Save Our Sundays

MyTeacherAide
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Save Our Sundays is the build-in-public podcast from MyTeacherAide, hosted by co-founders Josh and Jacob. Follow along as they rebuild MyTeacherAide V3, an AI toolbox designed to help teachers save time on planning, resources and admin. Each episode goes behind the scenes of building an education technology product in real time, unpacking teacher workload, AI in education, product decisions, school feedback, curriculum alignment, privacy, and the messy reality of trying to create tools teachers actually want to use. It’s for teachers who love teaching, but could do without spending their Sun

  1. Sep 24

    AI Is Getting Better. Teacher Judgement Matters More Than Ever.

    Last week, we told you AI doesn’t actually know anything. Which raises a fairly obvious question: Then why is it getting so good? In Episode 21 of Save Our Sundays, Josh and Jacob continue their crash course on how AI actually works — and unpack one of the most important concepts for teachers to understand: context. Modern AI can now search the web, access tools and gather information before generating an answer. And the more relevant context it has to work with, the more you can narrow the range of possible outputs and improve what you get back. Jacob explains it with a very sophisticated mathematical model involving... guessing which number Josh is hiding behind his back. Naturally. 😂 But there's another side to this. AI is getting incredibly good at sounding right. And that can make it surprisingly easy to switch your brain off, accept an authoritative-sounding resource and put it straight in front of your students. Jacob shares a real classroom example where an AI-generated resource included questions about a character before that character had even appeared in the film — something the students themselves noticed. In this episode: Why modern AI is producing much better answers than it used toWhat context actually means and why it mattersHow giving AI better source material can improve its outputWhy an authoritative-sounding answer can still be wrongHow teachers can use AI for research without outsourcing the research processWhy AI detectors aren't a reliable solution to student AI useWhy teacher judgement becomes more important, not less, as AI improvesWhy choosing not to use AI is different from choosing not to understand it Jacob also shares a practical way he now uses AI for research: instead of asking it to write the research report, he asks it to find and summarise potential sources — then reads and evaluates those sources himself. You don't have to use AI. But if you're responsible for educating students who are growing up with it, you probably need to understand it.

  2. Sep 17

    What Teachers Need to Know About How AI Works | Australian AI Framework Series • Part 7

    AI can write a lesson plan, create a worksheet and answer almost any question you throw at it. There’s just one slightly important detail: It doesn’t actually know anything. In Episode 20 of Save Our Sundays, Josh and Jacob continue their look at Transparency in the Australian Framework for Generative AI in Schools by going right back to basics: what actually is AI, and how does it work? Because if teachers are going to use these tools - and help students navigate them responsibly - understanding what’s happening underneath the chatbot is pretty important. Jacob breaks down large language models without requiring a computer science degree: why AI is essentially a probability machine, what “next-token prediction” actually means, how models are trained, and why something that sounds incredibly intelligent can still produce an answer that makes absolutely no sense. Along the way, Josh discovers that ChatGPT does, in fact, know there isn't a twelfth Harry Potter book. So that slightly ruins one of Jacob's examples. 😂 In this episode: What an AI language model is actually doing when it answers youWhy AI can sound like it “knows” something when it doesn'tA very non-technical explanation of next-token predictionWhy context matters so much when using AIHow AI models are “trained”Why newer models are getting better at questions older models got hilariously wrongWhat all of this means for teachers deciding whether to trust an AI-generated resourceThe big takeaway? AI produces the appearance of thought remarkably well. But understanding how it gets there should change the way we trust and use its answers. And just as they start getting into the really interesting stuff... Producer Gabby pulls the plug. Part 2 next week. 😅

  3. Sep 10

    You Don’t Have to Like AI. But You Do Need to Understand It. | Australian AI Framework Series • Part 6

