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Brittany Avila

@drbrittanyavila.bsky.social
248 followers 172 following 238 posts

Mom | Runner | Hiker | Book Addict 📚 | Teacher | Advisor | Lifelong Learner 🌟 | Always Chasing the Next Adventure 🌍✨ www.brittanyavila.com

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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
I wish PowerPoint Designer would go back to the way it was. When it first came out there were so many designs to choose from and it would format all my content in a visually appealing way automatically and saved so much time. Now it's just garbage.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Society has really done a number on the students of today. The stress and pressure they put on themselves to be perfect all of the time is hurting them. I wish they knew how much older adults mess up, need extensions, forget important things. It's not a moral failure on their part, just life.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Having to work in between pick up and drop off and then adding in doctors appointments and sick days is exhausting. I just want a full 8 hour workday for Christmas.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
In other news, it turns out it's really fun to tell people about the insanity that was Y2K.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
My students do not know what Y2K was. So excuse me while I put myself out to pasture 😔
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
My lab from my PhD Program posted that they moved to a new building. I didn't recognize it so I looked it up. The school bought the hold hospital where my first son was born and now my old lab has moved into the same location! So my dev psych lab is researching babies where my first baby was born 😀
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
🔥🧵
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Help us learn more about faculty well-being, burnout, and what is working/not-working as responses to well-being. All psychology faculty at any type of university are eligible. Takes about 15-20 minutes and you can access it here. tulane.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_...
Purpose: study examining well-being and burnout in college faculty, anyone who is full or part time faculty at any type of university can participate. Takes about 20 minutes. Link in post.
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Reposted by Brittany Avila
Dr. Sarah Gaither @sarahegaither.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
📣 I’m considering PhD students for Fall 2027! We study how our identities shape the way we see ourselves, how others see us, and how we interact across group boundaries. Our work spans race, gender, multiracial experiences, and intergroup contact with kids and adults. sites.duke.edu/dukeidlab/
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Reposted by Brittany Avila
Sylvia Perry @sylviapperry.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
I’ll be reviewing PhD apps for the 27-28 AY! My lab studies questions related to how people (1) talk and think about (their own/experiences with) racism, (2) have difficult conversations, (3) socialize their children about racism and identity. Learn more here: www.sciplab.com
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
Earlier this year I was interviewed about technology use in kids and the reporter kept asking questions that pathologized kids who didn't want to use AI. I felt so insane during the whole thing wondering when we got to the point that not wanting to use AI meant kids were bad. Happy to see this!
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
Not quite my vision for the start of the semester with a raging fire, people being evacuated, and kids schools closing, but I'm still excited to see all the students back on campus and to get started! The hum of the first week is always my favorite :)
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
I don't really understand the argument that we need to teach students AI or they'll be left behind. No one ever taught us how to use AI and we're all doing fine. No one taught us how to use Workday or Outlook and we're doing just fine. I think they'll be ok if they learn some things on the job.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
I was looking up generation information to talk about in social psych this semester, and I just want to warn everyone that we only have 2 more years of Gen Z as the entering college students and then we start to see Gen Alpha coming in!
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
For the first time in my career, my syllabi and Canvas courses are complete with 1 more day in the week before the semester starts on Monday. What will I do with all my time tomorrow?
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
I think "They knew it's products could hook kids" is a misnomer. They intentionally designed it that way.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
You know what purses could really use? A dedicated spot for glasses. Nothing worse than rushing to put away classes in a case you can't find when the doctor's office calls your name.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
I'm always amazed at how long it takes to get my classes ready. Every semester. I always think it's going to be shorter, especially when I have taught the class so many times.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
This semester, I'm doing a book club in my Social Psych class. Students pick among selected books and then on certain days they meet with other students who chose the same one and discuss. I'm both nervous and excited! I hope it works 🤞
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
Completely finished week 1 of my online class! All other weeks are mostly ready (I teach this class almost every semester). I change way too much every semester no matter how many times I tell myself not to.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
College should be free.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 23/06/2026
London! I've dreamed of being in London since I was in high school and I finally made it here!
Big Ben through a window near the London Eye.Arial view of part of London from the London Eye.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
I know sometimes it seems our students are using AI all the time, but there are a lot of them that are skeptical about it and pushing back on it. And that's a great thing! Excited to have contributed to this article. www.parents.com/teens-are-pu...
parents.com
Here’s What to Know About The Teen Backlash Against AI
Teens are worried about the environment and a flailing job market, and they think AI is only making these problems worse. Here's why young people might be as excited to embrace new technology as you t...
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 08/06/2026
Students kept asking me this semester: "Can you tell if a paper was written with AI?" And it gave me an unexpected realization: Many students don't actually know what their own writing voice sounds like. 🧵1/7
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 08/06/2026
It's Monday, but my kids' last day of school has completely confused my internal calendar. Chaperoned a park trip, they get out at noon, and I'm convinced it's Friday. Summer mode has officially begun.😎
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
I love that feeling when you've been struggling to write for weeks, so you sit down to vent right your frustrations and suddenly it all comes together!
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
