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Last week, I spent time with a group of Motor Vehicle lecturers, exploring how Google Gemini could help teach complex automotive concepts and develop planning materials to enhance their work. We used it to break down engine diagnostics into step-by-step processes, visualise transmission systems, and create interactive troubleshooting guides. What struck me most wasn't just the tool's capabilities - it was how quickly these experienced educators saw the potential for enhancing their teaching. Instead of replacing their expertise, AI was amplifying it. This wasn't about automating education; it was about augmenting it in ways that made complex technical concepts more accessible to their students.
This experience crystallised something I've been thinking about for months: we're not just adding AI to education; we're fundamentally reshaping how learning happens. In previous pieces, I've explored the theoretical potential of AI in education, but today I want to get practical. Really practical. Let's examine seven specific tools that are reshaping education right now, not in some distant future. I am being upfront here in that I don’t profess to be the guy who has his finger on every pulse when it comes to technical tools - people like Darren Coxon, Dan Fitzpatrick, Matthew Wemyss, Jason Gulya and Leon Furze are nailing this. The six tools I am talking about in this article are part of my actual tech stack. If I were starting from scratch as an education facility with a decent budget (I know!), these are the tools I would pay for (in fact, I do pay for them even though I am not in the classroom directly anymore.)
Why These Tools, Why Now?
The educational landscape has shifted dramatically. We're no longer preparing students for a world where memorising facts is enough. The World Economic Forum's Future of Jobs Report 2025 states that 12 million new AI-related jobs are expected to emerge globally by 2030 and 85 million jobs will be displaced. The demand for skills in data analysis, AI, and machine learning is expected to grow by 71% in the same timeframe. The 2023 Report suggested that 75% of companies plan to adopt AI by 2027. I think that number is likely out by almost 25%! Our students aren't just going to use AI - they're going to work alongside it.
But the thing is, it's not about the tools themselves. It's about what they enable. Each tool in this toolkit has been selected because it specifically enhances one or more of these key aspects (which I talked about in my previous article below)
Personalisation - Learning should adapt to individual needs, pace and style. Traditional classroom settings often struggle with this, but AI tools can help create truly personalised learning experiences. It's about moving beyond the one-size-fits-all approach that has dominated education for too long.
Exploration - Learning should be driven by curiosity and discovery. These tools can help create environments where students feel empowered to explore concepts deeply, ask questions and follow their interests. It's about fostering a genuine culture of inquiry rather than passive reception of information.
On-Demand Learning - Education shouldn't be confined to classroom hours. Modern learners need access to resources and support whenever and wherever they're ready to learn. This flexibility is crucial for accommodating different learning patterns and life circumstances.
Creativity - Tools should enhance, not limit, creative potential. AI can handle routine tasks, freeing students to focus on higher-order thinking and creative problem-solving. It's about augmenting human creativity, not replacing it.
Accessibility - Learning opportunities should be available to all students, regardless of their circumstances or challenges. AI tools can help break down barriers and provide support for diverse learning needs.
Collaboration - Learning is inherently social. These tools should enhance our ability to work together, share knowledge and build understanding collectively. It's about creating connections, not isolation.
Before we dive into the specific tools, it's worth noting that this isn't about replacing traditional teaching methods entirely. Instead, it's about enhancing them with thoughtfully chosen digital tools. As Professor Rose Luckin from UCL's Knowledge Lab notes,
“AI is like a stallion, it's a beautiful beast but you don't want it running loose through your school.” Rose Luckin
In the sections that follow, we'll examine each tool in detail, looking at practical applications, limitations and implementation strategies. We'll focus particularly on how these tools work in UK educational contexts, with real examples from classrooms across the country. This might seem a little different from my usual philosophical pieces in FRiDEAS and I am ok with that! After working practically for a few weeks, it feels fitting to be writing a piece like this as a one-off. Normal service will resume next week!
