My EdTech Life
My EdTech Life is where education meets innovation with clarity, caution, and purpose. Hosted by Dr. Alfonso "Fonz" Mendoza Jr., this podcast features real conversations with educators, founders, researchers, and thought leaders who are shaping the future of learning. From classroom-tested tools to emerging AI trends, we cut through the noise to spotlight what truly works in K–12 and higher education. As a leading voice in responsible AI adoption, Fonz challenges the hype and elevates voices that often go unheard, bringing practical, ethical, and future-forward insights to every episode. Whether you're a teacher, instructional coach, policymaker, or edtech creator, this is your space to connect, question, and grow.
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Recent Episodes
372
Aug. 29, 2026
Digital Natives Aren't Ready for This | My EdTech Life 372
Krystina O'Bryant, Chief Academic Officer at Parent ProTech, shares how schools and families can move beyond checkbox digital citizenship and start having meaningful conversations about screen time, social media, AI companions, digital wellness, online behavior, and the rapidly changing world of generative AI.
371
Aug. 11, 2026
"Step One, Step Two" Isn't Real Learning | My EdTech Life 371
"Step one, step two, step three" isn't how real learning happens. On this episode of My EdTech Life, Dr. Alfonso Mendoza sits down with Cari Orts, also known as Techie Cari, an educational technology specialist at Marble Falls ISD with over 20 years of experience in education, to discuss maker spaces, project-based learning, and why AI will never replace real teaching.
370
July 26, 2026
AI Can't Steal Your Voice | My EdTech Life 370
Can AI take away a student's voice or help protect it? In this episode of My EdTech Life, host Dr. Alfonso Mendoza, a top voice in the ed tech space, sits down with virtual education leaders Larisa Black and LaKeshia Brooks to dig into artificial intelligence in education, digital literacy, virtual teaching, and the growing backlash against ed tech in K-12 schools.
369
July 13, 2026
"I Don't Even Like Calling It Claude" ft. Dr. Carol Fletcher | My EdTech Life 369
"I Don't Even Like Calling It Claude" ft. Dr. Carol Fletcher | My EdTech Life 368 A college student let an AI chatbot complete his entire research project. When his professor asked him to explain it, he couldn't. That's the story that opens this episode with Dr. Carol Fletcher, Director of EPIC (Expanding Pathways in Computing) at UT Austin's Texas Advanced Computing Center (TACC), where she leads research and professional development in STEM+CS education across the state.
368
July 3, 2026
Bossing My Robot Overlords Around ft. Dustin Rimmey | My EdTech Life 368
"I can boss my robot overlords around and go, 'I wanna try this thing.'" That line right there? That's the whole episode with Dustin Rimmey. This week Dr. Fonz sits down with Dustin Rimmey, aka Rimmey, a 19-year Kansas educator who went from "programming languages just don't stick in my brain" to building his own classroom tools with nothing but a keyboard and a stubborn refusal to quit. No computer science degree. No dev team. Just what Rimmey calls "caveman prompting." You describe what you wa
367
June 22, 2026
The Ultimate Technology Isn't AI, It's You ft. Mark Zeiler | My EdTech Life 367
Dr. Alfonso Mendoza sits down with Dr. Mark Zeiler, a 20+ year K-12 education veteran whose career spans ELA teacher, media specialist, assistant principal, dean, and operations and curriculum leadership in Florida. The conversation centers on one core idea: as AI accelerates and humanoid robots move closer to mainstream integration, the most adaptive, creative, empathetic, and transformative technology ever created is still the human being.
366
June 5, 2026
Ready Beats Finished ft. Marnie & Nick | My EdTech Life 366
Ready Beats Finished ft. Marnie & Nick | My EdTech Life 366 What does it actually mean to be ready for the real world? Not finished. Not just checked out with a diploma. Ready. In this episode, I sit down with Marnie Stockman and Nick Coniglio, authors of The Business of You and Lead It Like Lasso, to talk about Blue, their app built to help middle school, high school, and college students discover who they are, learn to tell their own story, and step into the world with real confidence. This i
365
May 25, 2026
Strategy Beats the Tool in AI for Schools ft. Karle Delo | My EdTech Life 365
What happens when a former curriculum director becomes an AI strategist for an entire state? You get the kind of zoomed-out view most of us in education never get to see. In this episode, I welcome back my good friend Karle Delo, AI Strategist at Michigan Virtual, for a real conversation about what's actually working in school districts, what's flopping, and what the secret AI culture in your building probably looks like right now.
