From Pen to Prompt: Navigating AI in the Classroom
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If you’re old enough, you can remember it well. The thin blue book that is handed to you as you walk through the door for a college exam. The task of the little blue book was to assess not only what you remembered, but also how well you could organize your thoughts, construct a coherent argument, and keep your handwriting legible in the allotted time. And with a sore hand, you returned the blue book and walked out, wondering if it was enough. Without simple edits, delete keys, or copy and paste, the blue book was truly an exercise in quick thinking.
Fast forward to today, where we can access all the information we could ever need from the device in our pocket. AI can answer questions for us, organize information, structure arguments, and assess the quality of supporting statements. AI can construct an argument and show its thinking. AI can relieve us of unnecessary or time-consuming tasks.
The Benefits and Risks of AI in Education
The benefit of AI is obvious and is one of the reasons we turn to it every day. The less obvious downside is that the frequent outsourcing of cognitive tasks to AI prevents us from thinking deeply and analytically. Our memory is weakened because we don’t connect concepts in our brain. We have less ownership of our work because the thoughts and arguments are not our own. Research shows that overuse of technology leads to a loss of critical thinking skills, which researchers call cognitive debt.
The Role of Education in Developing Critical Thinking
What role should education play in helping students develop critical thinking skills, analyze information, and structure their own arguments and opinions? This is mentally taxing work that many students would rather avoid, especially when AI can deliver a grammatically correct essay for them. How do we get learners to put their brains to the test while learning to think critically when they have AI in their pocket?
Education helps develop our cognitive muscles. Letting AI do it for us is not the solution, but could AI be a thought partner to help build this capability? Could we teach students about prompt engineering so that AI can help them find gaps in the arguments? Do you consider different points of view? Write for different target groups? Does removing the human element from pair work result in students being more vulnerable, sharing, and receiving feedback that turns them into critical thinkers? Used strategically, could it prepare them for the moment when the blue book is handed to them and they are left alone with their wits and a pen to formulate their answer?
Showing Your Work in the Age of AI
This may be where the evolution of “Show Your Work” lies. Teachers ask students to show their work to prevent cheating and also to understand students’ mindset. Students can (and should) show their work in the age of AI, but it might look a little different. It could mean showing their questioning process with an AI bot or explaining how they used AI to develop their thinking. In this model, AI is not a tool that students use to cheat, but rather an amplifier of their cognitive development.
AI as a Tool for Personalized Learning
AI can be a powerful tool to make learning accessible to all students. AI can help a teacher understand the challenges a particular student might face and address them proactively. AI can tailor content to student needs and level readings and assignments to meet students where they are. Features like text-to-speech, speech-to-text, real-time transcription, and translation tools break down barriers and enable all students to access learning.
Teachers can use AI for personalized academic support and support learners when human tutors are unavailable due to location, time of day, or subject area. AI bots can identify learner misconceptions and develop personalized learning plans with real-time feedback to help students get back on track and perform at the level of their peers. AI also allows students to connect learning with their individual passions. LLMs provide access to more knowledge than any single human being, allowing students to immerse themselves in areas that interest them and use their critical thinking skills to make connections to what they learn in the classroom.
Developing Strong Digital Skills
As we teach students how to use AI to develop their thinking, we must also help learners develop strong digital skills. This includes understanding the ethical implications of AI, including data protection, responsible use, and human oversight. Students need to understand where AI data comes from, what algorithm bias is, and how AI can perpetuate misinformation. This knowledge helps students work with AI and highlights the importance of human skills such as empathy, judgment, creativity, and cross-cultural collaboration.
The Educational Challenge of AI
Transitioning from the lonely struggle of the “little blue book” to the ubiquitous presence of AI is today’s educational challenge. Implementing AI wisely is not just about how it might enable fraud, but also about what professional skills students need and how we ensure they develop them in the age of AI. Perhaps the answer is the return of the Blue Book, but more likely it is a repositioning of the role AI plays in education and our daily lives. Instead of reducing our cognitive workload, it works alongside us, advancing our thinking and developing a generation of learners who have used AI for cognitive advancement.
Kris Astle, SMART Technologies
Kris Astle is an education strategist at SMART Technologies.
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