My AI Tech Stack
1. Google Gemini - Integrating AI Where Educators (& Learners) Are
When I first showed Gemini to those Motor Vehicle lecturers, one immediately said, "This isn't like ChatGPT, is it?" He was right. Gemini's ability to understand and work with multiple types of input - text, images, diagrams and code - makes it particularly powerful for technical subjects. Most importantly though, because Gemini is now baked into Google Workspace tools, it is bringing AI where educators and students already are. ‘Summarise with AI’ in Gmail, ‘Refine this document’ in Docs or ‘List the main points’ in Slides, nevermind the ‘Analyse for insights’ in Sheets - these are literal lifesavers (or at least, timesavers) for pretty much every educational professional.
Let's take a practical example. One lecturer wanted to explain complex diagnostic procedures to students who struggled with traditional manuals. Using Gemini, he uploaded a diagnostic flow chart and asked it to break down each step into plain English. The tool not only simplified the language but also suggested real-world analogies that made the concepts more relatable.
However, it's not without limitations. Gemini can sometimes oversimplify complex concepts and its responses need careful verification. As one lecturer noted, "It's brilliant for getting students started, but you need subject expertise to spot when it's oversimplifying." And that’s the point - humans and AI are in a loop of co-existence or Co-Intelligence as Ethan Mollick calls it in his brilliant book.
2. NotebookLM - A Personal Learning Assistant
NotebookLM might be the most underrated tool in this collection. While other AI tools focus on generating content, NotebookLM excels at helping learners process and understand existing materials. Think of it as a highly intelligent study partner.
I recently worked with an English department using NotebookLM to support A-level literature students. They found it particularly effective for helping students analyse complex texts. Rather than just providing analysis, it helps students develop their own interpretations through guided questioning. Being able to leverage materials that educators have already created is what makes this stand out. Whether it’s your Slides presentations, PDF resources or YouTube videos, adding these to a Notebook is as easy as you could think. Then students can have an audio overview and ‘chat’ conversations with that curated content - it stops much of the hallucination that an open LLM can sometimes generate.
With NotebookLM Plus too, the Interactive Mode allows you to interrupt the generated audio and join in the conversation. This rudimentary example below showcases how forces in Science might be personalised for someone who loves basketball. Imagine what would happen if we allowed students to interact with our teaching materials in areas that they were interested in? This is the absolute dream for engagement, I am convinced!
The real power of NotebookLM lies in its ability to maintain context. Unlike chat-based AI tools, it remembers the documents you're working with and can make connections across multiple texts, as well as keeping everything within the education tenancy you are logged into. As one English teacher put it, "It's like having a teaching assistant who's read everything your students have read and can help them make connections they might miss."
Both of these first tools share a common strength: they're not just answer generators. They're designed to support the learning process itself. As Professor John Hattie's research shows, the most effective learning happens when students are actively engaged in constructing their understanding. These tools, when used properly, facilitate exactly that kind of engagement.
“The aim is to get the students actively involved in seeking this evidence: their role is not simply to do tasks as decided by teachers, but to actively manage and understand their learning gains. This includes evaluating their own progress, being more responsible for their learning and being involved with peers in learning together about gains in learning. If students are to become active evaluators of their own progress, teachers must provide the students with appropriate feedback so that they can engage in this task.” John Hattie
This brings us to an important point about implementation. Neither tool should be used in isolation. They work best as part of a broader teaching strategy that includes clear learning objectives, regular teacher guidance, opportunities for discussion and reflection and assessment options.
The key is to view these tools as enhancers of good teaching practice, not replacements for it. In the words of Andreas Schleicher, Director of the OECD's Directorate for Education and Skills,
“Technology can amplify great teaching but great technology cannot replace poor teaching.” Andreas Schleicher
3. Quizizz - Beyond Simple Assessment
Whilst Quizizz might seem like just another quiz platform, its recent AI integrations have transformed it into something far more powerful. What sets it apart isn't just its ability to generate questions - it's how it adapts to student responses and provides intelligent feedback patterns.
I saw this in action recently at an FE College I worked with. Their innovation team was using Quizizz not just for assessment, but as a learning tool. They'd discovered that its AI-powered question generation could create nuanced questions that tested understanding at different cognitive levels. They leveraged the option to generate questions from pretty much any resource - PowerPoints, PDFs, images, YouTube videos - all sorts! The exciting bit here is that the content that teachers have poured their heart and souls into aren’t redundant; in fact, they can be given a fresh lease of life with the addition of formative assessment at the click of a button!
