The TechEd Clubhouse is for STEM, CTE, and hands-on teachers who never fit the standardized script — and figured out better pedagogy because of it. Practical thinking on curiosity, judgment, and designing learning that actually demands something from students.
What does student engagement actually mean? And when AI can generate lessons, feedback, images, and activities in seconds, how do we make sure students are still doing the thinking?
In this episode, I sit down with Matt Miller, educator, speaker, author, and founder of Ditch That Textbook, to talk about practical instructional design, AI literacy, and why new technology should never become the goal of the lesson.
Matt shares how Ditch That Textbook began in his high school Spanish classroom, where he realized that following the textbook was not helping students actually communicate. That realization led him to experiment with more conversational, creative, tactile, and technology-supported learning.
We also dig into Matt’s new book, AI Literacy in Any Class, and how teachers can build AI literacy through small, intentional moments inside their existing curriculum—not through another isolated initiative or standalone course.
- Why engagement is more than students being quiet, busy, or entertained
- How to evaluate whether a worksheet, tool, or activity actually produces worthwhile thinking
- Why teachers should not force AI into lessons that already work
- How AI can serve as a thinking partner instead of an answer generator
- Using AI to ask better questions and expose gaps in lesson design
- Building AI literacy through everyday classroom conversations
- Why creativity, critical thinking, adaptability, and reflection matter more than tool-specific training
- Matt’s current AI tools, including ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, and Brisk
- His plans for ISTE 2026
- The new Ditch That Textbook Community
One of the strongest ideas from the conversation: We are not called to integrate technology. We are called to teach.
The goal is not more AI. The goal is better learning—and students doing more of the thinking.
Connect with Matt Miller:
Ditch That Textbook:DitchThatTextbook.com
Newsletter and free resources:ditch.link/join
Ditch That Textbook Community:ditch.circle.so
Book:AI Literacy in Any Class
Follow Matt on LinkedIn, Facebook, X, Instagram, and TikTok for practical classroom strategies and ideas.
