AI and the need for Fusion
One of the biggest issues I see in introducing AI to teachers’ practice or indeed trying to influence teachers in an institution, be it school, university or so on, is to not appreciate certain elements of existing good practice and foundational elements/values of the institution.
The context that the educators work in, the qualities that they expect their graduates to have or the values that they have in place within an institution cannot be ignored. Likewise, money has been spent, digital infrastructure is in place and there are practices around that technology, system requirements and areas that #ai will not be used, that need to remain and rightly so. Hence, #ai should not be seen as standalone #technology in #education. It operates best when integrated, used with existing tools and developed to augment existing practices and systems.
In terms of #teaching and #learning, Dr. John Spencer's materials encapsulates much of what this in terms of being able to bring things together, harness the power and the beauty of AI with imagination and forward thinking.
Despite the many facets and uses for AI and how the whole area is fascinating in itself, it’s largest impact surely comes from how we fuse the #technology with what we want/need to keep in education going forward. We have to be cautious of the potential to take over, to remove focus in the ways already mentioned. #aieducation and #aiineducation is about how these tools and the way they are utilised improves and augments existing strong practices, strengthens practices where there is a need (see this post on PBL) but also how it replaces poor practices.
The chaos that #chatgpt has caused is not just about the power of the tool and what it can do. It has also exposed inadequacies in how education systems react to technology. The reality is that ‘rapid prototype’ mindsets are needed and there is little option but to operate in more entrepreneurial ways with more:
iterative development
quick piloting of programs
willingness to adapt and readapt curriculum
willingness to shape what we do in our practice
willingness to openly and widely share to develop understanding and lighten the load
So the message is - there is a great danger in focusing solely on AI as being the panacea for everything in a stand-alone format. In most situations, it is not and neither should it be.