364
May 20, 2026
Why AI Won't Save a Classroom Without Curiosity ft. Olivia Odileke | My EdTech Life 364
What if the missing ingredient in your classroom isn't a new tool, a new curriculum, or another PD session, but curiosity itself? In this episode, I sit down with Olivia Odileke, founder of Spark Curiosity EDU, Education Week contributor, and creator of the Spark Curiosity GPT Coach. Olivia brings an industrial engineering background into the world of education, and her perspective on how we teach, how we evaluate, and how we use AI in classrooms is one you don't want to miss.
May 10, 2026
What AI Can't Replace in Instructional Design ft. Jonathan De La Cruz | My EdTech Life 363
AI can write your design doc. It can build your storyboard. It can draft your script, your rubric, your assessment, your video outline, and half of your e-learning module before lunch. So what's left for the instructional designer? According to Jonathan De La Cruz, everything that actually matters.
362
May 3, 2026
The Human Edge: Smarter Decisions in the Age of AI ft. Cheryl Strauss Einhorn | My EdTech Life 362
What happens to your judgment when AI starts answering before you finish the question? In this episode, Dr. Fonz sits down with Cheryl Strauss Einhorn, founder of Decisive, decision-sciences educator at Cornell and the University of Miami, and author of the new book The Human Edge: Smarter Decisions in the Age of AI (Cornell Publishing, May8).
April 27, 2026
If You Live on Earth, You've Been Opted Into AI ft. Valerie Brock | My EdTech Life 361
There's no opt-out button for AI. That's the reality Valerie Brock, Curriculum Lead at Day of AI, brings to this conversation, and it changes how we think about AI literacy in K-12. In this episode, Dr. Fonz sits down with Valerie to unpack what AI literacy actually means (hint: it's not prompt engineering), why early childhood classrooms belong in this conversation, and how Day of AI is building developmentally appropriate, tool-agnostic curriculum.
360
April 15, 2026
The #1 AI Governance Mistake Schools Are Making ft. Betsy Cooper | My EdTech Life 360
Episode 360: The #1 AI Governance Mistake Schools Are Making ft. Dr. Betsy Cooper What's the biggest mistake schools are making with AI right now? According to Betsy Cooper, it's not taking it seriously from day one. In this episode, Dr.Alfonso sits down with Betsy Cooper, Founder and Executive Director of the Aspen Policy Academy, for a powerful conversation on the AI governance decisions quietly reshaping schools — and what educators, leaders, and parents can do about it.
359
April 6, 2026
No CS Background. Below Poverty Line. Now Learning Quantum ft. A.M. Bhatt | My EdTech Life 359
What happens when you take public high school students with zero computer science background — 87% of whom are below the federal poverty line — and put them in one of only two quantum computing programs for high schoolers in the entire nation?
358
March 31, 2026
How Two 19-Year-Olds Are Fixing Reading & Writing with AI ft. Almar & Max | My EdTech Life 358
What happens when two 19-year-olds look at education and say… this isn’t working? In this episode, I sit down with Almar Tishenko and Max Litvinenka, two young founders building Reading Rooms, a platform designed to rethink how students read, write, and receive feedback in the age of AI. This isn’t about replacing teachers. This is about giving them time back, strengthening critical thinking, and using AI the right way.
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Recent Blog Posts
Sept. 1, 2026
Why Digital Natives Need Emotional Intelligence, Not Just Chromebooks
Simply handing students a Chromebook and labeling them digital natives does not prepare them for the complex, high-stakes realities of the modern internet. While growing up surrounded by technology grants young people high technical proficiency, it …
Aug. 14, 2026
Why Step-by-Step EdTech Instructions Kill Student Critical Thinking
When teachers hand students rigid step-by-step instructions for digital projects, they often mistake compliance for genuine learning. Scripted edtech lessons teach children to blindly mimic a process rather than understand why a concept works. By fo…
July 27, 2026
Beyond the Worksheet: How Virtual Teachers Catch AI Cheating and Assess True Understanding
When students have 24/7 access to advanced language models, traditional take-home worksheets and static essay prompts no longer guarantee genuine learning. Virtual educators face the unique challenge of evaluating student mastery through a screen wh…
About the Host
Dr. Alfonso Mendoza
Dr. Alfonso Mendoza Jr., EdD. Educator, host of My EdTech Life (360+ episodes), and a cautious advocate for pedagogy-first EdTech. Doctoral research on AI in education. Google Innovator (VIA20), Adobe Education Innovator, EdTech Digest Top 100 Influencer. 8,500+ educators trained. Servant leader at heart. Blessings.
