Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 29/09/2026Fun fact: This article that Cruz uses to support the claim that "there is little evidence" actually says the opposite. So not only is he sprinkling a handful of studies, they don't even support his claim! www.jowr.org/jowr/article...jowr.org 2151
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 29/09/2026Price discrimination is, of course, a rather eternal dream of the retailer. Machine learning (and "big data" generally) just slots into that dream so very perfectly. It's a new technique for an old impulse --- which doesn't mean it should not be contested! 172
Reposted by Jacob PleasantsCivics of Technology @civicsoftech.bsky.social · 20/09/2026Today, @jbpleasa.bsky.social writes about why should pay attention to Alpha Schools. And especially what we can learn from the recent reporting of @benjaminjriley.bsky.social www.civicsoftechnology.org/blog/alpha-s...civicsoftechnology.orgPay Attention to Alpha Schools — Civics of TechnologyCivics of Technology Announcements Library Community: We’re building a CoT community for those involved with or interested in libraries. Andrea Baer is leading this effort and if you’re interested... 152
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 16/09/2026Keep at it, @benjaminjriley.bsky.social And keep hanging out on BlueSky 🤣 buildcognitiveresonance.substack.com/p/yes-these-...buildcognitiveresonance.substack.comYes these are concerningMy response to the grotesque 001
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 13/09/2026I'm mostly just thinking about those "affordable human experts" who are doing the editing. That is quite possibly the worst job imaginable. 001
Reposted by Jacob PleasantsCivics of Technology @civicsoftech.bsky.social · 06/09/2026Today, Alan Foley shares his recent work on AI, tech, and disability justice: "We conclude with a call for participatory, justice-oriented approaches that center disabled people and resist the erasure of disability from imagined technological futures." www.civicsoftechnology.org/blog/disabil...civicsoftechnology.orgDisability, AI, and the Limits of Accessibility — Civics of TechnologyDr. Alan Foley moves from an analysis of how educational AI reproduces ableism toward a framework educators and institutions can use to recognize and resist it. 031
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 05/09/2026Until you've been on the receiving end, I think it's easy to dehumanize everyone on the editorial/review side of publishing. We are all just "adversaries" who are blocking the way to that which is valued (pubs). It's hard to know how to change people's perspectives on that. <obv this is no excuse> 010
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 05/09/2026Got my copy today! Looking forward to the @civicsoftech.bsky.social book club this month :) 000
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 03/09/2026Who needs history when you can play at being an entrepreneur? Or maybe it's playing at being in a marketing department. Either way, I heard that history is bunk. 000
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 02/09/2026Apparently this was uncovered via a "routine audit." The fact that those searches occurred over a 7-month period tells us something about how often those audits are done. I would be interested to know more about that. 040
Reposted by Jacob PleasantsCivics of Technology @civicsoftech.bsky.social · 30/08/2026Genuine inquiry into AI's socioenvironmental impacts requires multidisciplinary thinking, critical education, and rigorous, community-led research. www.civicsoftechnology.org/blog/data-ce...civicsoftechnology.orgMore than"AI Populism": Investigating Data Centers With K-16 Students — Civics of TechnologyGenuine inquiry into AI's socioenvironmental impacts requires multidisciplinary thinking, critical education, and rigorous, community-led research. 094
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 29/08/2026I'm with you on this one. I have followed Carl for a long time and his assimilation into Alpha has been, well, hard to figure. My best explanation: Approaching learning from a cognitive psychology perspective for too long can leave you deeply out of touch with *education* 150
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 27/08/2026It's funny, really, to regard lesson planning as mere "dross" Coming up with interesting things to do with my students is quite possibly my favorite part of the work of teaching. The amount that I've learned from developing lessons is immense. But whatever, screw it, let the machine do it 050
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 26/08/2026The list of use cases is actually quite revealing. Look at that last one: some sort of scheduling task. That's juxtaposed with a teacher using it to generate their daily lessons. What this reveals: *all* of this is framed as merely administrative burden that *should* be offloaded. 140
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 25/08/2026I mostly just keep thinking "the purpose of a system is what it does." But especially the second part, which rarely gets quoted as often, that there is: "no point in claiming that the purpose of a system is to do what it constantly fails to do" 100
Reposted by Jacob PleasantsCivics of Technology @civicsoftech.bsky.social · 23/08/2026Today, Santiago Ojeda-Ramirez shares some of the excellent work that he is doing with Latino youth. Read all about it, and in Spanish if you prefer! www.civicsoftechnology.org/blog/latino-...civicsoftechnology.orgDesigning the Social World Around AI: Latino Youth Setting the Terms — Civics of TechnologyCivics of Technology Announcements Conference Page : Missed a session at our recent conference? Check the 2026 conference page to view recordings. Note that we only recorded sessions at the reque... 021
