Bossing My Robot Overlords Around ft. Dustin Rimmey | My EdTech Life 368

"I can boss my robot overlords around and go, 'I wanna try this thing.'"That line right there? That's the whole episode.This week Dr. Fonz sits down with Dustin Rimmey, aka Rimmey, a 19-year Kansas educator who went from "programming languages just don't stick in my brain" to building his own classroom tools with nothing but a keyboard and a stubborn refusal to quit.No computer science degree. No dev team. Just what Rimmey calls "caveman prompting." You describe what you want. You fail. You try again. And somehow, a Wordle-style history review game shows up on the other end.In this episode, Rimmey breaks down:What vibe coding actually is (and why "caveman prompting" might be the most honest term in EdTech right now)How he built a Macbeth review game for a colleague's English class using nothing but iteration and gritWhy he intentionally builds tools he can't afford, instead of waiting for district approvalThe "AI-resilient assignment" approach he's testing so students still show their thinking, even if they use AIA wild cross-border collaboration story with a UK educator working around strict student data lawsWhy failing in front of 30 kids might be the best thing you do for them all yearThis one isn't about mastering code. It's about mastering the courage to hit "generate" and see what happens.Chapters:00:00 Welcome & Sponsor Shoutouts00:03 Meet Dustin Rimmey: Journeyman Teacher, Full-Time Tinkerer00:07 How Rimmey Fell Into Vibe Coding00:12 Building Classroom Tools From Scratch (Macbeth Game, Timers & More)00:19 Bridging the Tool-Access Gap for Under-Resourced Teachers00:25 The TCEA Story & a Cross-Border Collaboration With a UK Educator00:34 Teaching Kids to Fail on PurposeSpeed Round Highlights:Rimmey's EdTech kryptonite: literally all of it (he'll test every tool, every time)Who he'd trade places with for a day: a school librarianHis billboard message to the world: "Play, period."Grab your coffee (shoutout Comeback Coffee) and get ready to rethink what "learning to code" even means.Connect with Dustin Rimmey:Twitter/X: https://x.com/JustRimmeyInstagram & TikTok:@teachersplaigroundWebsite: https://www.teachersplaiground.com/A huge thank you to our sponsors, Book Creator, Peel Back Education, Eduaide.AI, and Comeback Coffee, for believing in this mission. If you'd like to support the show, visit https://buymeacoffee.com/myedtechlife/membership.Blessings. Stay Techie ✌🏼Peel Back Education exists to uncover, share, and amplify powerful, authentic stories from inside classrooms and beyond, helping educators, learners, and the wider community connect meaningfully with the people and ideas shaping education today. Authentic engagement, inclusion, and learning across the curriculum for ALL your students. Teachers love Book Creator.Support the show