Not only that but the thing that really makes Quizizz stand out for me is its Accommodations features. For students with additional needs (or students of determination as they are wonderfully called in UAE), this can genuinely be an AI feature that makes a real difference. It is one of those ‘necessary for some, useful for all’ features that my friend, Paddy McGrath, talks of so often. So, if you are a student with dyslexia, Quizizz can be formatted to give you dyslexia friendly fonts, extra time for questions, different letter spacing and reduced answer options to decrease your cognitive load and give you the best possible chance at succeeding in the activity. Moreover, if you have ADHD like me and only care about being top of the leaderboard, then Quizizz allows this feature to be toggled off for you. These simple personalisations are the difference between a student rushing or feeling the pressure of not being first in any activity.
To really drill this home though, the AI elements of Accommodations mean that EVERY time a student is assigned an activity in Quizizz, these features are turned on just for them. No other students see their differentiation, they aren’t singled out as the ‘kid with needs’ and the teacher’s task to print on blue paper (which I always forgot when I was teaching!) is removed. It brings agency and dignity back to the students who probably need it most - and that is worth shouting about!
The final game-changer is its analytics. As one teacher told me, "It's not just showing me who got what right - it's showing me where the misconceptions are forming." This kind of insight allows for much more targeted intervention and helps make data-informed decisions about the next stage of teaching input, as well as giving power to students to learn from their mistakes. This really is AI making a difference to learners and educators.
To get going, I think it’s probably a good idea to follow a flow like this:
- Start with pre-made quizzes to learn the platform (and then edit them with AI as you see fit)
- Use the data to inform your teaching, not just measure it
- Build regular, short assessments into your routine
- Maximise your existing teaching content by uploading it into Quizizz and transforming it into flashcards, interactive videos and formative quizzes in seconds
4. Canva - AI-powered design to make things look beautiful!
Canva has evolved far beyond its origins as a simple design tool. Its Magic Studio features, powered by AI, have transformed it into a creative learning platform that's particularly valuable for visual learners and project-based work.
A Design Technology department I worked with recently used Canva's AI features to help students document their project development. The tool's ability to suggest layouts, generate variations and maintain visual consistency with Brand Kits meant students could focus on content rather than getting bogged down in design details.
Magic Design helps with automatic layout suggestions and hundreds of thousands of templates to work from so you don’t feel like you are starting from scratch. Background removal and image editing at the click of a button means that educators and students don’t have to spend hours fiddling with layer masking and lassoing (from other design tools!) in order to manipulate the elements they want to use. And then text-to-image generation and transformation from presentation into Canva Docs + Magic Write for enhancing that content, simply make this process efficient and effective.
But here's where it also gets interesting - Canva's real strength in education isn't just making things look pretty. It's about helping students communicate complex ideas visually. As Sir Ken Robinson argued, creativity isn't just about art - it's about problem-solving and communication in all its forms. One of my favourite elements in Canva now is its Whiteboard feature. With the discontinuation of Google Jamboard, there was a gap in the market and this seems to have solved that gap. Not only that but the AI sorting of content is almost witchcraft - it’s that good!
The integration of these tools into regular teaching practice requires what Professor Guy Claxton calls 'learning power' - the ability to know when and how to use different learning tools effectively. Both Quizizz and Canva, when used thoughtfully, help develop this capacity. This kind of integration helps develop what the Education Endowment Foundation calls 'metacognitive strategies' - approaches that help students think about their own learning more effectively.
Remember though, as Professor Paul Kirschner often emphasises, technology should reduce cognitive load, not add to it. Both these tools need proper introduction and scaffolding to be effective. As one teacher put it, "It's not about the tools themselves - it's about how they help students think and learn better."
5. Midjourney - Image Generation that will blow your socks off!
Midjourney represents a significant leap forward in AI image generation capabilities, with profound implications for educational settings. When working with a group of teachers in South Africa, we used Midjourney to create visual resources that would have been impossible to source conventionally. The team remarked that this capability transformed abstract concepts into tangible visual representations.
