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☕ Pouring into Design: Designing Authentic Learning with AI
How can AI help educators design more authentic learning experiences without taking away the thinking that makes learning meaningful? 🤔
In Episode 2 of Common Grounds, Lindsey Douglas and Dr. Jessica Preisig sit down with Alyson Peoples, instructional coach at R.C. Edwards Middle School, and Courtney Wood, teacher at Forest Acres Elementary School, to explore what intentional lesson design looks like in the age of AI.
Together, they unpack the difference between using AI simply to make planning faster and using it as a thought partner to create learning that is more relevant, purposeful, engaging, and responsive to students.
The conversation moves beyond the question of whether teachers should use AI and toward a more important one:
How can AI help us design better learning—not just faster assignments? 💭
🎧 In This Episode
- What makes a learning experience feel authentic
- Why purpose, relevance, and student ownership matter
- How AI can serve as a thought partner during lesson design
- The difference between generating an activity and intentionally designing learning
- How teachers can use AI to remove barriers without removing productive struggle
- What parts of instructional decision-making should remain deeply human
- Why context, professional judgment, and knowledge of students still matter
- How small shifts in a task can create greater opportunities for thinking, creating, and transfer
🔗 Resources
ISTE+ASCD: Artificial Intelligence in Education Resources for purposeful, responsible, and effective AI integration in teaching and learning.
Empower by John Spencer and A.J. Juliani A practical look at designing learning experiences that increase student ownership, voice, choice, and agency.
Co-Intelligence: Living and Working with AI by Ethan Mollick A practical exploration of working with AI as a collaborator while preserving human judgment, creativity, and expertise.
AI Literacy in Any Classroom by John SpencerA practical resource for helping educators build students’ understanding of AI, think critically about how it works, and use it responsibly and purposefully across content areas.
🎙️ About Common Grounds
Common Grounds is a podcast from the School District of Pickens County Instructional Technology where conversation creates community.
Each episode brings educators, students, leaders, and community members around the table to explore ideas shaping teaching and learning today.
Follow us on Instagram: @sdpctechsavvy
🧡 Special Thanks
This episode was fueled by Extended Cup Coffeehouse & Cafe in Easley, South Carolina. ☕
Thank you to Alyson Peoples and Courtney Wood for sharing their experiences, perspectives, and ideas about designing learning with intention.
Pour yourself a cup, and join us as we find some common ground.
