Numbers sometimes provide clarity. In the last hundred years, what were the third most brutal regimes if we just count corpses? Nazi Germany. The Soviet Union. Mao’s China. All proclaimed their atheist philosophies. What was the 4th worst? Imperial Japan. Why blame the Bible or Christianity?

We're back with episode 120 of the #DIESOL podcast talking about spending some time figuring out what you need for your course textbooks. If you're out there searching for your next textbook, we hope this episode helps you out! 🔗 diesol.org/120 #ESL #ESOL #ELT #ELL #TESOL #TEFL #EFL #Textbooks

A short video about Juneteenth:

“When violence aimed at Jews—or those seen as aligned with them—is dismissed, excused, or rationalized, it undermines the civic norms that hold our society together,” write Reihan Salam and Jesse Arm:

Reporters asked 100 Michiganders how they would describe, in one word, the first 100 days of President Donald Trump’s second term in office. Here’s what they said.

There was a lot of #AcademicFreedom, good scholarship, and independent thought in German universities before Hitler. After Hitler had risen to power, many academics fled the country. Some resisted the Nazi regime and were persecuted. Most adapted to a new situation. Here are some examples. 1/n

#TESOL25 provided many #ELT presentations, several invigorating discussions, and many teaching tips. Yet I appreciated seeing old friends and meeting new friends the most. I had many #CompellingConversations too! BTW, the #TESOL convention was a fun, gun-free gathering too! Ask more; know more!

Will #UCLA and #UCBerkeley face negative consequences for tolerating the assaults, bullying, and harassment of Jewish students, staff, and faculty? Will pro-Hamas students who proudly violated state and federal laws be investigated and expelled? Perhaps. www.thefp.com/p/exclusive-... #DOJ

Goosebumps. Gal Gadot just made one of the most perfect speeches I’ve heard in a long time. Give yourself 10 mins to watch. “𝙊𝙪𝙧 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 is stronger than 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧 𝙝𝙖𝙩𝙚. What happens to Jews 𝙖𝙣𝙮𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚, affects Jews 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚” This woman. Thank you H/t @HenMazzig @ADL

Trump remains an enemy of giving and a friend of taking. He also clearly believes that Ukraine owes the United States and gratitude should be expressed in material terms. So should Zelensky find a way to make a deal so both countries can stand together? Is this the best off-ramp to this long war?

Can English teachers move from fear to fluency in AI? How? Edtech guru @BrentGWarner offers some tips and strategies. #Edteach #TESOL #ISTE podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...

“With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in; to bind up the nation’s wounds- …to do all which may achieve and cherish a just, and a lasting peace, among ourselves." #Lincoln’s wise words

Make 2025 your year to listen to more #ELT podcasts 🙌 #TESOL #TEFL #ELL #MLL

We took a couple of months off for a couple of reasons, but @ixypixy.bsky.social and I are back and we shifted gears a bit to address the moment and share some advice on how to cope and how to not give up on our community, even amidst chaos. DIESOL.org/115 #EduSky #TESOL #ELL #MLL #ELT

“Anybody can become angry—that is easy, but to be #angry with the right person, to the right degree, at the right time, for the right purpose, and in the right way—that is not within everybody’s power and is not easy.” #Aristotle (384–322 BCE) Do you agree? Disagree? Why? Can you give an example?

Doesn’t this sound painfully plausible? Can we get back to searching for common ground? Can we return to assuming good faith and using reason to persuade?How do we return to disagreeing without being disagreeable? youtu.be/X_8-kfH5dSA?...

Is Trump just trolling and refocusing the conversation? Palestinians have controlled Gaza for two decades and created an Islamic dictatorship committed to jihad. Why not try to build a better, happier, and healthier future in Gaza? If Hamas wants war, there is war. But the region needs peace!

How can Hamas say in the same sentence that they are being subjected to genocide, that they won the war, and that they vow to do it again? No people who actually lived through a genocide would ever call that a victory. Just ask the Jews, the Armenians, or the Rwandans.