If the majority of students don't pass a freshman math sequence it's not a problem with test scores or with universities as a whole. Students are not being prepared well enough in K-12. A focus on allowing teachers (not admin or tech comp) to make more decisions in K-12 classrooms is the solution.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
Our middle schools start at 7:30 AM and I've heard a lot of complaints about the kids, the age, and the schools from the community. All the complaints always seemed like symptoms of sleep deprivation to me. Looks like I might have been on to something... doi:10.1001/jama.2026.1717
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Reposted by Brittany Avila
Jamie Cockcroft @jamiecockcroft.bsky.social · 19/05/2026
Paid Undergraduate Research Internship within the Department of Psychology at the University of York, funded by NIHR. An 8-week summer placement is open to undergraduate students in Psychology (or related disciplines) interested in memory research. You can find out more here: shorturl.at/flepx
drive.google.com
NIHR Undergraduate Internship - Advert.pdf
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 12/05/2026
Went away on vacation and came back to a new library with a ladder! Been dreaming of this since I was a kid.
New home library with floor to ceiling shelves and a ladder
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Reposted by Brittany Avila
Jaclyn A. Siegel, PhD @jacasiegel.bsky.social · 26/04/2026
Tomorrow, I’m participating in the Big Sur marathon (11-mile distance) in support of the ALS Therapy Development Institute. My run group is also sponsored by Hoka! Our team of 10 has already raised over $30,000 for ALS research. Help us reach $35,000! 🙏 fundraisers.hakuapp.com/jaclyn-siegel
A spread of race day needs, including shirts, shorts, sneakers, etc.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 28/03/2026
Accidentally used the wrong shortcut and increased the zoom on a word document. Hate to admit that it helped a lot in reading the document. So....40 here I come!
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 27/03/2026
This will increase the wealth gap in our country. You can guarantee that the children of the rich, the elite, and of the people who made this tech won't be using it.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 27/03/2026
Aw man, are we going to need to start allowing Wikipedia to be cited as a source because I'm here for it!
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 23/03/2026
I've been wanting to stop using Canvas for a while now. I see the value for my online courses, but for in person courses it just costs me invaluable amounts of time to build for no real value to my students. Maybe this is the sign to finally do away with it. www.insidehighered.com/news/tech-in...
insidehighered.com
Canvas Unrolls AI Teaching Agent
The new AI agent aims to save faculty time on “low-value tasks,” but stops short of fully automating grading. But some experts worry that the rise of agentic AI could lead to a dead classroom, where c...
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 22/03/2026
First round of PhD applications I submitted 15 and was rejected from all. Second round of applying I submitted 12 and got into 1.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 19/03/2026
Yes, because tech companies have a solid history of succeeding every time they try to enter the education sphere.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 16/03/2026
Part of the problem is school start times. Teens have a natural circadian rhythm of staying awake later and waking up later in the morning, yet we go against that data and force them to wake up earlier than is natural for them. www.npr.org/2026/03/08/n...
npr.org
Teens are sleeping less than ever and screens aren't primarily to blame
Nearly a quarter of teens sleep 5 hours or less per night and the majority sleep less than 8 hours. The problem is pervasive and technology doesn't seem to be the main culprit, according to a new repo...
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 09/03/2026
Just signed the contract for my first book with Cognella! So excited to continue this project and get this book out to students in 2028. Look for How to Succeed in College: Being Successful and Avoiding Burnout Along the Way coming soon.
Me by my computer where I just signed my first book contract!
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 09/03/2026
Are there any psychology graduate students planning to attend WPA in Tacoma, WA that would like to participate in a panel about graduate school? The panel is aimed at an undergraduate audience and panelists share their experiences and there is a Q&A session.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 27/02/2026
"Inevitably, they view learning as a problem of content delivery, failing to understand that learning is a social process, happening among and inside of people" Human connection is the center of learning. Tech has a place in ed, but never the main role. We should fund teachers over tech every time.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 25/02/2026
"The more institutions rely on measurable proxies for learning, the less they cultivate the conditions under which deep learning actually occurs." I've been thinking about this a lot lately. Our assessment tools are not built for creative thinking, intrinisic motivation, or critical analysis.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 03/02/2026
I have unzip with nowhere to play it and the kid wants to stop after the next turn 😭
Scrabble board and tiles with unzip waiting to be played.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 01/02/2026
January reading wrap up!
Graphic of books read January 26. 10 books, mostly fiction, split digital, audio, them print formats.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 22/01/2026
Calling a child “it” is dehumanization—an easy way for groups to justify violence and give a sense of moral superiority. Milgram showed people aren’t just “following orders”; they convince themselves the ends justify the means. This will only get worse if we don't stop it now.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 21/01/2026
One reason (not the only one) that I went non-tenure track was to get off this train. I didn't want to be on it when it crashed. This isn't sustainable and it's not good science. Individual solutions like this can be good, but we need a wider systemic change first. www.nature.com/articles/d41...
nature.com
I’m going to halve my publication output. You should consider slow science, too
If we don’t slow down, the research enterprise is going to crash, argues Adrian Barnett.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 16/01/2026
Wrote the very first 699 words of my book today! For years I've been trying to write a book. I've been outlining it, researching, but I never officially committed to writing it. Now, I finally did it. I started it and I couldn't be more excited. Here's to hoping it gets finished.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 15/01/2026
Haha it always makes me think of Skeet Ulrich then I start thinking about Scream then I can't stop saying "liver alone, get it" all day!
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 14/01/2026
"The report describes a kind of doom loop of AI dependence, where students increasingly off-load their own thinking onto the technology, leading to the kind of cognitive decline or atrophy more commonly associated with aging brains." www.npr.org/2026/01/14/n...
npr.org
The risks of AI in schools outweigh the benefits, report says
A new report warns that AI poses a serious threat to children's cognitive development and emotional well-being.
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Brittany Avila @drbrittanyavila.bsky.social · 12/01/2026
Look what came today! So excited.
An Educators Guide to ADHD book cover
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