Lesson Objectives

• Discover why custom-built solutions often beat generic education apps

• Learn the basics of vibe coding and how it's transforming education technology

• Understand how Claude 3.7 and Claude Code are changing the development landscape

• Develop strategies to start building your own custom tools for classroom challenges

Do Now

Before we get started, take a moment to think about an education app or platform you've used that promised to solve a problem but ended up creating more work or frustration. What specific features were missing that would have made it truly useful for your classroom?

What We’re Working with Today

Today we'll explore why the education technology landscape continues to produce underwhelming tools and how the latest AI developments are empowering educators to build exactly what they need. I'll share my recent pivot to vibe coding and how tools like Claude 3.7 and Claude Code are revolutionizing what's possible for educators with minimal coding experience.

I want to preface this with: this is not going to be for everyone. This is pretty niche. But I had a big revelation this week: good prompting with LLMs and automation with Make and n8n are great—but AI coding is the end game. If we truly want to build our own solutions, we need to code custom apps.

I Do, We Do, You Do

I Do: Here’s What I Created

This week, I made a significant shift in my approach to AI and automation. I've embraced vibe coding with Cursor. What is vibe coding? It sounds ridiculous and it is ridiculous, but this is the direction we’re moving with AI and automation. And it’s kind of exciting.

I used this AI prompt in Claude Sonnet 3.7 Extended to help me get started with a custom assessment report generator app:

Design a web app that takes a pdf upload of an academic assessment score report, parses that text, asks the user for additional input (narrative observations about the student), then fills out a draft assessment report with the information, displays the resulting report and asks the user for feedback, sends the pdf to the user via email.

What amazed me was how quickly we went from concept to working prototype. Instead of spending hours configuring someone else's system to almost-but-not-quite meet my needs, I now have a vision of exactly what I wanted. And the best part? When I need a new feature, I can just ask for it rather than submitting a feature request that will never be implemented.

To build this out fully takes many more steps, but it is really neat to see your ideas immediately transform into a prototype. From this, I jumped into Cursor and started building it out. All without writing a single line of code.

We Do: Let’s Build This Together

Follow this step-by-step guide to start your vibe coding journey:

1. Identify your most frustrating workflow: What administrative or teaching task is currently taking too much of your time or mental energy? Be specific about what doesn't work in current solutions.

2. Break it down into components: List the specific features your ideal solution would have. What data needs to be stored? What actions need to be performed? What outputs do you need?

3. Learn about Cursor: Check out how people are vibe coding with Cursor. Go to YouTube and search for videos on Cursor (or Claude Code, Windsurf, Cline, etc.). This is way to learn right now. Don’t go back to school to learn how to code. Just go to YouTube University. It’s free.

4. Choose a place to start: Download Cursor or sign up for access to Claude Code (or any other AI coding tool). Follow a tutorial and try it out.

5. Use vibe coding to build: Describe what you want in natural language, and let the AI generate the code. You don't need to know how to code - you just need to know what problem you're solving.

6. Iterate and improve: Test what's been built, identify gaps, and ask the AI to refine the solution. This is where the real magic happens - continuous improvement based on your real needs.

Remember: Your first project doesn't need to be perfect. Start small, focus on solving one specific problem, and build from there.

You Do: Your Mini Task for the Week

Now it's your turn! Use this prompt with Claude 3.7 or your favorite AI assistant to brainstorm your first vibe coding project:

Help me create a decision framework for evaluating which workflow I should automate first:

For each of these common [teaching] tasks:
1. Assignment tracking and grading
2. Student behavior documentation
3. Communication with parents
4. Differentiated lesson planning
5. [Add your own specific challenge or change all to apply directly to your role]

Please analyze:
1. Current time investment per week
2. Availability of existing solutions
3. Complexity of building a custom tool
4. Potential time savings
5. Impact on student outcomes

Then help me identify which task would be the best starting point for building a custom solution with vibe coding. Include a brief outline of what features the initial version should include. Ask me clarifying questions until you are 95% certain you can provide me with expert-level guidance.

Think-Pair-Share

• Think of 3 specific features you wish your current education apps had but are missing

• Pair up with a colleague to discuss which of these features would be most valuable to build first

• Share your ideas with our community of educators and connect with other Edumators who are transforming their work with custom-built tools.

Exit Ticket

Looking for a live hands-on course on AI and Automation? Join the AI & Automation for Educators Course now! We will be hosting our course on Maven with our first cohort starting tomorrow, March 3, 2025!

Do you know a parent of a student with special needs that wants to learn how to better advocate for their child? Share our newly launched SPED Code Advocacy Guide blog with them!

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