Talking Tech and Teaching: A Conversation on Digital Learning

In this short interview, Vicky Moran, a graduate student in E-learning and New Media design at Cal State LA, sits down with Raquel R., a long-term 7th grade ELA substitute teacher, to talk about what it really looks like to integrate technology into the middle school classroom.

Together they discuss how digital tools like SmartBoards, Chromebooks, Canva, and learning platforms support student engagement, collaboration, and differentiation. Raquel shares her strategies for keeping students on task, supporting digital literacy, and using AI tools such as ChatGPT to design lessons and connect learning to student experiences. The conversation highlights the evolving role of technology in education and how teachers balance structure, creativity, and accessibility to meet diverse learning needs.

In this episode, I explore how AI tools like ChatGPT can support—not replace—critical thinking in student writing. By introducing the concept of prompting logs, I offer a simple but powerful strategy for helping students reflect on their writing process and engage more intentionally with AI. Grounded in constructivist theory and the ADDIE model, this episode is for educators who want to teach with technology, not just around it.