Unboxing the AI Revolution in High School Education: A 'Sets of Russian Dolls' Analogy
Increasingly, I have been drawn to a certain image regarding the way #ai is shaking up #education. It's kind of like unboxing various sets of Russian dolls. Every set of dolls has layers that you uncover. These layers bring a new surprise, a new leap in transforming #thinking and discussions around education, transforming possibilities and realities from what we've known systems and practices to be.
This is a commentary on where we are right now. Using the Russian dolls analogy, my aim is to highlight some of the questions that AI is bringing to the forefront in the context of the way high #schools typically operate, the experiences offered to #students by #teachers and the systems in place.
AI, personalised learning and immersive experiences
At the very core of this transformation, nestled like the smallest Russian doll, AI tools like #chatbots offer a paradigm shift. The spotlight moves from the teacher to the learner, customising education to fit every student's needs, rather than sticking with the same old script for everyone.
Peel back the next layer, and what do we find? AI is making the classroom as dynamic as the world outside. Bespoke content can be demanded, integrated with the capacity to interface and communicate with the content, producing dynamic output that goes beyond the source materials.
At another layer, bringing the #metaverse , #VR and #AR into the mix, learning is no longer restricted to textbooks, what the teacher told you, the information from that website, the content of a Youtube video. Students can now explore the Amazon rainforest, dive into the ocean, or even step inside a human cell – all while sitting in their classrooms or at home.
Yet, these immersive and authentic, individual experiences cause, in themselves, Russian doll-like issues. Unpack the one doll and there are a few more layers underneath. Firstly, such technology disrupts the role of the teacher. Traditional practices of providing information, expertise, controlling the ‘learning experiences’ of those in your duty of care, changes. Some teachers are not comfortable or trained to provide project management advice and guidance, to learn alongside their students or indeed learn the technology/implementation skills needed to work within the realm of #technology reliant education. This can be further unpacked to start to question what needs to be taught to pre-service teachers at #universities, in Masters programs, what pedagogies need to be developed, professional learning teachers need to be provided with. Open up a new layer in the dolls and there is the question of who is skilled to provide that training and the necessary skills teachers require. Arguably, there is then the need to look outside of schools for this kind of training which brings costs not to mention the time demands which, given the progress of AI, as we know, shows no mercy for.
AI, school systems and assessment
Another set of Russian dolls can also be explored in respect of school systems. If learning is personalised and individual, the idea of traditional timetabling of classes can be questioned. Personalised learning does not lend itself well to the homogenous approach of timetabled, subject approaches. Peel back this layer and there may be issues of supervision, duty of care, staffing and other, related resources such as classroom settings, learning spaces and the like. Unpack another Russian doll in this set of dolls and consider that school systems do not tend to cope well with learners that do not fit into age and year level brackets. Students working at their own pace and at individual levels will challenge the structures in respect of what they are expected to learn at a certain stage in schooling.
Crack open the next doll, and we are greeted with the new face of assessments. The afore mentioned issues with age and year levels lead into when students are expected to be ready to take their HSC, complete their SACE, take their A levels or whatever national/state variant is in place. Unpack another layer of dolls and we start to see that AI will remove a reliance on high stakes testing, memorising content and spewing the bits you remember under time restraints. AI tools provide opportunities for efficient and effective real-time, formative assessments that keep track of every student's progress, helping them learn and grow at their own pace. Yet, with the provision of such effective and efficient learning and assessment methods, with differentiated, personalised, intuitive approaches as the norm for every learner, does this mean all students become grade A? Unpacking the assessment set of Russian dolls questions the reliance on grading, the value of ranking and academic judgements we currently rely on. This then has a knock on effect for employers and universities who judge students, for the most part, on these grades or their aggregated score.
Summary
The discussions in this piece are intended to highlight the multiple layers of difficult thinking and reimagining we have to be willing to involve ourselves in throughout education. I could have easily gone on for longer, for example, citing the issues around AI and reporting. There is also the argument about how schools will respond to AI assisted teaching which reduces time taken for planning or AI automated assessment effectively giving teachers more ‘free’ time. Will teachers get a a four day week, or a larger teaching load?
With AI, we have to realise that we are cooking up a whole new recipe for education. We are shifting focus from rote learning to fostering #creativity, #criticalthinking, and #innovation. It's all about making learning a thrilling journey, not a burdensome chore or a system to be gamed.
Imagine a world of education where every student is excited about learning, where education is not a one-way street but a collaborative adventure. As educators, that's the dream we need to be chasing. With AI, we are closer than ever to turning this dream into reality.
Just like the Russian dolls keep surprising us with every layer we uncover, AI is a treasure trove of innovation and possibilities in education. It echoes the very values I hold dear as an educator and strengthens my belief in the power of technology to create diverse, inclusive, and exciting learning environments.
So here's to a future where AI and education come together, creating a learning landscape that's dynamic, engaging, and truly revolutionary. As teachers, we've got front-row seats to this transformation. Whose got the popcorn?
