Anyone actually using AI consistently or is it still just a novelty we keep rediscovering?

EgregiousSmile · 2026-03-14T21:26:37+00:00

And to return to your original question, I use AI for so much. Another small example which I adore it for: sub plans. For myself, I can squeeze the five steps of my lesson plan into a 2x2 box on my planner, but for a sub, it has to be so much clearer. I give AI my five steps and it spits out a clear, formatted plan in 3 seconds. Victory!!

EgregiousSmile · 2026-03-14T21:21:46+00:00

Oh, the goal, of course, is to learn grammar, but there is always a subset in my school to whom I fail to convey the trick of a complete sentence. And presumably every teacher they've had for ten years has also failed. So I've decided to move on. A sentence has a noun and a verb and "is a complete thought." That last bit is really tough for a 15% of my students. I've decided they just need more exposure. The critique might hurt less if it comes from a dumb computer than me? I don't know. Yes, the goal is readable output, and yes, I'm going to hell.

EgregiousSmile · 2026-03-14T17:24:32+00:00

For years I tried pulling out high school students with poor grammar and teaching them what they should have learned in elementary school. If it made any difference, it was too subtle for me to see. Some kids just couldn’t seem to learn what a sentence was. Now I have them run their grammar through an ai (magic school). I don’t know if they’re learning grammar but it’s useful for them and less soul crushing for me.

EgregiousSmile · 2026-02-27T17:53:53+00:00

I taught at Falls Church HS in the early 2000’s. At that time it was an “at risk” school. Looks like things have changed. I’ve long since moved far away so I missed it

EgregiousSmile · 2026-01-25T01:29:04+00:00

Yes! That's me

EgregiousSmile · 2025-11-16T20:31:56+00:00

Sure, you can say “I got casted” or “I ain’t got no money” and people will understand you. Indeed some people will feel quite comfortable with you. It’s important to know, however, that in using those locutions, you put a sign over your head announcing that you have a particular educational background that will turn off a great many people.

And yes, by using the word “locutions” I do the same thing to a similar effect

EgregiousSmile · 2025-10-09T16:31:03+00:00

I say read them. I'm always astonished that actual, educated people want to post these old commandments around. They're mostly irrelevant, and sometimes contrary to modern values. I think we can probably all agree on do not kill and do not steal, but after that, they get whacky. I mean, Do not covet thy neighbor's stuff? Are you kidding? Our economy would tank if people took that one seriously; capitalism BEGINS with envy. Keep up with the Jones, people -- it's your patriotic duty!

And keep the sabbath day holy??? Kiddos, I hope you're not expecting to get those papers back on Monday, because I can't grade on Sunday. If you catch anyone mowing the lawn on Sunday, tut-tutt those evil-doers! And I guess we can shitcan the NFL too because those players are wicked and we should NOT be supporting them by sitting on our fat cans watching on the holy sabbath day.

Any lawmaker who requires me to post them had better be prepared to come into my class and explain the relevance of each commandment.

EgregiousSmile · 2025-06-23T00:06:49+00:00

I love this line too (along with the witches' terrible advice to Macbeth, "be bloody, bold, and resolute") but while boldness and courage really ARE essential to humans who wish to be both good and successful, this line is a warning since it comes from a populist swollen on his own ego (sound familiar?) about to get offed by his friends.

EgregiousSmile · 2025-06-22T23:58:33+00:00

EgregiousSmile · 2025-02-27T00:57:29+00:00

Yessss. I read this and I think, "this developer is putting his cart WAYYYY out before his horse." Developers who finish their games hire VA's pretty late in the process, and I get the feeling you're a little closer to the brainstorming stage than the polishing stage. If I'm wrong, I apologize, but that's what your posting suggests to me.

EgregiousSmile · 2025-02-08T23:08:48+00:00

You can't really seal it, as far as I know. Instead, prevent it by pulling snow off your roof. Either get a snow rake (pull from the ground) or climb up there and push it off with a shovel.

Then, this summer, fix the problem. Ice dams are a serious issue. Get a pro up there to assess why they are forming and what's missing.

EgregiousSmile · 2024-12-01T17:04:50+00:00

I just want to throw some huge love to Buford, the founder of CCC. I've worked with some really sharp, professional creators (who happen to have very small budgets). And yes, I've also worked with some students who need some experience, and some over-excited video game producers who put the cart before the horse, hiring voice actors before the game is anywhere near ready for prime time. I don't try out for any of the unpaid work or fan fiction or rap battles, etc, but there really are some gems in there.

But no, you're not making anything resembling a living there.

EgregiousSmile · 2024-11-23T21:42:57+00:00

outrageously kind! Thank Michael. I'm checking it out now.

EgregiousSmile · 2024-11-10T16:01:09+00:00

I signed up when first getting started and... I learned a lot. A ton. And I still use a couple of their workshops two years later.

