If you've ever taken a Home Ec class or learned about knives, you may have been taught "A dull knife is more dangerous than a sharp knife." This is literally true, but also metaphorically pertinent to thinking about the tools we use in the classroom and how we use them. I think of AI as a toddler that's been given a Swiss Army Knife, and is eager to help in the kitchen. Unsupervised this will surely end with an inedible disaster... even with the most careful instructions a

One goal of this project is to uncover hidden strengths around the state. A lot of the same names are going to be at the top of a lot of these lists, so one of the joys of data analysis is discovering and recognizing strengths that aren't as obvious. Shout out Purorchestra 956! Do our perceptions match the data? This list gives us a sense of how many general population students it takes to produce a UIL orchestra. For me the biggest blindspot of the UIL dataset is how man

Originally compiled for Juneteenth. This list includes a play count for UIL over the past 18 years, and my personal choices for student performance. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1BtjSdwfwK92EAUlLJWF-DKTLrT_IGpFUVe0fnvwfp-w/edit?usp=sharing

Friends, I hope you attend TODA in person next month! "The mission of TODA is to support, train and encourage the success of Texas orchestra directors and music teachers and to instill a love of music in every Texas school and community orchestra." Attend to be supported, trained, and/or encouraged, or if you already feel like you are, then attend to be a supporter, trainer, and encourager. Some facts should be freely available, sometimes research will cost $. 😉💸. Here is