The tool's ability to generate highly specific visual content addresses a persistent challenge in education - finding or creating precisely relevant images that align with learning objectives. A teacher preparing materials on climate change effects in coastal regions generated location-specific visualisations that engaged students far more effectively than generic stock photos.
Art and Design departments have particularly embraced Midjourney's capabilities, despite most people’s initial reluctance in this area due to a perception that it’s ‘cheating’! At a sixth form college in Manchester, older students used the tool not as a replacement for creative work but as an ideation platform. Students develop initial concepts through Midjourney before refining and adapting them with traditional techniques. This integration helps bridge technical skill gaps, enabling students to explore complex visual ideas regardless of their current drawing proficiency.
The most innovative applications emerge when Midjourney is integrated with other subjects. History teachers create period-accurate visualisations of historical settings, Science teachers generate visuals of microscopic processes, English teachers bring literary scenes to life. This visual dimension enhances comprehension and engagement across disciplines.
Limitations exist, of course. The tool requires careful prompt engineering to produce valuable results. Teachers must develop this skill through practice, understanding how specificity, reference points and technical parameters affect outputs. Additionally, discussions around copyright, attribution and the nature of AI-assisted creativity become essential curriculum components themselves.
Midjourney serves dual educational purposes: as a resource creation tool for teachers and as a platform for developing students' visual literacy and precise communication skills. Its greatest value may lie not in the images it generates but in the thoughtful consideration required to generate them effectively.
6. Claude - The critical thinking companion
Let me be transparent here - I use Claude regularly (I prefer it to ChatGPT). Not just for writing, but for thinking through complex ideas. What sets it apart isn't raw processing power, but its ability to engage in discussion and help develop critical thinking.
Claude's ability to engage in nuanced dialogue makes it particularly valuable for developing critical thinking skills, though educational institutions must navigate its 18+ age restrictions. For colleges or universities where appropriate safeguards and policies are in place, it offers real potential.
In a recent session with an English department, we explored how Claude could support teachers in developing effective questioning techniques for A-level essay development. The teachers were impressed by how the tool modelled Socratic dialogue, demonstrating approaches that helped clarify thinking and strengthen evidence-based arguments.
Claude's sophisticated dialogue capabilities and strong analytical skills make it particularly effective for supporting higher education and teacher development. Its ability to maintain context throughout a conversation allows for deep exploration of complex topics. The ethical reasoning capacity helps navigate nuanced discussions where multiple perspectives require consideration.
Claude serves various functions: supporting essay development through structured dialogue, helping with source analysis and evaluation, demonstrating effective argument construction and assisting with research planning. Teachers using Claude note that it differs from other AI tools by emphasising process over answers, helping users think through problems systematically rather than simply providing solutions.
A History teacher described working with Claude as "having a really well-informed colleague who always asks the right questions". Ideation, iteration and interrogation - more I’s after last week’s seven! - can all be done effectively using Claude. Not only that, but it’s Projects feature really helps me keep conversation themes and custom instructions in one place, which helps preserve the correct tone of voice and writing style - essential elements if you want to leverage AI fully.
This week Anthropic, who run Claude, announced Claude 3.7 Sonnet, its latest model update. Claude 3.7 Sonnet is a groundbreaking hybrid reasoning model and their most intelligent creation to date. It stands at the forefront of coding particularly, delivering substantial improvements in content generation, data analysis and planning.
Claude 3.7 Sonnet boasts near-instant responses and enables extended, step-by-step thinking. This unique feature allows us to witness Claude’s thought process alongside its responses. By leveraging extended thinking, Claude excels in mathematics, physics and complex coding challenges.
7. Brisk - Feedback to feed forward
Whilst Brisk Teaching might at first glance appear to be just another teaching tool, its cutting-edge AI integrations have transformed it into something far more powerful. What distinguishes it isn’t merely its capacity to streamline assessment - it’s its ability to adapt dynamically to the needs of the modern classroom.
