K12 Tech Talk

Episode 285 dives into a fast‑moving week of K12 tech news. The guys discuss Hazel Health (a telehealth provider reportedly targeted by the Direwolf ransomware group) and a confirmed Frontline breach. Josh, Chris, and Mark break down Google's latest moves - an early consumer rollout of Googlebook, the timeline for education management controls, and Google’s decision to retire Gemini Gems and migrate functionality into cross‑platform "skills." They debate the need for more granular Google Admin Console controls so districts can toggle AI features selectively rather than adopting an all‑or‑nothing rollout. The episode also features an interview with Michael Marassa about adopting Lumu for K12 cybersecurity. ———— Sponsored by: Lumu - https://lumu.io/blog/instructure-canvas-breach-k12-supply-chain-security/ - https://lumu.io/blog/chromebook-visibility-school-cyber-stack/ Fortinet Lightspeed Insight Managed Methods ———— Join the K12TechPro Community (exclusively for K12 Tech professionals) Buy some swag (tech dept gift boxes, shirts, hoodies...)!!! Email us at [email protected] OR our "professional" email addy is [email protected] X @k12techtalkpod Facebook Visit our LinkedIn Music by Colt Ball Disclaimer: The views and work done by Josh, Chris, and Mark are solely their own and do not reflect the opinions or positions of sponsors or any respective employers or organizations associated with the guys. K12 Tech Talk itself does not endorse or validate the ideas, views, or statements expressed by Josh, Chris, and Mark's individual views and opinions are not representative of K12 Tech Talk. Furthermore, any references or mention of products, services, organizations, or individuals on K12 Tech Talk should not be considered as endorsements related to any employer or organization associated with the guys.

In this episode, Chris, Mark, and AI Josh discuss research studies about classroom technology, AI tutors, student-device use, and the alarming state of U.S. school facilities. The main segment examines the GAO’s nationally representative survey of over 400 districts that found 1 in 5 schools closed at least one day last year due to a facility emergency, with an estimated 3.5 million lost student days and major impacts on telecom, WiFi, power, and climate control. The guys talk about how aging infrastructure, lack of capital bonds, and construction or maintenance work can directly damage networking closets, cause overheating or water intrusion, and disrupt classroom technology. https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-26-107970 ———— Sponsored by: Lumu - https://lumu.io/blog/instructure-canvas-breach-k12-supply-chain-security/ - https://lumu.io/blog/chromebook-visibility-school-cyber-stack/ Fortinet Incident IQ - Register for Overcoming Skepticism: AI’s Place in K-12 IT Operations Managed Methods VIZOR Chromebookparts.com - Contact [email protected] with the code: WELCOME TO CHROME IMPROVEMENT for an additional 10% percent off your next order! ———— Join the K12TechPro Community (exclusively for K12 Tech professionals) Buy some swag (tech dept gift boxes, shirts, hoodies...)!!! Email us at [email protected] OR our "professional" email addy is [email protected] X @k12techtalkpod Facebook Visit our LinkedIn Music by Colt Ball Disclaimer: The views and work done by Josh, Chris, and Mark are solely their own and do not reflect the opinions or positions of sponsors or any respective employers or organizations associated with the guys. K12 Tech Talk itself does not endorse or validate the ideas, views, or statements expressed by Josh, Chris, and Mark's individual views and opinions are not representative of K12 Tech Talk. Furthermore, any references or mention of products, services, organizations, or individuals on K12 Tech Talk should not be considered as endorsements related to any employer or organization associated with the guys.

