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The Dawn of AI

Since the launch of ChatGPT¹ in late November 2022 there has been tremendous speculation and discussion around the impact AI technology, particularly generative AI tools, such as ChatGPT² can have in education. This is the latest in a range of tools that many believe have the potential to disrupt many of traditional practices in our schools, particularly our approaches to assigning homework, which are typically completed outside of the classroom, at home. There is a fear that AI tools, such as ChatGPT, will enable students to cheat by creating essays for students or by translating text from one language to another or by completing Maths assessments without any student input. But is this concept new? Some countries and school districts even banned ChatGPT initially but, thankfully, they are now reversing decisions and considering how teachers can use ChatGPT and other generative AI tools (such as Bard, Midjourney and Bing Chat)³.

Let’s Reflect

This is not the first, or the last time, that new technologies will force us to consider what implications they might have on teaching, learning and assessment practices. In the early 2000s there were discussions around how people were using the internet to conduct searches that typically returned the answer in a few clicks.

For example, as the Internet became integral to everyday life, a question in education arose: how do we assess learning when the answers are at everyone’s fingertips⁴?

So let’s not forget that for decades, the internet has been impacting on the kind of homework we have set our students. Students have been able to conduct an internet search on a topic, and copy and paste the answer into their school report or presentation. Before this there were discussions around the impact of word-processors on the processes of writing in schools, and on the use of calculators on mathematics teaching and learning. Who today would even consider engaging in writing without using a word processor, or a calculator for maths? We have moved our focus to a deeper learning – with the word-processor we can focus on drafting, while in maths we are moving beyond mere calculations. The experienced and competent teacher will have made these decisions and embedded the technologies into their classrooms.

The fear of ChatGPT

But many see new generative AI tools, such as ChatGPT, as being game-changers and, as noted above, some school systems⁵ and third-level institutions went so far as to ban them, stating that “while the tool may be able to provide quick and easy answers to questions, it does not build critical-thinking and problem-solving skills, which are essential for academic and lifelong success“⁶. Others take a different view and suggest that we should embrace the tools and embed them creatively into our classrooms, so that students are afforded opportunities to develop these critical-thinking skills. Lalitha Vasudevan, the vice dean for digital innovation at Teachers College, Columbia University, New York, believes that schools have tough decisions to make in relation to these new digital tools. She says, “they should be made within the scope of improving student learning”⁷. This view is growing, with many in education believing that we need to educate both teachers and students on how best to use these tools.

Generative AI tools can spit out answers to our prompts quickly – but these responses are not optimised for student learning⁸. They can churn out responses in pretty packages, but often they are incorrect or have elements that are incorrect. So we need to educate our teachers and students to question what they produce. In this way we can use these tools to develop those critical literacies we want our students to possess. Thus, they can have a positive impact on how we design and use homework with our students.

The purpose of homework

Let’s start by asking, what is the purpose of homework? There is a long history of schools assigning homework, and teachers typically cite the following reasons⁹:

• Homework teaches students responsibility;
• Homework gives students an opportunity to practice and refine their skills;
• Homework is often demanded by parents;
• The volume of homework is often equated with rigour and teacher quality;
• Homework is a rite of passage.

Yet research⁹ on the impact of homework on student learning and on their home lives is not very positive, and some studies have found that homework can have negative impacts. Thus, the key question teachers should always consider is, “what learning will result from this homework assignment?” In asking this question, teachers should also factor in new technological developments and consider how these tools might impact on the integrity of the assignment. We should consider the following:

In future, perhaps homework will be different. But as with search engines, word processors and calculators, schools will not be able to ignore the rapid advance of technology. It is better to embrace and adapt to change, rather than resisting (and failing to stop) it¹⁰.

Some have even suggested that tools such as ChatGPT can provide a more level playing-field for students who don’t have much support at home or who are learning a different language. Others have suggested that AI can actually raise the bar and move beyond mastery to allow students engage in deeper learning⁸. So  Generative AI has potential to allow us to create new forms of assessment that challenge our learners to become more critical learners.

There is a growing suggestion that generative AI tools such as ChatGPT can save teachers time, thus leaving them better able to plan and design learning activities while also helping students to overcome the challenge of the ‘blank page’. Because generative AI tools are good at churning out text, teachers and students can use them to generate many types of content, including:

• Lesson-plan ideas for teachers
• Essays
• Blog text
• Poems or lyrics
• Presentations
• Computer code
• Solve mathematical problems

However, bear in mind that while they can package these to look sophisticated, but they may not always be accurate or appropriate. So, we need to review their outputs critically and then decide what elements we might keep and which ones we discard. Ultimately, these tools are here to stay, and we need to ‘teach’ our teachers and students about them, so they can decide how best to use them in their respective contexts. The list of tools and their functionalities is still evolving, and we are still unsure as to their potential to change how we teach, learn and assess. Ultimately it is teachers who will decide if these tools are useful to them and their learners. It is time to begin using these tools in order for you to find out whether or not they can save you time and if they can help your students to develop the key competences needed to live and work in the 21st century.

To start thinking about other possibilities you might want to review this blog and see some of the ideas they share and consider if these might be applicable to your context.

¹ https://tinyurl.com/3sr2hy6y

² https://www.edweek.org/technology/with-chatgpt-teachers-can-plan-lessons-write-emails-and-more-whats-the-catch/2023/01

³ https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/26/technology/newark-schools-khan-tutoring-ai.html?action=click&module=RelatedLinks&pgtype=Article

⁴ https://michiganvirtual.org/blog/how-will-artificial-intelligence-change-education/

⁵ https://ny.chalkbeat.org/2023/1/3/23537987/nyc-schools-ban-chatgpt-writing-artificial-intelligence

⁶ https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2023/01/05/nyc-schools-ban-chatgpt/

⁷ ibid

⁸https://hai.stanford.edu/news/ai-will-transform-teaching-and-learning-lets-get-it-right

⁹ https://www.ascd.org/blogs/whats-the-purpose-of-homework

¹⁰ https://theconversation.com/chatgpt-isnt-the-death-of-homework-just-an-opportunity-for-schools-to-do-things-differently-205053