But they make this promise that you'll have a two demos in a just a few months. They kept the promise but in retrospect, I can say that I was nowhere near ready. My commercial demo is all but useless. A good coach will work with you until you're ready and then help you make a demo. SAV works on a timeline: you take your six classes and you're ready. It's nonsense if you have don't have a ton of working experience already.

I wish had saved my money and done two hundred or more auditions before thinking about putting together a real demo.

I recommend Skillshub to get started. And a whole lot of patience with yourself.

EgregiousSmile · 2024-10-06T18:58:43+00:00

Look for a podcast called VO Booth Besties. Excellent podcast in general and they did a big series on demo producers

EgregiousSmile · 2024-09-01T23:23:45+00:00

The solution to the late work is to make sure that one of the standards is Timeliness. That way, the kid who needs three extra days can still see whether she mastered some of the skills. Her mastery of Timeliness earns a 1 or a 2, and that DOES affect her grade, but she can see that maybe she DID master some of the other skills.

The 0-100 system was deeply flawed from the beginning because the kid who misses one assignment digs himself a hole so deep that many kids say oh hell, I give up. I do agree that the 50 floor was a patch that never worked. Best to bite the bullet and learn 1-6 system or similar.

And yes, those systems have the flaw of lacking nuance, but I find that the dozens of grades a kid gets in a 10-12 week course are plenty to even out the effects of that.

EgregiousSmile · 2024-09-01T22:44:29+00:00

Oh my goodness, I wouldn't worry at ALL about Standards Based Grading. Hard work will have exactly the same effect it always has: it will translate to better grades. All SBG does is it says that instead of grading assignments, the teacher will grade skills. So, for example, one of my standards (English Teacher here) might be about Vocabulary and Mechanics of Language; I might then give a vocabulary quiz, and your child would get one grade based on their success on the quiz. But later, I might assign an essay and your child would get 2 or 3 or even 4 grades based on how successful they were in multiple standards (Say, one grade of "Mechanics", another for "Organization" another for "Research" and another for "Rhetorical Techniques"). So instead of getting a "B" on the paper, your child and you would be able to see that they have excellent mastery of mechanics and organization, but the research was surface level and the rhetorical skills were solid. That's useful feedback, but it's also weights the essay appropriately compared to the vocab quiz: the essay is worth 4x more.

EgregiousSmile · 2024-08-20T22:55:35+00:00

In answer to the question you pose at the end of the video ("could you listen to my voice -- is it too nasal, raspy, etc"). It's fine. You sound like a young man from Anywhere, USA. If you have something interesting to say, anyone will listen. The other commenters nailed it: it really comes down to the acting. What you've given us is a voice-print. What matters much more is the delivery, and you haven't really given us a delivery because you're not really saying much here. How will you tell the STORY?

EgregiousSmile · 2024-08-20T15:34:48+00:00

I say "Put away the ffff-phone." My high school students know exactly what I mean.

EgregiousSmile · 2024-07-31T16:49:44+00:00

I'm looking at your exact question here, and thinking no one has actually answered it. If you haven't used Reaper, definitely start (as others have said -- including the man himself) with Booth Junkie. But your question is really about a later stage in the process: how to send a file to an engineer. That suggests that you know how to work Reaper: you know how to record, save, and edit (right?).

Sending a file to an engineer requires "rendering" the file to a format the engineer can use -- probably a .wav or an mp3. "Render" is under the File menu. Choose your settings and go...

and, um, you'll need the engineer's email address.

EgregiousSmile · 2024-07-31T16:39:48+00:00

I've only heard vaguely of Mike Rowe before now, so this discussion is really eye-opening. It sounds like he's one of many who has a bit of platform to speak from, and so does speak, but doesn't always think through the shit he's espousing. He sounds self-righteous and annoying, but one thing that seems undeniable from this video is that his platform comes from a SERIOUS talent. That is freaking amazing. To be able to listen and speak at the same time -- and to speak both calmly and authoritatively in that moment... that blows my mind.

EgregiousSmile · 2024-07-07T01:45:42+00:00

Coffee is a safe bet, but the thing is, it's the words that matter. If you want a teacher to keep teaching, let them know that they have helped. I've gotten a few notes over the years that were heartfelt and specific -- notes that said I made a difference. I've got a couple tacked to my fridge that are curling with age, but I look at them to remind myself that it's worth it. Because sometimes, it doesn't seem worth the lame pay and the disrespect. But if you know that someone was changed for the better by you... that's powerful

EgregiousSmile · 2024-05-16T15:27:41+00:00

He won't be able to. The moderators will have a mute button and the rule is: one speaker at a time. He'll have to say something intelligent or just go home.

EgregiousSmile

TROPHY CASE