develop the beginning of a lesson or acquire new ideas. For a new teacher, this might help them get started. However, it’s important for teachers to apply their own professional knowledge when working with the platform as well. 

The Guidance and Considerations for Using Artificial Intelligence in Oklahoma K-12 Schools state the importance of knowing how to use AI wisely by stating, “While AI is a tool that can empower users, it should only be considered a middle component of any process (2024). The article goes on to explain how AI should never be the final product but simply a middle step. When I use AI in my classroom, I make sure I’m using it to help me think and not to replace my thinking. I treat it as a helper instead of a doer. I find this mindset is important as teaching is a skill that needs to be consistently used and improved. 

References 

AI for Educators | MagicSchool. (n.d.). https://www.magicschool.ai/ 

Oklahoma State Department of Education. (2024). Guidance and Considerations for using Artificial intelligence in Oklahoma K-12 schools. https://oklahoma.gov/content/dam/ok/en/osde/documents/services/standards-learning/educational-technology/Guidance-and-Considerations-for-Artificial-Intelligence-in-Oklahoma-Schools.pdf 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Comments

  1. Carrie Eve-LaubachJuly 24, 2025 at 9:28 PM

    Hi Haylee, I can agree that this is not the best site to create rigorous lesson plans. It seems like it is a start but the teacher still has a lot of things to do to make it teaching ready.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Jesseca BrownJuly 27, 2025 at 7:46 PM

    Haylee, I had very similar thoughts about the magic school bus AI lesson plan tool. While it did give a broad overview of a lesson that I could take some ideas from, I felt that it lacked creativity and depth. I felt that this program is best used to garner ideas but not to use as the sole lesson planning tool. This is why it is so important for humans to include their input in AI technologies. I also used the rubrics generator tool. However, I found it much more helpful than you did. For a 9th grade English class, I found that the language was much more student friendly and easily accessible than the rubrics my district and state already use. Great job!

    Jesseca Brown

    ReplyDelete
  3. DaisyJuly 27, 2025 at 7:47 PM

    I had fun exploring MagicSchool specifically for this task. However, if I were to use it, I would still need to modify what I want to include in my lesson and utilize outside resources for the creative element.

    ReplyDelete

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