Mike Soskil
@msoskil.bsky.social
Science Teacher ~ Unionist ~ University Lecturer ~ Author ~ Hiker ~ 2018 PA Teacher of the Year ~ 2016 GTP Top 10 ~ PAEMST ~ National Parks Supporter ~ Editor of http://FlipTheSystem.US ~ Trying to leave the world better than I found it. #edusky
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Mike Soskil
@msoskil.bsky.social
· Nov 13
Happy to network with anyone who believes public education and collective action are our best tools for giving each person agency in their lives, communities, and how they are governed.
Reposted by Mike Soskil
✊🏾✊🏻✊🏾 This 4th of July, we stand with U.S. educators fighting for inclusive public schools and for democracy.
From around the 🌍, you have our #solidarity.
➡️ eiie.io/4lxMLUA
#GoPublic4Solidarity @neatoday.bsky.social @aft.org @neapresident.bsky.social @rweingarten.bsky.social @daveswords.bsky.social
From around the 🌍, you have our #solidarity.
➡️ eiie.io/4lxMLUA
#GoPublic4Solidarity @neatoday.bsky.social @aft.org @neapresident.bsky.social @rweingarten.bsky.social @daveswords.bsky.social
July 4, 2025 at 12:51 PM
✊🏾✊🏻✊🏾 This 4th of July, we stand with U.S. educators fighting for inclusive public schools and for democracy.
From around the 🌍, you have our #solidarity.
➡️ eiie.io/4lxMLUA
#GoPublic4Solidarity @neatoday.bsky.social @aft.org @neapresident.bsky.social @rweingarten.bsky.social @daveswords.bsky.social
From around the 🌍, you have our #solidarity.
➡️ eiie.io/4lxMLUA
#GoPublic4Solidarity @neatoday.bsky.social @aft.org @neapresident.bsky.social @rweingarten.bsky.social @daveswords.bsky.social
What a pleasure to listen to 2025 Pennsylvania Teacher of the Year Leon Smith keynoting the PA Educators Rising Conference. @pseaorg.bsky.social
March 28, 2025 at 5:14 PM
What a pleasure to listen to 2025 Pennsylvania Teacher of the Year Leon Smith keynoting the PA Educators Rising Conference. @pseaorg.bsky.social
I got a question from someone on FB questioning whether the US Department of Education has failed its mission since 1979. Here is my answer:
First, there is no truth to the claim that test scores or US education performance has been declining since the opening of the USDoEd in 1979. 1/
First, there is no truth to the claim that test scores or US education performance has been declining since the opening of the USDoEd in 1979. 1/
March 21, 2025 at 10:19 PM
I got a question from someone on FB questioning whether the US Department of Education has failed its mission since 1979. Here is my answer:
First, there is no truth to the claim that test scores or US education performance has been declining since the opening of the USDoEd in 1979. 1/
First, there is no truth to the claim that test scores or US education performance has been declining since the opening of the USDoEd in 1979. 1/
Reposted by Mike Soskil
Dismantling the US Department of Education will devastate students and rural communities like mine. The justification is that American education is falling behind other countries. So, let's examine what other countries do to get better outcomes so that we can implement those changes. 1/
March 21, 2025 at 1:51 AM
Dismantling the US Department of Education will devastate students and rural communities like mine. The justification is that American education is falling behind other countries. So, let's examine what other countries do to get better outcomes so that we can implement those changes. 1/
It’s a great day for the PSEA Artificial Intelligence Task Force to have important conversations about how human educators can shape the future of education.
March 15, 2025 at 12:43 PM
It’s a great day for the PSEA Artificial Intelligence Task Force to have important conversations about how human educators can shape the future of education.
Using AI to scrub web pages and research studies based on banned keywords is the new book burning.
March 12, 2025 at 11:03 AM
Using AI to scrub web pages and research studies based on banned keywords is the new book burning.
There is no ethical use of Artificial Intelligence in schools if that technology is controlled by for-profit companies operating in an unethical system that rewards immoral behavior.
"A bad system will beat a good individual every time." - Deming
"A bad system will beat a good individual every time." - Deming
March 8, 2025 at 12:12 PM
There is no ethical use of Artificial Intelligence in schools if that technology is controlled by for-profit companies operating in an unethical system that rewards immoral behavior.
