I had no idea I was going to make the “podcast” you are about to hear. It happened quite by accident.

If you missed last week’s episode, stop and visit that one now: https://frankbuck.org/practical-ai/. This episode will make much more sense after you do.

Last week, I promised to tell you the story of two things that happened completely by accident while I was building “Practical AI for School Leaders.” And today, I’m making good on that promise. It’s up and ready.

While created with Alabama school leaders in mind, because they can earn professional development credit (a Professional Learning Unit approved by the Alabama Council for Leadership Development), the content is equally applicable to school leaders everywhere. To step out a step further, this nuts-and-bolts approach to AI is valuable to anyone who wants to save time and increase their effectiveness by using AI as a tool.

Here’s what happened

I planned out the entire course before filming anything.

Every video.

Every word.

Every exercise.

It all went into one master script. That single document became the blueprint for everything.

Then I needed to create a “self-assessment,” a quiz participants would take at the beginning of the course and again at the end. The exercise would give each participant a snapshot of how far they had come.

The problem was time…time to read through the entire course and craft the questions, and time to word the correct question plus incorrect answers for every question.

So I had an idea

So I had an idea. What if I uploaded the entire script into NotebookLM and let the AI create the self-assessment for me?

It worked perfectly. There was my self-assessment before my eyes in less than a minute. Sure, I spent a little time editing some wording, but it was a fraction of the time it would have taken. I added a little trick. I wanted a 20-question assessment; I asked for 30 questions. It was 50% more work, but it was work for the AI model, not for me.

From there, I created a Google Form, copied and pasted questions and response choices from the AI model to the Google Form, identified for Google which choice was the correct answer for each question, and indicated the form would be a quiz.

But just for fun

But then I did something just for fun. I clicked on the “Audio Overview” button, and NotebookLM created a 14-minute podcast. It wasn’t a recording of me reading the script. What I got was a conversation between two voices. It sounded like a real podcast. It understood the material, and I can state it with confidence. After all, I am the one who wrote every word of the course.

The podcast was an afterthought, an accident. Had I planned to create a podcast from the start, I would’ve prepared the script differently. Perhaps it’s better I didn’t. I might well have overthought the whole thing.

You can take any script and make a podcast.

  • Do you have a big test on the horizon? Give the notes to NotebookLM and let it create a podcast. Download the podcast and take it with you anywhere. Share it with a friend.
  • Did you read a story for a literature class or a dense chapter from a textbook? If the material is digital, let NotebookLM provide a fresh perspective via a podcast.
  • Perhaps you want to start your own podcast as a hobby. You want a two-person show, but you’re doing it solo. Let NotebookLM turn your one-person show into a conversation.

And here’s what matters most

If you’re a school leader, especially if you’re in Alabama, this course can impact your work every day from now on. It’s professional development that makes a difference. It’s practical. It’s relevant. And it’s happening.

Alabama school leaders, head to PowerSchool Professional Learning and search for “Practical AI for School Leaders.” For everyone, go to FrankBuck.org/plu and register on Thinkific. The course is just $97. We kick off March 1, so don’t wait.

Life doesn’t have to be as hard as we make it. Technology can remove the burden and make things easier and more enjoyable. I hope to see you in Practical AI for School Leaders.

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