It's Panel Picker Time! Vote For Us to Participate in SXSW EDU
This past March, The GIANT Room had the pleasure of attending the South By Southwest Edu conference where our Azi Jamalian co-hosted two panels focusing on AI in education. Voting for the 2026 conference is now open and we have four proposals submitted for consideration!
It is truly an amazing opportunity to discuss and collaborate with some of the best and most innovative minds in education, media, and technology. We here at GIANT believe in supporting and uplifting children’s voices in the ever changing tech landscape of today. Many families and educators have concerns on how artificial intelligence might impact children’s creative and cognitive abilities. Our proposed session, AI Tools to Advance Literacy and Student Agency, addresses these concerns and also shows how we all can actually use and encourage children to use AI in a way that will support their education and creative endeavors.
We are calling on the GIANT community to vote for our proposal to help us bring this session to the conference, as well as the proposals submitted by our partners!
Here are the summaries of our, along with our partners’ proposals! You can vote for each one by clicking the link and clicking on the heart!
AI Tools to Advance Literacy and Student Agency
This session is our proposed session. We have also invited other speakers to participate, such as Soraya Matthews from Fayette County Public Schools, Medha Tare from Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop, and Laina Vlasnik Yip from Robin Hood Foundation.
What happens when AI tools are designed by teachers and students? In this session, we’ll explore how two public school districts, one in NYC and one in rural Kentucky, used an AI storytelling platform co-designed with students and educators to build literacy, creativity, and agency. Students made gains in writing, critical thinking, and reading, becoming published authors through scaffolded, identity-affirming programs. Panelists will share lessons from responsibly integrating AI in elementary classrooms, offering equity-focused strategies and models that lead to positive student outcomes.
Takeaways:
Takeaway 1: Actionable strategies to responsibly integrate AI into elementary literacy and creative writing programs that center student voice and agency.
Takeaway 2: A framework for connecting AI literacy to critical thinking and academic growth through scaffolded, culturally affirming instruction.
Takeaway 3: Access to an AI storytelling platform and replicable models that help students become published authors and improve reading and writing skills
Co-Designing Edtech with Kids
We are honored to have been invited to participate in this interactive workshop by our partners at Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop. Presenters include Allisyn Levy and Mona Leigh Guha from Joan Ganz Cooney Center, and Azi Jamalian from The GIANT Room.
This interactive workshop introduces the Co-Design with Kids Toolkit—a research-informed resource that empowers edtech developers and educators to involve children and families in the design process. Learn about practical tools and methods to move beyond user testing into real co-creation with your target audience. Whether you're building the next big learning app or innovating in the classroom or in afterschool settings, you’ll gain actionable strategies and hands-on experience to create more inclusive, engaging, and effective learning technologies – with kids, not just for them.
Takeaways:
Takeaway 1: Learn how to engage children as co-creators, not just testers—unlocking richer insights and more meaningful learning experiences.
Takeaway 2: Get hands-on with proven methods from the Co-Design with Kids Toolkit.
Takeaway 3: Discover strategies that help you build learning experiences that truly reflect the voices, needs, and strengths of the communities you serve.
Democracy High: Building Civics Skills to Design Tomorrow
We are ecstatic to be co-facilitating this session proposed by Columbia University’s Center for Public Research and Leadership (CPRL). Presenters include Meghan Snyder from CPRL, Azi Jamalian from The GIANT Room, and high school student, Amanda Shi!
What should school look like in 2045? Students have answers. This workshop brings to life the Carnegie Future of School Institute, an experiential learning opportunity for middle and high school students to build civic engagement skills by defining and generating solutions to shared problems in schools; evaluating perspectives on the history and future of American education; and co-creating dream school prototypes. Facilitated by a researcher, a practitioner, and a high school student, this session offers hands-on learning for educators to build young people’s deliberative democracy skills.
Takeaways:
Takeaway 1: Learn how to design learning experiences that grow middle and high school students’ democratic problem-solving confidence and skills.
Takeaway 2: Understand what it takes to empower middle and high school students to sustain civic engagement in their schools and communities.
Takeaway 3: Identify democratic participation skills like communication across lines of difference, evidence-informed problem-solving, and cognitive flexibility.
Culturally Responsive Reading Tools for the Digital Age
We are proud to have been invited to speak on this panel by our partners at Mrs Wordsmith. Presenters include Jaden Edison from The Texas Tribune, Brandon Cardet-Hernandez from Mrs Wordsmith, Gloria Ladson- Billings from the University of Wisconsin - Madison, and Azi Jamalian from The GIANT Room.
Most reading programs weren’t designed with today’s diverse learners in mind. This panel explores how culturally responsive tools—rooted in the Science of Reading and infused with joy, humor, and identity—can better engage students and accelerate outcomes. We’ll spotlight innovations that reflect students’ languages, cultures, and lived experiences, showing how inclusive design makes literacy more powerful and personal.
Takeaways:
Takeaway 1: Practical strategies for integrating culturally responsive content into reading instruction
Takeaway 2: Examples of tools that blend identity, joy, and the Science of Reading to boost engagement
Takeaway 3: Insights on designing or selecting literacy resources that reflect and respect diverse learners
We love and appreciate the GIANT community so much and we greatly appreciate your support! Your continued support of what we do helps to encourage and uplift an ever-growing community of children and families across the nation. We will provide more updates as they come!