"A bad system will beat a good individual every time." - Deming
"A bad system will beat a good individual every time." - Deming
I’d like to talk about some of the changes we’re seeing locally due to attacks to/from the USDoEd, but the first rule of Fight Club prohibits me from disclosing anything. #BFC530
March 6, 2025 at 11:20 AM
I’d like to talk about some of the changes we’re seeing locally due to attacks to/from the USDoEd, but the first rule of Fight Club prohibits me from disclosing anything. #BFC530
Another sign we are living in a dystopia:
When There’s No School Counselor, There’s a Bot
Is a human-AI texting service the future of mental-health care for students?
www.wsj.com
February 28, 2025 at 11:03 AM
Another sign we are living in a dystopia:
Someone asked me today to justify a claim that school vouchers are overwhelmingly used to subsidize wealthy families rather than helping poor children. You can go ahead and Google other states, but here is the data from Arizona to support that claim.
February 21, 2025 at 1:41 PM
Someone asked me today to justify a claim that school vouchers are overwhelmingly used to subsidize wealthy families rather than helping poor children. You can go ahead and Google other states, but here is the data from Arizona to support that claim.
Another fantastic Second Breakfast from @audreywatters.bsky.social:
Automated Contempt
The political-technological crisis is only deepening in the United States, and I hardly know where to begin today's email to you, other than to say that I hope you're okay. And if you're not, do feel ...
2ndbreakfast.audreywatters.com
February 21, 2025 at 11:24 AM
Another fantastic Second Breakfast from @audreywatters.bsky.social:
With US leaders attacking the Ukrainian President and undermining our alliance with Europe, I am resharing this piece that Armand Doucet, Noah Zeichner, and I wrote for Education International after Russia invaded Ukraine. www.ei-ie.org/en/item/2639...
The Russian Invasion of Ukraine Shows the Importance of Protecting Democratic Values through Education
The immediacy of today's vivid news cycle as Russia invades Ukraine has not spared our children. In our youth, caring adults often buffered us from disturbing topics like war, nuclear threats, and hum...
www.ei-ie.org
February 20, 2025 at 11:37 AM
With US leaders attacking the Ukrainian President and undermining our alliance with Europe, I am resharing this piece that Armand Doucet, Noah Zeichner, and I wrote for Education International after Russia invaded Ukraine. www.ei-ie.org/en/item/2639...
I’m really excited to spend time working with these amazing future teachers at the SPSEA conference next month! Also excited to have a bunch of fellow PA Teachers of the Year along side me!
The Learning Launchpad is here!
"We Are" thrilled to announce that the annual Student PSEA State Conference and Convention on March 28-29, 2025 at the Penn Stater Hotel in State College, PA is now open for registration at: lnkd.in/eQ6Pp-Ut
@pseaorg.bsky.social @msoskil.bsky.social
"We Are" thrilled to announce that the annual Student PSEA State Conference and Convention on March 28-29, 2025 at the Penn Stater Hotel in State College, PA is now open for registration at: lnkd.in/eQ6Pp-Ut
@pseaorg.bsky.social @msoskil.bsky.social
February 18, 2025 at 9:56 PM
I’m really excited to spend time working with these amazing future teachers at the SPSEA conference next month! Also excited to have a bunch of fellow PA Teachers of the Year along side me!
If you look up the bio of recipients of the US Presidential Award for Excellence in Math & Science Teaching on National Science Foundation site, you get this. Probably b/c we’re doing things POTUS finds abhorrent, like teaching actual science, giving all kids equal opportunity, & including all kids.
February 15, 2025 at 8:36 PM
If you look up the bio of recipients of the US Presidential Award for Excellence in Math & Science Teaching on National Science Foundation site, you get this. Probably b/c we’re doing things POTUS finds abhorrent, like teaching actual science, giving all kids equal opportunity, & including all kids.
If your child has a disability, their legal right to accommodations is in serious jeopardy. Those accommodations are efforts to provide equal opportunity (equity - the E in "DEI"), which the current administration, & now 17 states, are vigorously attacking. theeducatorsroom.com/in-a-new-law...
In a new lawsuit, 17 states sue to do away with 504 protections - The Educators Room
A high-stakes lawsuit, Texas v. Becerra, is currently making its way through the courts, threatening crucial protections for people with disabilities under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. Seven...
theeducatorsroom.com
February 12, 2025 at 11:25 AM
If your child has a disability, their legal right to accommodations is in serious jeopardy. Those accommodations are efforts to provide equal opportunity (equity - the E in "DEI"), which the current administration, & now 17 states, are vigorously attacking. theeducatorsroom.com/in-a-new-law...