    You don’t have to like AI. But as a teacher, can you afford not to understand it? In Episode 19 of Save Our Sundays, Josh and Jacob return to the Australian Framework for Generative AI in Schools and tackle its third principle: Transparency. And they’re starting with a slightly uncomfortable reality: You can’t opt out. Teachers can choose not to personally use AI. Schools can restrict it. Parents can dislike it. But students are already encountering these tools - and if the adults responsible for guiding them don’t understand AI, it risks becoming a repeat of what happened with social media: the kids figure it out first, and the adults play catch-up. Josh and Jacob discuss why transparency starts with understanding - what AI actually is, what it does well, where it falls short and how it affects learning. They also make an important distinction: understanding AI doesn’t mean embracing every use of it. In fact, they argue that students should have very limited access to AI for learning, while teachers - equipped with subject expertise and professional judgement - are much better placed to use it as a tool. In this episode: What “transparency” actually means in the Australian AI FrameworkWhy some teachers understandably want nothing to do with AIWhy opting out completely might leave students worse offWhat social media can teach us about getting AI adoption wrongWhy students and teachers shouldn't necessarily use AI in the same wayThree practical ways teachers can start building their AI literacyWhy Brain first, AI second matters more than everThe good news? You don’t need to become an AI expert. You just need to understand it well enough to know what it can do, what it can’t do, and how to guide your students through a world in which it already exists. The adults need to lead this one.

  4. Sep 3

    Two Teaching Techniques You Can Steal for Your Classroom

    How do you get students to know more, think more - and stop quietly flying under the radar? In Episode 18 of Save Our Sundays, Josh and Jacob are wrapping up their Book Week special with two more practical teaching techniques you can take straight from Teach Like a Champion and into your classroom. First up: Knowledge Organisers - a deceptively simple way to give students the foundational knowledge they need before asking them to analyse, evaluate and create. Then there’s Everybody Writes - Jacob’s increasingly favourite way to make sure it’s not just the confident few doing all the thinking. Instead of teaching content and simply hoping students can write about it later, you deliberately build short periods of writing into the lesson itself. And no, that doesn’t mean giving yourself another pile of work to mark. Jacob explains how he “fishes” around the classroom while students write, spotting mistakes, finding great responses and using what he sees to decide where the lesson goes next. In this episode: What a Knowledge Organiser is and what should actually go on oneWhy memorising knowledge and deeper thinking aren't oppositesJacob's surprisingly good tomato-trellis theory of creativity 🍅Why Everybody Writes means everybody has to thinkHow to check student writing without creating another marking pileWhy some students can easily fly under the radar — and how to make that harderWhich of the three Teach Like a Champion techniques Jacob would implement first

  5. Aug 28

    The Book Every Teacher Should Read

    What if five minutes at the beginning of a lesson could change the way the rest of it goes? In Episode 17 of Save Our Sundays, Josh and Jacob are back with Part 2 of their Book Week special - and this time, Jacob is sharing the teaching book he thinks every teacher should read: Doug Lemov’s Teach Like a Champion. Rather than attempting to unpack all 63 techniques in one episode (you’re welcome), they start with one of the simplest and most useful: the Do Now. Jacob explains how he uses a short activity at the beginning of every lesson to get students thinking from the moment they walk through the door. Done well, it can reinforce prior learning, combat forgetting, prepare students for what’s coming next and - perhaps just as importantly - set the behavioural tone for the lesson. And because this is Save Our Sundays, they get practical: Jacob shares real examples from his Legal Studies and English classes, explains what makes a good Do Now, and shows how teachers can start using the technique without adding another mountain of planning to their week. In this episode: Why Teach Like a Champion is Jacob’s most-recommended teaching bookWhat a Do Now actually isHow retrieval practice helps reinforce previous learningHow the first five minutes can set the tone for an entire lessonReal Do Now examples you can steal for your own classroomHow MyTeacherAide can help you generate ideas without outsourcing your professional judgement

  6. Aug 20

    How to Foster a Love of Reading | BOOK WEEK SPECIAL

    The costumes are ready, the parade is coming... but are our kids actually reading? In this special Book Week episode of Save Our Sundays, Josh and Jacob put the Australian AI Framework aside for a week to talk about something decidedly more old-school: books. Jacob loves reading. Josh... not so much. And that leads to a much bigger conversation about why so many young people simply don't read for pleasure anymore- and why that matters. They unpack research linking regular reading with stronger literacy, academic performance and wellbeing, before asking what might be an even more important question: how do we actually help kids become readers? From phones filling every spare moment to building a culture of reading at school and home, Josh and Jacob explore what teachers and parents can practically do-including why sometimes getting a child to read might require a little more structure (and a little less screen time). And, because it's Book Week, there are costumes. Josh is Mrs Brown from Paddington. Jacob is the Man from Snowy River. Apparently. In this episode: Why reading for pleasure matters more than we might realiseWhy phones aren't the only reason kids aren't readingHow schools can build a genuine culture of readingWhat parents can do when their child says, “I hate reading”Why reading and writing a simple summary can be so powerfulJacob's Book Week hot take: movie characters don't count The takeaway? A love of reading might not happen naturally-but it's a gift worth helping our kids develop.

