The EdTech News Brief

Apr 24 2023 22 ep. 18 mins 7

The EdTech News Brief Podcast artwork

Educational Technology Enthusiast, teacher, and #EduDuctTape Author Jake Miller shares the essential news in EdTech and keeps it brief, clear, and concise. Want to know what’s new, changed, updated, or deprecated? Wonder who changed their pricing or paid plan? Jake tells you here. Just the news, nothing more, nothing less, in less time than a teacher gets to eat their lunch.

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020 Canva Magic Write + Draw, Microsoft Bing AI, Google Docs Stopwatches + Timers, ChromeOS Screencast Updates, Reading Coach in Microsoft Flip

Apr 24 2023 28 mins

Where does Magic Write work in Canva? Everywhere. Same with their new Draw feature. We check them both out today. Also, I break down the capabilities of Microsoft’s Bing AI and how it compares to ChatGPT. Next, Google has added stopwatches and timers to Google Docs, but is it available in all accounts (spoiler alert: it’s not). Google has also updated the ChromeOS Screencast ap

019 Canva Magic Design, Google Bard, Google Eye Dropper, Microsoft Math Solver

Apr 03 2023 14 mins

What’s so Magic about Canva’s new Design features? Speaking of design features, Google has added a small one - an eyedropper - that I’m really excited about. Also, in all my talking about ChatGPT, I haven’t taken much time to address Google’s AI efforts. What do they have happening? And, another Merrills’ Microsoft Minute: this time about Microsoft Math Solver. Access

018. GPT4, ChatGPT Age Limit, Canva Docs, Canva for Campus, Microsoft Reading Coach

Mar 23 2023 21 mins

ChatGPT creator OpenAI has changed the age limit in their terms of service. What did they change it to? Does it change everything for educators? Also, they’ve upgraded the language model ChatGPT is based on to GPT-4 and it’s CRAZY. What can it do? Tune in to find out. In other news, Canva released Canva Docs recently. How does it measure up to Google Docs and Microsoft Word? Th

017 ChatGPT Plus, AI-Detection Tools, Follow in Google Slides, Flip Updates

Feb 21 2023 19 mins

In this episode, I try out 5 different AI-generated text detection tools. Tune in to see if they can tell us if our students are cheating. Also, on the topic of artificial intelligence - Open AI has announced that there are now free and paid plans for ChatGPT. I’ll break down the differences today. In non-AI news, Google Slides has an awesome new “follow” feature that’ll k

016. ChatGPT, AI, and the Implications for Education

Jan 06 2023 18 mins

ChatGPT has taken the world by storm and, while causing many to rejoice, has caused many in education to panic. In this episode, I go over what it is and what it can do as well as whether you need to worry now and if I think it should be blocked in schools. Access this episode on YouTube as well: youtu.be/HWrP_WIOj8Q TODAY’S SPONSOR: Smore - smore.com/podcast TODAY'S CONTENT: 00:

015. Livestream Google Meet, Edit PDFs on Chromebooks, Import PDFs in Book Creator, and more Quizizz Updates

Dec 09 2022 14 mins

Did you know you could live stream your holiday choir concert to YouTube using Google Meet? Fa la la la la la la la yup. What about having students fill out PDFs using an app built into the Chromebook? Speaking of PDFs - Book Creator now lets you import PDFs. They also have added the ability to crop images and photos. Plus, a few more updates from Quizizz and a contest! 3 winners w

014 Canva Presentations Stop-Motion, Transitions, and Remote Control; Animate Your Voice in Adobe, Split Table Cells in Docs, Quizizz Updates, and the ISTE/ASCD Merger

Nov 21 2022 19 mins

Adobe is offering a free tool to animate our voices. Canva has added a Remote Control option that eliminates the need to say “next slide.” They’ve also added new slide transitions including one that can help you make awesome stop motion animations. Also, Google Docs is letting us split cells within tables, Quizizz has a bajillion updates, and ISTE and ASCD have announced a me

013 Canva PDF Editor, Remove Backgrounds in Canva Video, Gmail Multi-Send & Layouts, Focusable

Nov 10 2022 26 mins

Canva has a free PDF Editor and has added background removal, customizable animations, and more to Canva Video. Focusable seeks to help you and your students grow your ability to focus on tasks. Gmail has added new layouts and a multi-send option for email marketing or newsletters. And, finally, we’re saying goodbye to another edtech tool in this episode. Access this episode o

012. The Canva Visual Worksuite, Canva Docs, Canva Websites, Google Docs Summaries, and Book Creator Comments

Oct 21 2022 17 mins

Canva has become a formidable force in the tech and edtech worlds with the announcement of its Visual Worksuite. I'll share what that is and about two of the big new components of it today. Also, some of you can get auto-generated summaries for your Google Docs and all BookCreator users can now add multimedia comments on specific pages!! Access this episode on YouTube as well: yo

011 Add Emojis in Google Docs, Screen Record in Edpuzzle, Quizalize Games, Improvements to Moderated Topics in Flip

Sep 15 2022 20 mins

Google Docs is making it easier to add emojis in our documents. Did you know that Edpuzzle added a screen recording Chrome Extension a while back? They also added the ability to use their site in Spanish and a few other languages. Plus, Flip is letting students see their videos and the comments on them even when a topic is set as moderated. Finally, you and I are going to get to he