Great post by @ddmeyer.bsky.social on AI and education. “You either bet on teachers or you bet on software, and if you bet on software, you eventually learn you have to build a teacher.”
You can't build a teacher.
#EduSky #AIinEducation #EduSkyAI
danmeyer.substack.com/p/in-edtech-...
You can't build a teacher.
#EduSky #AIinEducation #EduSkyAI
danmeyer.substack.com/p/in-edtech-...
In Edtech, You Either Bet On Teachers Or You Have To Build One
No one has built one yet.
danmeyer.substack.com
February 10, 2025 at 11:20 AM
Great post by @ddmeyer.bsky.social on AI and education. “You either bet on teachers or you bet on software, and if you bet on software, you eventually learn you have to build a teacher.”
You can't build a teacher.
#EduSky #AIinEducation #EduSkyAI
danmeyer.substack.com/p/in-edtech-...
You can't build a teacher.
#EduSky #AIinEducation #EduSkyAI
danmeyer.substack.com/p/in-edtech-...
Nobody is better than @audreywatters.bsky.social at explaining the intersection of edtech and AI with education and crony capitalism.
The AI Coup and the AI Line 2ndbreakfast.audreywatters.com/the-coup/
The Coup
That was when they suspended the Constitution. They said it would be temporary. There wasn't even any rioting in the streets. People stayed home at night, watching television, looking for some directi...
2ndbreakfast.audreywatters.com
February 9, 2025 at 12:34 PM
Nobody is better than @audreywatters.bsky.social at explaining the intersection of edtech and AI with education and crony capitalism.
If human-influenced climate change isn't real, then what's the need to delete all climate data from NOAA and other government websites?
February 6, 2025 at 8:54 PM
If human-influenced climate change isn't real, then what's the need to delete all climate data from NOAA and other government websites?
A former university student reached out to ask how I used MSFT Powerpoint as a translation tool when I had a Ukrainian refugee ESL student in my elementary class. You can do this for many languages. For anyone who might need this, here's what I shared w/ her: support.microsoft.com/en-us/office....
Present with real-time, automatic captions or subtitles in PowerPoint - Microsoft SupportYour Privacy Choices Opt-Out Icon
Let PowerPoint display your spoken words on-screen as you present with live captions, and even translate your words into another language with live subtitles.
support.microsoft.com
February 5, 2025 at 11:32 AM
A former university student reached out to ask how I used MSFT Powerpoint as a translation tool when I had a Ukrainian refugee ESL student in my elementary class. You can do this for many languages. For anyone who might need this, here's what I shared w/ her: support.microsoft.com/en-us/office....
The Dept of Education provides crucial funding for low-income public schools — eliminating it would result in the loss of 6% of teachers’ jobs nationwide.
(This chart is from my Sept article on Project 2025, which Trump disavowed during the campaign and is now largely adopting)
(This chart is from my Sept article on Project 2025, which Trump disavowed during the campaign and is now largely adopting)
February 5, 2025 at 1:23 AM
My fellow educators (and anyone who cares about public education), we need to use our voices and take actions outside of social media spaces.
Approximately 20 members of Elon Musk’s staff have begun working within the Education Department. They have gained access to multiple sensitive internal systems, including a financial aid dataset containing the personal information of millions of students enrolled in the federal student aid program.
February 4, 2025 at 11:10 AM
My fellow educators (and anyone who cares about public education), we need to use our voices and take actions outside of social media spaces.
If you are in #Pennsylvania and believe that billionaires should not be allowed to rig our democracy, you need to keep an eye on www.alleyesonyass.com, which tracks the way PA's richest billionaire is using his money to impose his agenda on working-class Pennsylvanians.
#AllEyesOnYass
www.alleyesonyass.com
January 31, 2025 at 3:19 PM
If you are in #Pennsylvania and believe that billionaires should not be allowed to rig our democracy, you need to keep an eye on www.alleyesonyass.com, which tracks the way PA's richest billionaire is using his money to impose his agenda on working-class Pennsylvanians.
Organizing and collective action are always the best way to fight against those who wish to use power, corruption, and division to exploit you. We have agency and power when we fight together. Find your people. Join a union. Volunteer to learn more and help. Don't dispair. Unite and act.
January 31, 2025 at 12:19 PM
Organizing and collective action are always the best way to fight against those who wish to use power, corruption, and division to exploit you. We have agency and power when we fight together. Find your people. Join a union. Volunteer to learn more and help. Don't dispair. Unite and act.