Abbott Elementary Season 3 Episode 9, “Alex,” is back with hints of Janine’s (Quinta Brunson) future after her fellowship. As exciting as the future looks for her, certain moments throughout the episode make her second-guess her decision. How does this affect the rest of the teachers and students in the school?
Meanwhile, Jacob (Chris Perfetti) is dealing with the excessive use of AI. As he tries to show his students a special software that can detect AI in their homework, he discovers someone else at Abbott has been using AI to answer his emails. How does AI affect the teachers’ relationships?
RELATED: Read our recap of the previous Abbott Elementary episode, “Panel”
Janine’s Future
Janine’s work at the district continues, and this time, we see her receiving a call from a headmaster who wants to thank her for the librarian program. At the same time, the superintendent walks into her office. Even though Janine is afraid he might fire her, he is there for another reason. Instead, he tells her how impressed he is by the way she works under pressure, so they want to offer her a full-time position at the district once her fellowship is over.
Later that day, Janine arrives at Abbott to share the news with her fellow teachers. She explains the district’s offer and says she has accepted the job and will leave Abbott. Jacob is very upset, Barbara (Sheryl Lee Ralph) says she is very proud of her, Melissa (Lisa Ann Walter) jokes about not having to learn her name, and Ava (Janelle James) says she is going through her mental list of Janine replacements.
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However, closer to the end of the episode, we see a district employee dropping off Janine’s starting paperwork and Janine saying she needs to take a day off. This makes us wonder if she is second-guessing her decision to leave Abbott.
Gregory, Janine and Alex
While Gregory (Tyler James Williams) is working on his proposal to get funds for the Garden Goofballs program, Janine’s substitute teacher walks into this classroom to ask what the protocol is when a kid has been missing several classes without explanation. When Gregory asks who the student is, he discovers Alex was his student the previous year.
That is when Gregory gets really invested and goes to the office to ask what the protocol is. The secretary tells him that if Alex gets two more absences, he will have to go to family court and be held back a year. She also explains that the district sends an automated call to the student’s home, which is all they can do.
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The next day, Alex misses class again, so Gregory decides to call the home to check on him. His grandmother says Alex is fine watching The Price Is Right with her and doesn’t want to go to school because he misses his teacher, Miss Teagues. So, Gregory decides to call Janine to explain the situation and let her know he will go to Alex’s house. He hopes she’ll go with him.
In the afternoon, Gregory and Janine show up at Alex’s house to speak with his grandmother. She says there’s no point in forcing her grandson to go somewhere he hates so badly. Instead of following protocol, Janine asks to go inside so she can speak to Alex. That is when he tells her if she doesn’t go to school, he doesn’t have to either.
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Even though Janine explains he must go even if she isn’t there, Gregory intervenes to say luckily, Janine will be back soon. That is when she has to break the news to him (and to Alex) about her new full-time position at the district.
Now, the two teachers work together to convince Alex to go back to school. If his dream is to be on The Price Is Right, he must go to school to achieve it. Janine explains that people come and go, and he would still watch the show if the host changed. That seems to do it, and Alex promises to go back to school.
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The next day, Gregory calls Janine to let her know Alex is in school, and she mentions they make a good team. That afternoon, Gregory introduces Alex to the Garden Goofballs, who make jokes about fight club, scaring the little boy.
Jacob Versus AI
Jacob introduces his students to the new software the district provided that helps detect the use of AI in their homework. To show them how it works, he uses a poem by Frost, a student’s homework, and Barbara’s email reply. He is surprised that Barbara’s email returns as 99 percent AI.
While the teachers are waiting for Janine at the library, Jacob approaches Barbara and Melissa and reprimands them for using AI in their emails. Melissa mentions that Ava told her how to use AI, and she then teaches Barbara.
Later, Melissa and Barbara are trying to get Jacob’s attention by talking about a movie theater membership, but he is still very upset. He says he put time and love into his newsletters and would like genuine feedback. The older teachers say that using AI was them being nice because his emails are long and boring. Still, they apologize and promise they won’t use AI to reply to his emails again.
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Mr. Johnson (William Stanford Davis) shows up at Jacob’s classroom, telling him he is still waiting for feedback about his spring cleaning newsletter. The next day, he approaches Jacob again, mad at him for using AI to answer his newsletter. Melissa and Barbara point out how bad that is after Jacob got mad at them.
Jacob then gets upset at the two teachers for answering Mr. Johnson’s newsletter instead of his. But they point out that Mr. Johnson only sends an email per quarter, and it’s full of useful information.
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Later, Jacob reads Mr. Johnson’s newsletter before apologizing to Barbara and Melissa for overdoing it with his emails. Melissa jokes that they won’t use AI anymore and instead simply delete his emails, to which Jacob thanks her for being human.
Ava Finds a Replacement
After hearing the news about Janine, Ava decides to go through her own process to find a replacement to work at Abbott Elementary. She gathers the candidates in the gym and starts calling out Janine’s qualities. Those who fit these aspects are immediately dismissed.
When only one man is left, Ava asks if he has a jelly bean belt. He shows he is wearing one, and Ava dismisses him, calling for the next batch of candidates.
RELATED: Read our recaps of Abbott Elementary here!
She is later seen showing Janine’s replacement around the school. When she introduces Mercedes to the rest of the teachers in the lounge, the new teacher makes jokes just like Ava would, showing the replacement is just like her — far from who Janine is.
Abbott Elementary airs on Wednesdays at 9 PM on your ABC affiliate.
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