When Am I Ever Going to Use This?

In Episode 7 of Save Our Sundays, Josh and Jacob kick off a new series called Questions from the Back Desk, where they unpack the questions teachers hear from students all the time. First up: “When am I ever going to use this?” It’s one of the most common questions in classrooms, and honestly, it’s a fair one. Students want to know why essays, calculus, Shakespeare, assignments and difficult tasks actually matter beyond school. Josh and Jacob talk about why the answer is not always about the specific task itself, but about what the task builds: communication, critical thinking, problem-solving, resilience, argumentation and the ability to learn hard things. They also bring the conversation back to AI and ask what happens when students use AI to avoid the very effort that helps them learn. If the artefact is produced, but the act of thinking is skipped, what is actually lost? Because school is not just about preparing students for a job. It’s about helping them become thoughtful, capable, functional human beings. SOS Callout: What is the best response you’ve ever given to the question, “When am I ever going to use this?” Send it to us at ⁠[email protected]⁠ and help shape the conversation. Follow us on Instagram... ⁠www.instagram.com/myteacheraide_ai⁠ LinkedIn... linkedin.com/company/myteacheraide/ And even TikTok! ⁠  / myteacheraide   Key Topics in this Episode: Questions students ask teachers “When am I ever going to use this?” Why essays still matter Critical thinking and communication Cognitive load and learning Student AI use The difference between the act and the artefact Why difficult tasks build resilience AI in education, teacher workload, student AI use, MyTeacherAide, edtech startup, teaching podcast, critical thinking, education podcast