AFT TEACH Daily: Friday, Jul 25, 2025

Weingarten issues call for activism and imagination

AFT President Randi Weingarten has always been ready to fight for public education, and at the opening session of TEACH 2025 it was clear that AFT members are ready to fight alongside her. In a speech punctuated by enthusiastic cheers and applause, Weingarten laid out the landscape of unprecedented threats not just to public education but to the very fabric of our democracy, then offered a plan to address them and to “imagine a bold vision for our public schools and a better life for working people.”

Protect immigrant students amid harsh crackdown

Educators gathered to listen, learn and share strategies and tactics to protect immigrant students amid rising deportation threats. From higher education to K-12, educators were given vital resources, heartbreaking stories and uplifting examples of action and community that serve as a positive path to help everyone earn an education and stay safe.

A classroom guide to teaching with AI

Using a four-stage model, presenters at the AFT TEACH conference showed educators how to responsibly implement artificial intelligence in the classroom: Start with their own use, then guide student collaboration in two phases, and finally move to independent use. Throughout, prioritize privacy, safety, bias checks, human creativity and critical thinking.

Palestinian and Israeli families ‘listen from the heart’

It was a packed house for the American Friends of the Parent Circle Families Forum invitational breakfast on July 25. The forum presented a curriculum, “Listening from the Heart,” which develops meaningful exchanges designed to foster reconciliation over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Through the personal stories of bereaved families, the forum amplified their voices, using their grief as a foundation for building understanding and peace.

Working successfully with English language learners

Supporting English language learners requires more than access to resources; it demands a multifaceted approach rooted in equity, cultural respect, and connection with students and families to understand and meet students’ individual needs. During a Friday morning session at the AFT TEACH conference, “ELL 101: A Beginner’s Guide to Effective Strategies and Approaches,” participants learned and shared research-based strategies to better serve this growing student population.

How can unions make their contract wins last?

What can unions do to ensure that their good work lasts throughout time? That’s the question posed and answered during the workshop “Freedom to Teach: Leveraging Partnerships and Contract Language to Empower Educators” at the AFT TEACH conference.

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This daily update is produced by the AFT communications department.