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tommullaney.bsky.social
Tom Mullaney
@tommullaney.bsky.social
3.1K followers 1.9K following 880 posts
Tom Mullaney (he/him) helps teachers design creative, inclusive lessons and think critically about generative AI, EdTech, and pedagogy.

🌐 tommullaney.com
📰 criticalinkling.com

No MAGA, Bitcoin, Crypto, or AI hype.
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tommullaney.bsky.social
Tom Mullaney @tommullaney.bsky.social · Nov 12
Hello, #EduSky, I'm Tom Mullaney. I taught Special Education and Social Studies. Now I present to schools about educational technology. I write critically about AI in EDU.
www.criticalinkling.com

And I'm a face painter. Gotta support the team.
Tom Mullaney with a New York Yankees logo, baseball, and flame painted on his face. He is wearing a "Hello my name is Tom" sticker.
tommullaney.bsky.social
I'm so happy @sarapequeno.bsky.social will be posting more to BlueSky. One of the best political writers. Give her a follow.
January 2, 2026 at 8:31 PM
Reposted by Tom Mullaney
sarapequeno.bsky.social
Happy New Year! One of my resolutions is to post more of my stories on Bluesky.

Speaking of resolutions, here are three I came up with for the new mayor of New York City.

www.usatoday.com/story/opinio...
Now that Mamdani is sworn in, New Yorkers can't tune out | Opinion
Zohran Mamdani talked a big game in New York City's race for mayor, and now it’s time for the democratic socialist and his team to lock in.
www.usatoday.com
January 2, 2026 at 5:40 PM
tommullaney.bsky.social
Questions:
1) Will Democrats listen to voters, advocate for regulating AI/stopping data centers, and ride that to electoral victory?
2) Will K-12 schools listen to the public and slow their roll?

www.politico.com/news/magazin...
Americans Hate AI. Which Party Will Benefit?
Party insiders are divided on how to channel Americans’ growing fear of AI.
www.politico.com
December 31, 2025 at 5:56 PM
tommullaney.bsky.social
For those needing a reminder of how powerful and transformative generative AI can be. www.tiktok.com/@lian.benpor...
The struggle is real 😑 #actorslife #fyp #selftapeaudition #ai
TikTok video by It’smeLian
www.tiktok.com
December 31, 2025 at 3:19 PM
Reposted by Tom Mullaney
bcmerchant.bsky.social
It's truly wild to me that this just keeps happening. Coca-Cola runs an AI ad and people overwhelmingly react with disgust. They do it again, and people are disgusted again. Now McDonald's makes an AI ad that's so bad that so many people are furious about it they pull it down.

People hate AI slop!
McDonald's Pulls Down AI-Generated Holiday Ad After Deluge of Mockery
McDonald's Netherlands is catching flak for a stupefying AI-generated video, which was roundly condemned on social media.
futurism.com
December 9, 2025 at 8:29 PM
Reposted by Tom Mullaney
emilymbender.bsky.social
When we interact with automated (or "automated") systems, whether by choice or not, we are engaging with a global system of labor exploitation

buttondown.com/maiht3k/arch...
Report Reveals the Devastating Cost of AI Intimacy
Plus, what an uncanny customer service experience taught us about global systems of labor exploitation
buttondown.com
December 12, 2025 at 2:10 PM
tommullaney.bsky.social
APUSH Teachers: If you have your students tomorrow, I have a Festivus-themed review game for you.

www.criticalinkling.com/p/festivus-a...
Festivus Themed APUSH Review
I have not been writing as much lately because I am teaching AP US History for a few months.
www.criticalinkling.com
December 22, 2025 at 11:19 PM
Reposted by Tom Mullaney
flipperpa.bsky.social
This was a fantastic chat with my good friend @tommullaney.bsky.social - and my first middle school friendly appearance!
December 16, 2025 at 10:48 PM
tommullaney.bsky.social
It was an honor joining my friend, @flipperpa.bsky.social, on a podcast to talk about what kids should know about generative AI. #EduSky #GenerativeAI

www.buzzsprout.com/2345747/epis...
AI Slop, Character.ai Risks, and Spotting AI Hype (Middle School+) - AI for Kids
What do kids really touch when they “use AI”? We sat down with educator Tom Mullaney and early virtual economy pioneer Tim Allen to strip away the buzzwords and bring AI back to what children actually...
www.buzzsprout.com
December 16, 2025 at 9:54 PM
Reposted by Tom Mullaney
rebeccasolnit.bsky.social
No one before Sam successfully raised a child, which is why the human species went extinct in Mesopotamia. Seriously, the best way to read this is that countless billions of humans did just fine but Sam is not as competent and self-reliant as them, and that's what AI wants us to be: dependent.
moreperfectunion.bsky.social More Perfect Union @moreperfectunion.bsky.social · 25d
Jimmy Fallon: "And do you use ChatGPT when raising your baby?"

