Tired of the polarizing debate about AI in writing classrooms? Dr. Kelsey Hammond offers a more nuanced path forward. Rather than creating endless guidelines about when students should or shouldn’t use ChatGPT in their writing process, she explores how writing itself can become a tool for understanding our relationship with AI. Through reflective essays, poetry, metaphor-making, and examining our own prompts as "mirrors of self," educators can help students develop discernment instead of just follow rules. This conversation invites each of us to shift how we think about AI, writing, and what it means to be human.

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Grappling with Being: Writing, AI, and the Human Condition

In this episode, our panelists Gretchen Taylor, Katherine Sokolowski, Gage Jeter, and Amy Fleming speak with teacher, speaker, and author Jeff Anderson, whose article "There Is Always Time to Write Together" appears in the latest issue of Voices from the Middle. In their conversation, they discuss Jeff’s planning and writing process, how teachers should embrace the mess associated with writing, strategies both students and teachers can use to jump start their own writing process, as well as what inspires Jeff. In our latest installment of Voices from the Bookshelf, Katherine Sokolowski’s 7th grade girls at Monticello Middle School in Monticello, Illinois talk about some of the books that have had the greatest impact on them so far this year as well as the books they are excited to read next.

Book List:
Zack Delacruz-Jeff Anderson
What Readers Really Do-Dorothy Barnhouse and Vicki Vinton
Charles and Emma-Deborah Helligman
Writing Down the Bones-Natalie Goldberg
Winter Song S. Jae-Jones
The Selection-Kiera Cass
Absolutely Truly-Heather Vogel Frederick
Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes-Jonathan Auxier
Bitterblue-Kristin Cashore
Girl Made of Stars-Ashley Herring Blake
Pearl Thief-Elizabeth Wein
Letters from Rifka-Karen Hesse
Solo-Kwame Alexander
See You at Harry’s-Jo Knowles
I Believe in a Thing Called Love-Maurene Goo
Graceling-Kristin Cashore
The Hate U Give-Angie Thomas
Rick Riordan-Mythology Series
Diary of a Young Girl-Anne Frank
Long Way Down-Jason Reynolds

Voices from the Middle Podcast, Volume 25, Episode 6

The NCTE Voices from the Middle podcast is a radio show featuring middle level ELA teachers from across the United States, practitioner-leaders in our field, YA and middle grades authors, and other surprise guests. All podcasts tie to specific issues of the print publication Voices from the Middle, published by the National Council of Teachers of English. Music by Lee Rosevere.

Teaching Today is brought to you by The Center for Professional Education of Teachers (CPET) at Teachers College, Columbia University.

In conversation with teachers, researchers, and school leaders, we’re dedicated to breaking down the problems, policies, and promising practices that define teaching. Uniting theory and practice, CPET promotes rigorous and relevant scholarship, and is committed to making excellent education accessible worldwide.

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