Artificial Intelligence

    This week's presentation has honestly given me hope for education. Initially I was hoping that I would have been able to snag AI as my research topic, but I am very grateful that people who have far more experience with AI than myself were able to enlighten us on the topic.

    My experiences thus far with AI have been relatively minimal. As a teacher, before this presentation, I had only really dabbled with Diffit and used it to create grade appropriate reading passages and comprehension questions. With Diffit, I still commonly print hard copies of reading material and tasks for students and grade paper copies, although I have used Google Form responses as well. At the grade level that I teach, I have only had a couple of students whom I suspected had used ChatGpt to generate writing. I was met with considerable backlash (from guardians) when I questioned them about it.

    Since the AI presentation this past Monday, I have created accounts on three new platforms; ChapGPT, Magic School, and Curipod. I have begun playing around with, creating new content, and am excited to continue this exploration. I appreciate the option to choose complexity and create content that is specific to learning needs. This week I lead my first Curipod lesson with my grade 5/6s. The quality and quantity of the AI generated feedback for each student is not only individualized but is something that would have taken me as a teacher probably over twenty hours to provide. As teacher workload continues to increase and access to texts and resources seems to decrease, AI tools provide a means for teachers to lessen their workload and meet the complex needs of students. User friendly programs make utilizing AI as a tool in the classroom more feasible.

    In Advantages and Disadvantages of AI in Education, Clugston points out that the presence of AI in education "calls for enthusiasm and caution" (2024). It became quickly apparent during our in-class polls during the AI presentation that we, collectively but also as individuals, have very mixed feelings about artificial intelligence. It was pointed out by the presenters that these mixed feelings have been a constant throughout history with the implementation of new technologies. The fact that we think critically about things isn't necessarily a bad thing, but I think more often than not this sort of fear or uncertainty is born of resistance to change.  As with any type of new technology or tool, the focus should be on using it as a tool and developing a healthy relationship with it.

   I don't think that AI can replace teachers, but will hopefully just continue to make our jobs easier and more effective. Teacher burnout is real and AI might be our saving grace.