Sam Altman: "I cannot imagine figuring out how to raise a newborn without ChatGPT."
December 9, 2025 at 6:56 PM
Reposted by Tom Mullaney
charleswlogan.bsky.social
"Big Tech and data center developers appear to be siting data centers in vulnerable communities...These locations show a troubling trend - they primarily impact working class and Black and Latine communities."
The Unequal Burden of Data Centers - Kapor Foundation
An examination of the Environmental and Public Health Impacts on Communities in California
kaporfoundation.org
December 10, 2025 at 4:00 PM
Reposted by Tom Mullaney
katiejmcnamara.bsky.social
An abfab post from @tommullaney.bsky.social I reread selfishly as some think I am foolish for caring more about our lack of reading literacy than false hopes of the future- which, ironically, would still need critical reading.... #TLSky #EduSky www.criticalinkling.com/p/teachers-n...
Teachers, Not Time Travelers
Use Your Critical Thinking 🧢, not your 🔮, when considering "AI" in education.
www.criticalinkling.com
December 10, 2025 at 2:21 PM
tommullaney.bsky.social
There is increasing evidence of harm resulting from chatbot usage. We need to protect students. @techpolicypress.bsky.social

#EduSky #AIinEDU

www.techpolicy.press/uk-laws-do-n...
UK Laws Do Not Provide Effective Protection From Chatbot Harms | TechPolicy.Press
Julia Smakman explores how the UK is falling behind on laws and policies needed to protect people from the growing risks of AI chatbots and advanced assistants.
www.techpolicy.press
December 10, 2025 at 11:59 AM
tommullaney.bsky.social
"Another enormous task that has been put on their plates by the fad-obsessed."

Exactly right, @lutzfernandez.bsky.social! @aft.org needs to step up to protect children and teachers, not partner with tech giants.