On this episode, Josh, Mark, and Chris break down Florida’s new law requiring districts to notify parents in plain language when AI tools are used in classrooms and to offer opt‑outs - a policy the hosts unpack for feasibility, operational impact, and how it might force edtech vendors to add more granular control or risk being blocked. The guys also cover OpenAI’s $5 million grant program to study how generative AI affects teens, the recent launch of a teen‑specific ChatGPT experience, and how large districts like New York City are tightening YouTube access (allowing teachers to share videos via links but otherwise restricting the app). They discuss real classroom implications - from Grammarly and Quizlet adding AI features to Canva’s built‑in generators - and the difficulty of implementing opt‑outs at scale without creating headaches for IT staff and teachers. ChatGPT for Teens: https://openai.com/index/chatgpt-for-teens/ ———— Sponsored by: Lumu - https://lumu.io/blog/instructure-canvas-breach-k12-supply-chain-security/ - https://lumu.io/blog/chromebook-visibility-school-cyber-stack/ Fortinet Lightspeed Systems Managed Methods Chromebookparts.com - Contact [email protected] with the code: WELCOME TO CHROME IMPROVEMENT for an additional 10% percent off your next order! ———— Join the K12TechPro Community (exclusively for K12 Tech professionals) Buy some swag (tech dept gift boxes, shirts, hoodies...)!!! Email us at [email protected] OR our "professional" email addy is [email protected] X @k12techtalkpod Facebook Visit our LinkedIn Music by Colt Ball Disclaimer: The views and work done by Josh, Chris, and Mark are solely their own and do not reflect the opinions or positions of sponsors or any respective employers or organizations associated with the guys. K12 Tech Talk itself does not endorse or validate the ideas, views, or statements expressed by Josh, Chris, and Mark's individual views and opinions are not representative of K12 Tech Talk. Furthermore, any references or mention of products, services, organizations, or individuals on K12 Tech Talk should not be considered as endorsements related to any employer or organization associated with the guys.  

In episode 282, Josh, Chris, and Mark cover the controversy over the White House’s new arcade site, the major cyberattack that shut down Springfield (MA) Public Schools, and Josh's takeaways from Google’s AI Educator event in Austin. The main segment dives deep into agentic AI - autonomous AI agents that can act on systems instead of only returning chat responses. The trio walks through scenarios that K–12 tech leaders need to consider: agents updating SIS rosters, automating procurement and purchase approvals, rebooting classroom devices via help-desk automation, and security use cases where camera-detected threats could trigger lockdown procedures. They debate thresholds for false positives, legal and reporting risks, and where to require human oversight. Google training that Josh talked about ———— Sponsored by: Lumu Fortinet ClassLink Adira Extreme Networks Chromebookparts.com - Contact [email protected] with the code: WELCOME TO CHROME IMPROVEMENT for an additional 10% percent off your next order! ———— Join the K12TechPro Community (exclusively for K12 Tech professionals) Buy some swag (tech dept gift boxes, shirts, hoodies...)!!! Email us at [email protected] OR our "professional" email addy is [email protected] X @k12techtalkpod Facebook Visit our LinkedIn Music by Colt Ball Disclaimer: The views and work done by Josh, Chris, and Mark are solely their own and do not reflect the opinions or positions of sponsors or any respective employers or organizations associated with the guys. K12 Tech Talk itself does not endorse or validate the ideas, views, or statements expressed by Josh, Chris, and Mark's individual views and opinions are not representative of K12 Tech Talk. Furthermore, any references or mention of products, services, organizations, or individuals on K12 Tech Talk should not be considered as endorsements related to any employer or organization associated with the guys.

Josh, Chris, and Mark discuss the PaperCut vulnerability, Anthropic’s Claude for Teachers, and then... AI and screen-time. Policy and pedagogy take center stage with two of the country’s largest districts making opposite moves - New York City’s one-year pause on student-facing generative AI in K-8 and recommended screen-time limits, and LAUSD’s district-wide ban and filter-based blocking of generative AI. The guys unpack what those decisions mean for teachers, students, vendors (toggles on/off and paid feature concerns), and equity - including how teachers view AI as a productivity tool but remain cautious about its role in learning.   ———— Sponsored by: Lumu Fortinet Lightspeed World Wide Technology Chromebookparts.com - Contact [email protected] with the code: WELCOME TO CHROME IMPROVEMENT for an additional 10% percent off your next order! ———— Join the K12TechPro Community (exclusively for K12 Tech professionals) Buy some swag (tech dept gift boxes, shirts, hoodies...)!!! Email us at [email protected] OR our "professional" email addy is [email protected] X @k12techtalkpod Facebook Visit our LinkedIn Music by Colt Ball Disclaimer: The views and work done by Josh, Chris, and Mark are solely their own and do not reflect the opinions or positions of sponsors or any respective employers or organizations associated with the guys. K12 Tech Talk itself does not endorse or validate the ideas, views, or statements expressed by Josh, Chris, and Mark's individual views and opinions are not representative of K12 Tech Talk. Furthermore, any references or mention of products, services, organizations, or individuals on K12 Tech Talk should not be considered as endorsements related to any employer or organization associated with the guys.