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 20/08/2026So you're saying there's a chance! Sadly, this means that people get to keep saying that "AI has the *potential* to <blah blah blah>" Just gotta document at least one positive case 🚀 090
Reposted by Jacob PleasantsCivics of Technology @civicsoftech.bsky.social · 09/08/2026What A Conference! A tremendous shout out to all who participated. What an amazing community we have! www.civicsoftechnology.org/blog/what-a-...civicsoftechnology.orgWhat a Conference! — Civics of TechnologyCivics of Technology Announcements Last call for Merch: This is your last chance to guarantee a Civics of Technology shirt or hat. Our pre-order ends this Wednesday, August 12th. Purchasing merch ... 192
Reposted by Jacob PleasantsCivics of Technology @civicsoftech.bsky.social · 04/08/2026Final call for conference registration! The deadline is tomorrow (Wednesday Aug 5) at noon. After that time, the conference page will be password protected. If you're registered, you'll get the password via email. Register on the conference page! www.civicsoftechnology.org/2026conferencecivicsoftechnology.org2026 Conference — Civics of Technology 2116
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 04/08/2026Truly despicable. "I’m sure there are a zillion rationales around cost and efficiency for this, at the richest university in the history of the world, but they are, to quote one of the Harvard alumni above, absolute bullshit" 020
Reposted by Jacob PleasantsCivics of Technology @civicsoftech.bsky.social · 02/08/2026Our conferences is THIS WEEK! *Get yourself registered* so that you get access to the conference page and Zoom links. Registration is free! www.civicsoftechnology.org/2026conferencecivicsoftechnology.org2026 Conference — Civics of Technology 066
Reposted by Jacob PleasantsCivics of Technology @civicsoftech.bsky.social · 02/08/2026Today, Kelsey Stokes writes about EdTech as a form of Technofeudalism. Read more, and join our upcoming book conversation about it! www.civicsoftechnology.org/blog/technof...civicsoftechnology.orgWhat the heck is Technofeudalism, and why does it matter in education? — Civics of TechnologyCivics of Technology Announcements Conference This Week! Starting Wednesday, you will need a password to access our conference page, which will have Zoom links to the sessions. If you’re registere... 043
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 23/07/2026It's actually pretty aligned with the whole wellness/supplement industry. "This product is not intended to treat any disease" (after telling you that you should buy it and take it because it will totally do exactly that) 1233
Reposted by Jacob PleasantsCivics of Technology @civicsoftech.bsky.social · 19/07/2026Civics of Technology is a space for public scholarship, and at this year's conference we'll be recognizing several outstanding contributions from our community. Read about it and check out those contributions in today's newsletter! www.civicsoftechnology.org/blog/public-...civicsoftechnology.orgThe CoT Public Scholarship Award: 3 Outstanding Contributions — Civics of TechnologyCivics of Technology Announcements Annual Conference : We are holding our 5th Annual Conference on August 6th-7th, 2026! The full program is now viewable on our conference page . Our keynote... 032
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 17/07/2026What are we to make of the fact that this "yearlong investigation" seems to have had such little impact back in 2012? Some have suggested that the current fervor isn't really about data centers as such, but a growing displeasure with big tech. But I'm not so sure. The "techlash" isn't new, either. 110
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 16/07/2026Instead of making the same platform as everyone else, why not give every teacher free access to premium tiers of Claude Code? Let them create some cool stuff for their students. Probably more useful than another lesson plan generator. www.chalkbeat.org/2026/07/14/a...chalkbeat.orgAnother contender just joined the arms race over AI in schoolsOne of the world's biggest AI companies just launched a free classroom product for teachers. It’s arriving at a complex moment for technology in education. 030
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 15/07/2026Loved this little bit about how this venture got started. Some real careful thought went into it, I'm sure 190
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 15/07/2026How do weighty decisions like this get made? Through careful research and deliberation and stakeholder engagement, evidently.... 1130
Reposted by Jacob PleasantsCharles Logan @charleswlogan.bsky.social · 13/07/2026"We describe what a technoskeptical position entails and discuss how it offers insights that notions of AI literacy or competencies do not,” write @jbpleasa.bsky.social and Julianna Lopez Kershen.tandfonline.comPromoting a technoskeptical position towards generative AI in teacher educationGenerative artificial intelligence (AI) technologies are being increasingly adopted by pre-college teachers to plan lessons, generate assessments, and complete other instructional tasks. Teacher ed... 0187
Reposted by Jacob PleasantsCivics of Technology @civicsoftech.bsky.social · 03/07/2026Oh, and you're not going to want to miss Natasha's keynote on Friday, August 7th at our 2026 conference! REGISTER HERE: www.civicsoftechnology.org/2026conference 054