#EduSky #AIinEDU
lutzfernandez.bsky.social Anne Lutz Fernandez @lutzfernandez.bsky.social · 24d
The issues teachers told this researcher they needed help with are longstanding problems that have gotten worse. The newer one is tech/AI, which they are struggling with--because it is another enormous task that has been put on their plates by the fad-obsessed.
But you know, we asked them, what matters? And actually our question specifically that we asked, we said, "We're educational researchers and we want to make sure that what we study matters to you. What are the top three issues that you think we need to know more about?" And so we didn't hide the ball. We told them exactly what we were doing, why we were doing it. And the top issues, the top two were student behavior and discipline and technology and AI integration. And you know, but the other issues I will say, you know, were teacher burnout, the teacher workload, which seems to have increased, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic. A lot of teachers feel as if they have more and more things put on their plates and fewer things removed. Of course, teacher retention has been a big issue, teacher funding resources, having adequate support from their administrators and from parents, literacy and core academics — which the teacher that we just heard from referenced — and student mental health.
December 10, 2025 at 11:56 AM
Reposted by Tom Mullaney
lutzfernandez.bsky.social
The issues teachers told this researcher they needed help with are longstanding problems that have gotten worse. The newer one is tech/AI, which they are struggling with--because it is another enormous task that has been put on their plates by the fad-obsessed.
But you know, we asked them, what matters? And actually our question specifically that we asked, we said, "We're educational researchers and we want to make sure that what we study matters to you. What are the top three issues that you think we need to know more about?" And so we didn't hide the ball. We told them exactly what we were doing, why we were doing it. And the top issues, the top two were student behavior and discipline and technology and AI integration. And you know, but the other issues I will say, you know, were teacher burnout, the teacher workload, which seems to have increased, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic. A lot of teachers feel as if they have more and more things put on their plates and fewer things removed. Of course, teacher retention has been a big issue, teacher funding resources, having adequate support from their administrators and from parents, literacy and core academics — which the teacher that we just heard from referenced — and student mental health.
December 10, 2025 at 11:53 AM
Reposted by Tom Mullaney
lutzfernandez.bsky.social
I have issues with the research conducted here and some of its conclusions, but there is no question PD often sucks. Teacher surveys have shown this for years. A problem right this minute now is we're trading one focus for another--how to use AI--that doesn't address teacher or student needs.
December 10, 2025 at 11:31 AM
Reposted by Tom Mullaney
archelina.bsky.social
Oh joy, another helpful AI infographic via LinkedIn. Off I go to my job as a liberaian, maybe to run some critical evaligane workshops and of course use New! Boulean! Logic!
Infographic officially generated by AI and full of weird spellings as follows: AI-EMPOWERED LIBERAIAN: A Guide to FUTURE SKILLS & TOOLS CORE SKILLS INFO LITERACY 2.0 PROMPT ENGINEERING HALLUCINATION VERIFICATION Crafting effective queries New Boulean Logic New Boulean Logic Fixing bad Al answers You: Human-in-the-loop ALGORTHMIC BIAS TOOL FLUENCY Perpxlexy (Cited Ansiwers) (Lit Raviews) Elicit (Lit Reviews) Consesus (Science) Spotting stereyptes Critical evaligane Workshops YOU are the *Al-Literate Information Professional Teach Patrons to Think Critically ETHICS & LAW PRACTICAL WINS COPYRIGHT & IP CATALOGING Clean Metddata Transcribe Archives (Transkribus) MARKETING DATA PRIVACY Al content not cophiyated Social Media Captions ACCESBILITY No sensitive data in public Al Protecting user info Video Transcripts Speech-to-Text Be the Trust Agent ~Gatekeeper~
December 2, 2025 at 8:15 AM
tommullaney.bsky.social
This is obvious to anyone who teaches. #genAI #AIinEDU #EduSky gizmodo.com/learning-wit...
Learning With AI Falls Short Compared to Old-Fashioned Web Search
In virtually all the ways that matter, getting summarized information from AI models was less educational than doing the work of search.
gizmodo.com
November 26, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Reposted by Tom Mullaney
faineg.bsky.social
in a sane world, openAI execs would be driven from the village with pitchforks for the audacity of this
gerritd.bsky.social Gerrit De Vynck @gerritd.bsky.social · Nov 25
Additionally, OpenAI argues its not liable because Raine, by using ChatGPT for self-harm, broke its terms of service
November 26, 2025 at 8:53 AM
tommullaney.bsky.social
Misued the app? OpenAI needs to be held accountable by law. Accountability shouldn't be left to the parents of its victims.
November 26, 2025 at 12:26 AM
Reposted by Tom Mullaney
thecrashcourse.bsky.social
Native people have been a part of Hollywood and wider American culture for centuries—but not always in the best ways. In this week's episode of Crash Course Native American History, we explore cultural appropriation, from redface to pretendians, and everything in between. youtu.be/7Tg2mCKP6tY
Hollywood, Pretendians, and Cultural Appropriation: Ep 23 of Crash Course Native American History
YouTube video by CrashCourse
youtu.be
November 25, 2025 at 5:33 PM
tommullaney.bsky.social
I am grateful to @che-jim.com and @thecrashcourse.bsky.social for this terrific video. Must watch for American history classrooms. #SocialStudies #USHistory #EduSky youtu.be/InZacsO8ico?...
Myths & Misconceptions About Native Americans: Ep 3 of Crash Course Native American History
YouTube video by CrashCourse
youtu.be
November 25, 2025 at 9:31 PM
tommullaney.bsky.social
Children certified in Gemini, a product that amplifies bias, misinformation, and environmental degradation?

K-12 schools should ignore this and encourage kids to think past the genAI hype.
benpatrickwill.bsky.social Ben Williamson @benpatrickwill.bsky.social · Nov 22
Feeling queasy now I've learned that Google is not only now offering Gemini ambassador certificates to teachers but also awarding students and *children* to be corporate AI mascots. Coercive normalization of commercialized digital education. blog.google/outreach-ini...
We have created three distinct certifications tailored to key audiences: Gemini Certified Educator: for teaching innovation and student success. Gemini Certified University Student: for academic excellence and professional preparedness. Gemini Certified Student (K12) for responsible, informed use by high schoolers. Please note a foundational course completion is required before the assessment can be taken.
November 22, 2025 at 10:17 PM
Reposted by Tom Mullaney
benpatrickwill.bsky.social
Are we really at a stage in public education where we consider it OK to have literally Google-branded schoolchildren whose learner identities are tied to being "responsible AI" users of private for-profit technologies?
November 22, 2025 at 8:31 PM
Reposted by Tom Mullaney
mattbusch.bsky.social
If you can, make some time to read this if you're in anyway connected to a classroom:
earlymodjustice.bsky.social Holly Brewer @earlymodjustice.bsky.social · Nov 21
To “my students and to anyone who might listen, I say: Don’t surrender to AI your ability to read, write and think when others once risked their lives and died for the freedom to do so.”

www.huffpost.com/entry/histor...
I Set A Trap To Catch My Students Cheating With AI. The Results Were Shocking.
"Students are not just undermining their ability to learn, but to someday lead."
www.huffpost.com
November 21, 2025 at 4:11 AM