Optimisism about the future of education in a world of AI→

Ethan Mollick, writing for One Useful Thing:

I actually think the opposite is true: education will be able to adapt to AI far more effectively than other industries, and in ways that will improve both learning and the experience of instructors.

During a recent meeting with my district's Literacy Coaches, I saw an opportunity to introduce ChatGPT and help them understand how it could generate assessment prompts using a new technical format they had recently learned. The coaches identified a grade level and subject area, and I used ChatGPT to generate multiple assessment prompts. The prompts were not only coherent and grammatically correct, but they also perfectly fit the specifications learned at the training.

The coaches were amazed at the speed and accuracy of ChatGPT's responses. This was their first exposure to the technology. By demonstrating ChatGPT's capabilities, they were able to see the potential benefits that AI could bring to planning instruction.

With AI, teachers can quickly generate materials and assessments, saving time and allowing them to focus on individualized student support. Additionally, AI can analyze student data and provide personalized recommendations, helping teachers better understand each student's strengths and needs. By showing teachers these benefits through hands-on experiences early on, we can build their confidence and encourage more integration in the classroom.

ChatGPT Will End High-School English→

Daniel Herman, teacher at Maybeck High School in Berkeley, CA, writing about the impact of AI on writing for The Atlantic:

I believe my most essential tasks, as a teacher, are helping my students think critically, disagree respectfully, argue carefully and flexibly, and understand their mind and the world around them. Unconventional, improvisatory, expressive, meta-cognitive writing can be an extraordinary vehicle for those things. But if most contemporary writing pedagogy is necessarily focused on helping students master the basics, what happens when a computer can do it for us? Is this moment more like the invention of the calculator, saving me from the tedium of long division, or more like the invention of the player piano, robbing us of what can be communicated only through human emotion?

Not too long ago, the ability to effectively communicate through writing was a critical differentiator in the job market. However, with the rise of AI, this will soon no longer be the case. The new differentiation will instead be between those who can simply produce coherent text and those who can skillfully leverage the technology to enhance their own creativity and produce truly exceptional writing.

As educators, we must now ask ourselves: How can we best prepare our students to work hand-in-hand with AI, using it to augment their writing process and push the boundaries of their creativity, instead of letting it replace their originality altogether?