Reposted by Jacob PleasantsCivics of Technology @civicsoftech.bsky.social · 03/07/2026BOOK CLUB ANNOUNCEMENT: We will be hosting a book club on Natasha Singer's new book, "Coding Kids: Big Tech's Battle to Remake Public Schools." We'll discuss the book for 45 minutes & then @natashanyt.bsky.social will join us for a 30 min Q&A. REGISTER HERE: www.civicsoftechnology.org/book-clubs 143
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 22/06/2026Holy hell this is heinous. I wonder if there are window treatments or films that can block the cameras from this. 000
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 22/06/2026I, for one, will be using these materials this summer! 010
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 20/06/2026I also found the MDPI connection here to be quite interesting, and probably pretty telling. If they are willing to throttle submissions because of AI issues, those issues have got to be severe. I have some pretty reasonable guesses 130
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 20/06/2026It strikes me as very "thing-centric," which probably accounts for the omission of related literacies work. The assumption is that AI, being a "new thing," requires a whole new literacy framework. It's striking how little the document attempts to establish any continuity with prior tech literacies. 010
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 19/06/2026In an arms race, it's always best to be the one selling the arms. 000
Reposted by Jacob PleasantsCharles Logan @charleswlogan.bsky.social · 14/06/2026In today’s @civicsoftech.bsky.social blog, thought leaders @michalwieczorek.bsky.social and @eam0.bsky.social share a resource for facilitating a workshop using speculative co-design methods to reimagine educational technology that'll supercharge your critical edtech sensemaking skills x 1000!civicsoftechnology.orgThe Future of Creative Workshops is Brighter than Ever!Announcing the Next Steps in the Click Here if You Agree Project — Civics of TechnologyCivics of Technology Announcements Annual Conference : We are holding our 5th Annual Conference on August 6th-7th, 2026! Our keynotes this year are Dr. Meredith Broussard (data journalist & aut... 0115
Reposted by Jacob PleasantsDr Abeba Birhane @abeba.blacksky.app · 12/06/2026one of the most comprehensive surveys on children’s use of AI--conducted March 18-26, 2026, among 9-17yr olds in the US (N = 1,204)--has been released www.commonsensemedia.org/sites/defaul... highlighting key findings 🧵 "Nearly 9 in 10 kids age 9 to 17 (86%) use/interact with AI" 917485
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 13/06/2026When I see AI-generated text, it immediately makes me wonder whether the whole study is a fabrication. This is why AI "assistance" is so toxic. You know some of the paper is ersatz, but not *how much.* The only solution is to accept 0% ersatz, but that ship has almost sailed :/ 0280
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 12/06/2026Potentially entertaining project: CoT hosts a Claude Corps Fellow to see if we can successfully deprogram them. A true consciousness-raising endeavor! 130
Reposted by Jacob PleasantsCivics of Technology @civicsoftech.bsky.social · 07/06/2026Today for the blog, Aaron Gierhart writes about his experiences educating future teachers about generative AI: www.civicsoftechnology.org/blog/intenti...civicsoftechnology.orgIntention Meets Practice — Civics of TechnologyCivics of Technology Announcements Annual Conference : We are holding our 5th Annual Conference on August 6th-7th, 2026! Our keynotes this year are Dr. Meredith Broussard (data journalist & aut... 063
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 02/06/2026I admit that I am somewhat curious to see this purported AI assistant that will somehow "guide" the work of ideation without doing the work for them. "Guide" is doing a whole lot of lifting in this claim, but if it's anything like the AI assistants I've seen before... 110
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 31/05/2026And incidentally, John Warner gives yet another gift with his newsletter this week: biblioracle.substack.com/p/the-worst-...biblioracle.substack.comThe Worst Use Case for Generative AI is WritingTime for a victory lap. 020
Reposted by Jacob PleasantsCivics of Technology @civicsoftech.bsky.social · 31/05/2026Today, @jbpleasa.bsky.social shares practical tools for rethinking and redesigning course writing assignments. We cannot walk away from writing! www.civicsoftechnology.org/blog/approac...civicsoftechnology.orgApproaching Writing Assignments with AI in Mind — Civics of TechnologyCivics of Technology Announcements Annual Conference : We are holding our 5th Annual Conference on August 6th-7th, 2026! Our keynotes this year are Dr. Meredith Broussard (data journalist & aut... 1113
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 30/05/2026Glad to hear I'm not the only one who hung on to all those binders of burned CDs 🤣 How else am I supposed to listen to music when I'm in the car? How??? 110
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 28/05/2026Loved hearing this conversation with @tommullaney.bsky.social! www.techwontsave.us/episode/330_...techwontsave.usDo Chatbots Really Belong in Schools? w/ Tom Mullaney - Tech Won’t Save Us 133
Jacob Pleasants @jbpleasa.bsky.social · 28/05/2026This collection might be useful. They mothballed it a couple years ago, but there were some good stories. slate.com/tag/future-t...slate.comFuture Tense FictionAll stories about Future Tense Fiction 010