  7. Aug 13

    AI Has a Sycophancy Problem | Australian AI Framework Series • Part 5

    AI is supposed to help expose us to different ideas and perspectives. But what happens when it would rather just agree with us? In Episode 15 of Save Our Sundays, Josh and Jacob continue unpacking the Australian Framework for Generative AI in Schools, taking on the Framework’s guidance around diversity of perspectives. This week, they dive into AI sycophancy: the tendency for AI to validate our ideas, reinforce our assumptions and tell us what we want to hear. And yes, ChatGPT giving Macbeth emotional validation for murdering King Duncan makes an appearance. So, can AI actually be trusted to broaden our thinking? Josh and Jacob unpack why the answer comes back to brain first, AI second- and explore a practical example of how teachers can use AI for research without outsourcing the thinking, judgement and source validation that actually matter. In this episode: What AI sycophancy is- and why it mattersWhy AI can reinforce your existing thinking rather than challenge itWhy students still need to learn research the hard wayHow teachers can use AI to gather diverse sources and perspectivesWhy you should never treat an AI-generated research report as gospelA practical example of using AI to save mental load without outsourcing professional judgement The takeaway? AI can help you gather the perspectives. Your brain still needs to decide what to do with them.

  8. Aug 6

    How to Prevent AI Bullying in Your School | Australian AI Framework Series • Part 4

    In Episode 14 of Save Our Sundays, Josh and Jacob move onto Principle 2: Human and Social Wellbeing of the Australian Framework for Generative AI in Schools - and this one gets a little more serious. AI didn’t create bullying. But has it made it faster, more invasive and potentially far more damaging? From AI-generated deepfakes and impersonation to real cases involving students, teachers and school leaders, Josh and Jacob look at how generative AI is changing the scale and consequences of cyberbullying- and why giving young people access to increasingly powerful technology deserves much more scrutiny. They also get practical, looking at what parents, teachers and schools can actually do: limiting access to technology, creating lower-tech classrooms, responding appropriately when incidents occur, supporting victims, communicating with families and improving AI literacy among staff. And yes... they make the case for pen and paper. Again. SOS Callout: Do you think technology in the classroom is a net positive or a net negative for students? We genuinely want to hear the argument from both sides. Send us your thoughts at hello@myteacheraide.com or join the conversation on socials. Follow us on Instagram... www.instagram.com/myteacheraide_ai LinkedIn... linkedin.com/company/myteacheraide/ And even TikTok! www.tiktok.com/@myteacheraide Key Topics in this Episode: AI and student wellbeingAI-generated bullying and deepfakesCyberbullying in schoolsStudent access to technologyLow-tech classroomsOnline safetyParents and digital safetyAustralian Framework for Generative AI in SchoolsAI literacy for teachersStudent wellbeing AI in education, AI bullying, cyberbullying, student wellbeing, deepfakes in schools, classroom technology, online safety, Australian AI Framework, AI tools for teachers, MyTeacherAide, edtech

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About

Save Our Sundays is the build-in-public podcast from MyTeacherAide, hosted by co-founders Josh and Jacob. Follow along as they rebuild MyTeacherAide V3, an AI toolbox designed to help teachers save time on planning, resources and admin. Each episode goes behind the scenes of building an education technology product in real time, unpacking teacher workload, AI in education, product decisions, school feedback, curriculum alignment, privacy, and the messy reality of trying to create tools teachers actually want to use. It’s for teachers who love teaching, but could do without spending their Sun

Information

  • Creator
    MyTeacherAide
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    21
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © MyTeacherAide
  • Show Website
    Save Our Sundays