I knew I wanted to be a teacher since I was pretty young. I was raised in Ecuador, where I spent my summers teaching ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) and tutoring. Twelve years later, I’m an AP World History and ESOL teacher, and that purpose still lights my fire every day.
Recently, while pursuing my Master’s in Instructional Technology, my research has focused on one topic: how AI can help reduce teacher burnout. I’ve always been an early adopter, and I’m often a thought partner for my peers who are looking for ways to work more efficiently. Every time I deliver training to other educators, I emphasize that the teacher's brain is still the most critical part of the equation.
I’m always adding to my toolkit, so when I saw Google’s AI training materials, I dove in. It allowed me to dig deeper into best practices and ethical solutions and helped me understand which programs offer the right solutions for specific classroom problems.
Seeing the joy and relief on a colleague's face when they realize they have a helper is such a win. We need to keep our good teachers in the profession, and AI is what makes the workload sustainable.
In my own classroom, I constantly turn to Gemini because it sparks new ideas. I recently uploaded a PDF of a lesson on the Enlightenment that I’d been teaching for years, and asked for a creative way to improve it. Gemini suggested a dinner party as a new activity and helped me design materials that would allow my students to learn about each Enlightenment thinker and determine where to place them at a dinner party based on their points of view and to critically evaluate which guests would be the “Power Couple” or “The Powder Keg.” Those ideas inspired me to design an activity using my own expertise to select images, primary source readings, and curate the materials. This is just one example of how Gemini helps me create lessons that are more engaging and memorable.
It’s a true partnership; Gemini might suggest a specific historical political cartoon for a lesson, but I have to be the content expert to know exactly which image it means. And the results are real: Last year, test scores on these standards were higher than the year before.
The impact on classroom equity is where I see the most profound shift. Because I teach multilingual learners, visuals are a necessity. The graphics Gemini Notebook creates are so stinking good because they pull from the specific videos, maps, and slides I’ve curated. It’s producing tailored materials that help students visualize complex concepts.
I have students with dyslexia who use Gemini Notebook’s Audio Overview feature to turn the textbook into podcasts so they can listen to the content and students with dysgraphia who use dictation tools so their brilliant minds can finally be appreciated without the barrier of physical writing. I see students who used to struggle feeling more prepared and confident than ever.
Modeling ethics for our students is critical. I tell them, "You are the queen or king of your classroom; don’t abdicate your throne." When I use a platform to help me offer feedback, I’m honest with them about the process. We have to stay educated on this technology to protect our students and guide them. As the classroom continues to evolve, I want to keep finding tools that create a more equitable experience. It keeps the job fresh, it keeps it exciting, and most importantly, it keeps the focus on the kids.