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Reviews
Listening is essential...
The stand out feature of every episode of this podcast is how much Fonz listens to his guests. He gives them the platform to share their stories and doesn't dominate. And then he punctuates the conversation with lots of insightful questions and conservations. Love Fonz's style!
- Stuart
- April 16, 2021
Amazing connections
I loved it! The way the host guides the interview in such an organic way that allows the guest to share freely and all the goodness comes out! Amazing work.
- Pilar Hernandez
- April 16, 2021
My EdTech Life review
I look forward to My EdTech Life podcasts. Fonz is engaging and offers a structured and well organised show that highlights the meaningful stories of each guest that gives us insights we might never have expected. I am continually inspired by Fonz’s ability to provide meaningful content each episode. Can't wait for the next episode!
- Lesleigh Altmann
- April 16, 2021
- Mel
- April 16, 2021
Fonz is an enigmatic host!
The podcast is dope but more than that, the host, Fonz really makes the show feel warm. It’s like experiencing a conversation about the one thing you want to talk about with someone who hears you and can help you find the right words to say just through his line of questions. I shared the stage with Fonz as a guest but he made me feel so at home, I forgot we were recording. It was a vibe. You really should watch or listen to his show and subscribe ASAP so you don’t miss some serious golden n
- Dr. Muhsinah Morris
- Sept. 13, 2021
Passion for podcasting & a passion for serving
The Fons does a Fantastic job serving educators and helping them find ways to enhance learning in the classroom. His podcast is entertaining, refreshing, and practical for all teachers! If you’re a teacher looking for ways to grow your craft I would highly recommend this podcast!
- guisee
- Dec. 16, 2021
Genuine and Authentic!
Fonz is such a genuine and kind host. He strives to provide a diverse array of education topics outside of EdTech that bring value to educators at all levels. His questioning is specific to each guest and rallies them to dig deeper into their own experiences, bringing tremendous value to any listener! A must-listen show for any educator looking to grow!
- hwflesch
- July 19, 2022
Great show!
I always enjoy listening to this podcast. Fonz is authentic and passionate about education and is making a difference through this show!
- @MrRondot
- July 21, 2022
Best there is!
Fonz is a great host and really does a fantastic job facilitating conversations with guests
- Dylan Schmidt
- Oct. 11, 2022
Always Inspiring!
Insightful interviews with leading thinkers, entrepreneurs, and educators who are changing education. No matter what your role in education or years of experience, Fonz and his guests will inspire you!
- Bonnie Nieves
- Feb. 20, 2023
It's truly a must-listen!
The host is a fantastic interviewer and does an incredible job of bringing on guests who are at the forefront of education technology. The production value of the podcast is top-notch, and the host's passion for education and technology really shines through in every episode. Whether you're an educator, administrator, or just someone interested in the latest trends in education technology, I highly recommend the MyEdTechLife podcast.
- AlwaysLearning AlwaysEvolving
- March 21, 2023
The Best Space to Discover the Highest Quality EdTech Advice and Tools
This podcast continues to be one of the best possible ways to discover cutting-edge, educational technology and thought leadership. Each episode provides genuine moments of reflection, curiosity, and wisdom. I love listening to this podcast and I am proud to support it each step of its journey! 😊
- Logan Greenhaw
- May 2, 2023
Awesome for sparking ideas!
This podcast is awesome because it discusses so many important tech topics that can help teachers better prep their students for the future. From various AI tools to Canva, Kami, digital apps and more I’ve really enjoyed listening to this podcast on my way to work.
- Nicole
- June 3, 2023
- Mitko I.
- Jan. 10, 2022
A wonderful way to keep up with technology in Education!
This podcast is well made, consistently has great guests, and will continue to be a way for me to keep up with technology in education!
- Jeremy K
- June 19, 2024