Brisk allows you to do a few cool things but I really think its power lies in its feedback and writing inspection elements. Firstly, the feedback element allows educators to provide personalised, targeted feedback within Google Docs. This can be aligned to a rubric or mark scheme, and can be directed around Glow & Grow, Next Steps or Targeted comments around student work. This isn’t about replacing professional judgement; it’s about augmenting it with precise, data-informed feedback. The teacher still grades and aligns the work to educational standards but Brisk augments this with specific comments that a student can use to improve their work in either a redraft or future assignments. I particularly like the ‘Wondering’ questions elements in Glow & Grow that give you extension questions for students to consider.
The Inspect Writing tool promotes academic integrity by allowing educators to track student writing from initial draft to final submission. This combats concerns that AI negatively impacts academic honesty. By observing each student's writing process, including revisions and copy/paste actions, teachers can identify key milestones in writing development. Educators can leverage Inspect Writing to initiate discussions on academic honesty and cultivate a culture of integrity within the classroom.
If I had £1 for every time a teacher said they needed more time for marking or that they would love to do less marking, I would be a rich man! Heck, I reckon I said it over a million times! With a tool like Brisk, it genuinely seems that effective, meaningful feedback that students can implement isn’t a ‘nice-to-have but something we haven’t got time for’; it’s genuinely a luxury we can now offer to every assessment.
Integration and Future Implications
The successful integration of AI tools into education requires more than technical knowledge—it demands a principled framework. Rather than adopting everything at once, effective integration follows a deliberate path focused on solving specific pedagogical challenges. It’s not a case of picking up my tech stack and plonking it into your context without contextualisation.
Integration works best when it addresses genuine need rather than showcasing technology for its own sake. For example, when working with vocational educators, we found that starting with content creation tools addressed their most immediate challenge: developing technical materials that were both accurate and accessible.
A phased implementation approach prevents cognitive overload for both staff and students. Begin with tools that enhance existing practices before introducing those that transform them. This progressive adoption allows for necessary adjustments and prevents the abandonment of potentially valuable resources due to implementation fatigue.
The pedagogical foundations for successful AI integration draw from established educational research. Developmental psychologist Lev Vygotsky's Zone of Proximal Development concept takes on new meaning when AI tools serve as scaffolding that gradually adjust to learner progress. Similarly, John Dewey's emphasis on learning through experience applies to how we implement these tools—as means for active engagement rather than passive consumption.
The principles guiding effective integration remain consistent regardless of which specific tools we use. Technology serves pedagogical goals, not vice versa. Professional judgement still remains paramount—these tools enhance rather than replace teacher expertise. The distinction between tool and technique becomes crucial; the value lies not in the technology itself but in how it is applied to support learning. It’s what Fiona Aubrey-Smith means when she talks about PedTech,
“PedTech is a mindset, and all about putting pedagogical intentions at the heart and start of any thinking, discussion or action about the way that digital technology is used within education. The old fashioned way of thinking about technology in education was to think about digital technology being ‘implemented’ - with the value and attention pivoting around the technology itself. Over time, forward thinking educators moved on from that mindset and began to take more of a lead - asking ‘how' the technology could support teaching and learning. But, whilst conversation then incorporated ideas about pedagogy, the attention still pivoted around the technology itself. We’d just moved from ‘What’ technology was being implemented, to ‘How’ it was being used. PedTech is a natural evolution on from this - reflecting research and reality - where we start with a very basic question - "What are we trying to achieve through Schooling/Education and Why?" Fiona Aubrey-Smith
As we consider this integration, we must maintain focus on what matters most: developing learners who can thrive in an AI-augmented world. This requires balancing technical skills with human capabilities that AI cannot replicate: empathy, ethical reasoning, creative problem-solving and collaboration.
The future belongs to educators who understand both the capabilities and limitations of AI. Not to blindly adopt every new tool, but to thoughtfully select and implement those that genuinely enhance learning. The goal isn't to keep pace with technology for its own sake, but to harness it in service of deeper, more engaging and more effective educational experiences. To that end, I hope that you will thoughtfully consider your context if you are in education before implementing any tools; these mentioned above or others. However, I do also hope that these seven have given you plenty of food for thought!
Further Reading
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