S2 Ep 11. AI in Education: Your Secret Weapon for Breaking into UX

In today's short and sweet episode, I explore how teachers can leverage AI (artificial intelligence) tools in education to build valuable skills for transitioning to UX research and design careers. I share practical strategies for using classroom AI experiences to develop a compelling UX portfolio while still teaching.

Chapters

• 0:01 Welcome to UX Teacher Prep
• 0:56 AI in Education Today
• 2:56 Building UX Skills With AI
• 4:54 Practical AI Tips for Teachers
• 6:53 Key Takeaways and Closing

Transcript

Narrator: 0:01

Welcome to the UX Teacher Prep Podcast, the ultimate destination for educators who aspire to break into the field of user experience and product design. Your host, zee Arnold, a 15-year teacher turned UX researcher, is here to guide, coach and mentor you through every twist and turn as you make your career transition into tech. If you're ready for a more satisfying career and lifestyle and you want the balance to unleash your creativity, this podcast is for you. Now for the show.

Coach Zee: 0:43

Hello teacher friends. Coach Z here and I'm back with a new episode. I am refreshed and energized after taking a week off from work and going away with my family, so let that be a reminder to take a break. Take that time off, take care of yourself. So today we're diving into a really exciting and super practical topic how artificial intelligence, or AI, in education isn't just changing classrooms. It's also something you can start using right now to prep for your next career in UX research or UX design. So if you're a teacher thinking about pivoting into UX, you're probably wondering how you can build skills that employers care about without totally burning out. Well, guess what AI can help you do that. Seriously, today I'm going to show you how, and I'll be pulling some fresh insights from places like the Washington Post, business Insider and the Guardian, just to keep it real and current, all right. So first, what's actually happening in education right now with AI. According to the Business Insider, platforms like Kira Learning are using AI teaching assistants to help teachers with grading lesson plans and even analyzing student performance. Now, this isn't just some fancy tech talk. It's real and it's happening fast. If you're already doing this, kudos to you, because I know your workload is lighter because of it. So all you teachers out there who are using AI shout out to you. At the same time, the Washington Post reported that the US government is considering a new executive order that would embed AI literacy into K-12 education. So that means schools would officially start training students and teachers in how to work with AI tools like chatbots, creating apps and content creation tools. I actually think that would be really beneficial in the schools. And content creation tools. I actually think that would be really beneficial in the schools. And in the UK the Guardian said there's a big push to use AI to cut down teachers' administrative work, which is like grading papers, planning lessons, so that you can actually spend more time focusing on students. So what's the bottom line? Schools and districts are waking up to the fact that AI is not just a craze or a fad. It's a tool and if we use it right, it can give us hours of our lives back. So how does this tie into you and your UX journey? If you're a teacher starting to use AI for things like lesson planning, analyzing student performance, writing communications to parents like emails or class newsletters, creating assessments, you're actually practicing UX adjacent skills In UX research, you'll need to analyze user data, spot patterns and automate workflows where possible.

Coach Zee: 3:17

So here's a few ways to start. Number one use AI for small tasks. Start with something low risk. Number one use AI for small tasks. Start with something low risk. Use ChatGPT or another AI tool to draft lesson plans, write rubrics or even create learning objectives. Then, of course, edit and tweak it to make it your own, and I'm sure some of you are already using ChatGPT or other tools to help you build out your lesson plans, and if you're not, you got to get on it because it is a complete time saver. Once you have a draft, you can then go in and edit it and make it your own. And this is similar to how a lot of UX researchers using AI are drafting their interview guides, summarizing their findings or analyzing user surveys these days.

Coach Zee: 3:58

Next, practice data analysis with edtech tools. So, if your school uses platforms like Google, classroom, powerschool or even Panorama Analytics, pay attention to the dashboards. Practice interpreting the data. How many students completed an assignment? Where did they struggle? How would you redesign it? That's the same muscle you'll be using when analyzing user behavior in UX research. Analyzing user behavior in UX research.

Coach Zee: 4:24

Next, start documenting your AI workflows. Every time you use AI to make a task faster or better, write it down. Write down what tool you used. Write down what prompt worked the best, what could have been improved. This becomes part of your portfolio for storytelling later In UX. Employers love to see how you think, not just what you did.

Coach Zee: 4:50

Now let's get into some practical tips to really make AI work for you right now, while you're in the classroom. So tip number one experiment with different AI tools. Don't just stick to one tool, like ChatGPT, for example. Try AI platforms for writing besides ChatGPT, writing besides ChatGPT. Try image generation, like Canvas AI tools or even data visualization, like Google's Looker Studio or Microsoft Power BI. Being comfortable experimenting with new tech is a huge plus in UX careers.

Coach Zee: 5:21

Now I think this second tip is my favorite Treat your classroom like a mini UX lab. That is exactly what I did when I was transitioning into teaching. This is your training ground. When you design a lesson because that's what you're doing ask yourself who are my users? Those are the students, right? What are their pain points? Is it attention span, frustration, boredom? What is it that you have to work around to make sure the students get the lesson? Boredom what is it that you have to work around to make sure the students get the lesson? How can I test if my design which is my lesson worked? Are you using quizzes, engagement during the lesson, some kind of post-lesson feedback? This mindset shift seeing everything through a UX lens will make it easier when you're designing user experiences later, and you can also talk about that in your interview for UX Roll.

Coach Zee: 6:10

Tip number three build case studies from your AI experiments. I also did this and I talked about it in a different episode. Document a project where you used AI to improve something in your teaching. So, for example, if you use AI to differentiate instruction for students with different reading levels, or you use an AI tool to automate grading so you can spend more time working in small groups with students, later you can turn this into a mini case study for your UX portfolio. It shows real-world problem solving, not just theory. All right.

Coach Zee: 6:43

So today we covered a lot, from how AI is shifting education to how you can start using it right now in ways that directly support your transition into UX research or UX design. So what are the main takeaways? Don't be afraid of AI, embrace it. Use it to free up your time, to get better at data analysis and start thinking like a UX strategist today, not someday down the road, once you're already in the UX field or you left teaching and remember your skills as a teacher are not wasted, they're just evolving. Thanks so much for tuning in today. If you found this helpful, be sure to follow, leave a review or share this episode with another teacher who's dreaming of their next move. Until next time, keep growing, keep learning and keep believing in what's next for you.

Narrator: 7:27

Thanks so much for tuning in. If you like this podcast, hit, follow and scroll down to leave a five-star rating. Then share it with a friend. If you're looking for resources to help you on your tech transition journey, head over to uxteacherprepcom. Follow us on LinkedIn and Instagram at uxteacherprep for daily tips and motivation. Have a topic you'd like to hear addressed on the show? Send us a DM on Instagram. If you're listening on YouTube, like, subscribe and share. Until next time, be well.