Welcome to the July 2025 edition of the Edtech & ELT Newsletter.

ChatGPT’s Deep Research tool acts as a research assistant and can quickly find great sources on a variety of topics.

In the last couple of weeks I've come across a few interesting articles relating to AI that have made me think and question my opinions, so I'm sharing them here to see what you think and whether they do the same for you. 

I increasingly find people asking me “does AI damage your brain?” It's a revealing question. Not because AI causes literal brain damage (it doesn't) but because the question itself shows how deeply we fear what AI might do to our ability to think. So, in this post, I want to discuss ways of using AI to help, rather than hurt, your mind. But why the obsession over AI damaging our brains?

When we think about media manipulation, we often picture advanced editing software, fake news, or AI-generated deepfakes. But for me, the question starts much earlier and much simpler: can a four or five-year-old understand that a photo might not show what really happened?

Unlock a new dimension of language teaching with AI.

In AI for ELT: From Pixels to Pedagogy, award-winning educator and edtech expert Nik Peachey takes you on an inspiring journey through the world of AI-generated imagery and its transformative potential in English language teaching.

AI has already infiltrated the workforce, so higher ed institutions have a responsibility to teach their students to use it responsibly and effectively.

Purpose The use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in education has the potential to further customise and personalise students’ learning, and encourage self-directed learning. It can also augment teachers’ professional practice by automating routine tasks and allowing teachers to spend more time...

AI, ChatGPT, and LLMs "have absolutely blown up what I try to accomplish with my teaching."

I'm continuing my series of AI prompts that can help to promote critical thinking this week with one to help teachers design tasks based on Bloom's Taxonomy. You would be surprised how many times I've seen materials promoted as being inspired or modelled on Bloom's Taxonomy that don't come anywhere

Discover how integrating artificial intelligence and critical thinking strategies can foster transformative learning experiences in higher education. Learn how educators can model, guide, and support students in navigating AI with intention, reflection, and integrity.

Following on from previous weeks, I'm sharing another AI prompt which can help develop critical thinking skills. If we want to develop critical thinking in our students then we need to start by developing it in ourselves and modelling it for our students.

AI Bytes Episode 24 – AI for Feedback: The Great TABOO!

With the increased use of generative AI to do many of the tasks we have long associated with teaching and learning, there is a genuine concern that rather than supporting and developing learning and understanding AI may be used in a way which is negating the need for it. In this session Nik will look at an alternative method of prompting and how it can lead to deeper cognitive engagements and better metacognitive understanding.
Nik will demonstrate and share a number of prompts that are specific to teacher development that participants can try out and evaluate for themselves.

Last week in my Sunday Suggestions I shared a prompt that turned your AI chatbot into a critical friend as an example of how AI CAN develop critical thinking, we just have to think a little more critically about how we apply it!

However, I suspect that what many teachers mean, when they talk about the impact of AI on critical thinking, is that students will get information from AI sources and won't think critically about whether or not it's true.

Artificial intelligence is no longer a distant possibility. It is a defining reality of our present moment. From predictive analytics in admissions to generative AI tools shaping classroom practice and research workflows, AI is rapidly transforming higher education. Yet this transformation is not simply technological. It is cultural, ethical, and institutional. The question before us is not whether we will use AI but whether we will guide its use with purpose, clarity, and care.

We see increasing levels of disengagement from the curriculum. Fewer students carry on to higher education. The intellectual elites become smaller and more powerful, but we also see a disruption. Academia is peeled away. Innovation occurs outside of the walls of schools.

Then Pedraza was introduced to Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat, the AI companion that helps with work tasks. A group of AI experts recently trained him on how to write effective prompts to quickly generate personalized activities for the students just by typing a few traits of each. He was amazed by the results.