Eighth-grade students are averaging their lowest-ever reading scores since the Department of Education began tracking nationwide progress in 1992 #Education #ReadingScores #Students #NAEP #PandemicImpact #LearningLoss #Schools #AchievementGap #Gizmodo

The California State University system is introducing OpenAI's ChatGPT Edu — a version of ChatGPT customized for educational institutions — to more than 460,000 students and over 63,000 staff and faculty across its 23 campuses.

Today's NAEP results were a gut punch for anyone who cares about the future of America's children—and the future of our country. This story was widely covered, but I'm grateful to @mattbarnum.bsky.social who lifted up KIPP STAR elementary in Harlem for its success navigating the recovery. /1 #edusky

Why are we expected to welcome foreigners who chant “death to America”? Why shouldn’t we deport supporters of globalizing the intifada, jihadist terrorism, or overthrowing our democratic government? Why should we import violent psychopaths, terrorists, and fanatics who support violent psychopaths?

#mlkday #inauguration2025

Did George Washington really say “so help me God?” in his presidential oath? There is no evidence that he did. The phrase isn't in the #Constitution—its origins trace back to 19th-century Christian nationalism. https://buff.ly/4j80UXW (David B. Parker @kennesawstate.bsky.social) #polisky #religion

Wrapping up a fun first week on decentralized social media! This community has been a refreshing change, and I’m so grateful for all the love and connections. Here’s a set of my most liked photos from the week—excited to keep sharing and growing with you all! #photography #nikon #bluesky #art

@guardian: What happens when a AI companion app is downloaded by millions across the globe? Or when a group of teenagers uses an AI app to create deepfakes? Explore seven human stories connected by AI in a new Guardian podcast: Black Box. Listen wherever you get your podcasts. https://t.co/ML1bYHn

Now The Guardian starts a new podcast about AI. What's it called? Black Box, of course, with a sinister dark mode aesthetic. 6/ www.theguardian.com/technology/a...

"Go into the arts. I'm not kidding. The arts are not a way to make a living. They are a very human way of making life more bearable. Practicing an art, no matter how well or badly, is a way to make your soul grow...You will get an enormous reward. You will have created something." ~Kurt Vonnegut

I love my rejection slips. They show me I try. —Sylvia Plath—

We read hundreds of studies in 2024. We zeroed in on 10 to know about. From the sneaky ways that inattention can spread in your classroom to the promises and perils of AI, here are 2024’s must-reads in education research. 🔬👇

Want to use #AI to help build descriptive language skills for your #ELL students? aiinesl.com/using-midjou... The tech has significantly improved since I wrote this, but the fundamentals are the same. Give it a try! 👩🏽‍🎨💬🖼️ #TESOL #EduSky #EduSkyAI #ELSky #ESL #ESOL #ELT

Are you a teacher using comments in Google Docs? Did you know that you can format the text there, too? Instead of coming across like a jerk by using all caps, try these options instead: Underscore around words for _italics_ Stars around words for *bold* #Edusky #TeacherTips

The underlying assumption is that a person’s writing style is something to be divined only from what they’ve done in the past, rather than an evolving process that changes as you change as a person who experiences the world.

A Handbook for Exploratory Action Research - bit.ly/handbook-EAR - for teachers in challenging situations

Why physically go to a professional English teacher’s conference? See old friends, hear new ideas, share teaching ideas, and hear how other #CATESOL teachers use #AI. This DIESOL podcast reviews this weekend’s #CATESOL24 podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t... #TESOL

New episode of the #DIESOL podcast up now 😄 We interviewed #CATESOL members to get a pulse check of what ELTs are talking about at conferences. Listen in to hear about #CATESOL2024 and the takeaways from attendees 💡 www.DIESOL.org/113 #TESOL #ELT #ESOL #EdTech #AIinESL #EduSky

“We can disagree and still love each other unless your disagreement is rooted in my oppression and denial of my humanity and right to exist” - James Baldwin

Glad to see #CATESOL have @warschauer.bsky.social as plenary speaker talking about AI in Second Language Education. I love that he brought up “The June/July Problem” where students will be punished for using AI in June and punished for not using it in their new jobs come July. #TESOL #ELT #AIinESL