Teaching With Heart And AI

What happens when a first-year teacher pairs AI with a lesson on kindness—and sees her fifth graders raise their voices with empathy? We sit down with Bethany Collette from Concordia Parish to explore a classroom model that treats technology as a tool and human connection as the goal. From generating relatable reading passages to crafting quick exit tickets, Bethany shows how simple AI workflows free up time for deeper discussion, small-group coaching, and the kind of peer feedback that actually moves writing forward.

Website: spotlight4success.com

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:06

Welcome to Spotlight for Success by American Book Company. I am Devin Pintozi, your host. We are here at LACU in New Orleans, Louisiana, 2025, and we are so excited to be here with our special guest, Bethany Collette. Bethany, thank you for joining us today.

SPEAKER_00 0:23

No problem. Thank you for having me.

Bethany’s Role In The Classroom

SPEAKER_01 0:25

Yes. Bethany joins us. She's in Cacordia Parish over at Vidalia Upper Elementary. Can you tell me a bit about what you do in the school system?

SPEAKER_00 0:35

Yes, I um I teach ELA to fifth graders.

SPEAKER_01 0:38

Wonderful. So what brings you to LACU?

SPEAKER_00 0:42

Um, well, uh my district sent me, and I'm excited to be here, you know.

Using AI To Engage Students

SPEAKER_01 0:47

That's great. And can you tell me a bit about uh um any special experiences that you're bringing with you into LACU?

SPEAKER_00 0:55

Yes. Um I use AI a lot to enhance my teaching. Okay, um, to make it more relatable to the kids, make it fun. Um and so I'm just you know, I'm glad that that's that's the the center of all of this. So, you know, because AI's here and it's not going anywhere. No, it's not it's just gonna keep getting better. So, you know, let's use it.

American Book Company Overview

SPEAKER_01 1:23

Oh, absolutely. Yeah, that's great. And uh so um uh can you tell me a bit about uh do you have any special memories of working with the students? Thank you for watching Spotlight for Success. I am Devin Pentozi, Chief Operating Officer of American Book Company. We are located here in our headquarters in Woodstock, Georgia. All of our materials are printed in USA. We have course books, ebooks, and online testing in grades A through 12 in mathematics, ELA, science, and social studies. These materials are all designed to help students achieve higher scores on their state specific and high states assessment. We guarantee score improvement. You can get free samples of our materials either in print or in electronic formats at abc12.com. We look forward to hearing from you. That you'd like to share.

SPEAKER_00 2:26

Well, this is um my first year. Um yeah, I deviated last week from curriculum for just a little bit to take a moment to teach my students some life skills and learning how to speak to each other with kindness and empathy. And um, you know, by the end of it, uh they were learning to be kind to each other and work together and support each other.

A Call For Compassionate Teachers

SPEAKER_01 2:53

Oh, that's great. It's so important today. It is, yeah. Um kids have been through so much, you know, COVID and everything. Um let me ask you, Bethany, do you have anything you'd like to share with the LACU uh community?

SPEAKER_00 3:08

Um, I implore those that feel that they are called to teach to do so. Even if it's hard at first, we need you. We need more teachers, more teachers that have that kind heart, that compassion um for learning. Um because it's it's not just the students that learn, like I learn from them as well. They teach me every day, you know. So I just I ask that people that are passionate about education to get in this field. I know the money isn't always great, but they're so it's so rewarding.

Closing And Gratitude

SPEAKER_01 3:56

That's wonderful. Well, thank you so much again. It's our special guest, uh Bethany Collette. Uh, she is a teacher at Videlia Upper Mela Elementary School once again in Concordia Parish. Thank you for joining us today.