According to a recent article in New York magazine, nearly every student is using AI to cheat their way through college.
It’s happening in high school and lower grades too.
Sad and troubling, of course. But here at SCM we accept what we cannot change and then get to work. We seek solutions rather than lamenting the current state of education.
What follows is not about how to use AI in the classroom or somehow justify that an AI written essay is valuable or worthy of any grade whatsoever. (It isn’t, of course.)
Teaching students how to use AI is for the most part also a waste of time. They’re already way better at it than you.
What we need, however, is a way to safeguard the critical areas of learning that AI eliminates (or severely dampens). Namely:
- Critical and Independent Thinking
- Academic Grit
- Healthy Struggle
- Organization and Planning
- Complex Problem Solving
- Reading and Writing Skills
- Original, Creative Expression
There are more, of course, like preserving the appreciation of language, art, literature, poetry, mathematics, biology, etc. and their inherent value and beauty. In other words, that which contributes to a well-lived life.
This article is just a start, with lots to follow.
However, it may form the bases from which you can build your post-AI classroom. The idea is absurdly simple, but it does well to maintain the bulleted list above. It includes three parts, together representing a single lesson.
Part One
Remove all electronics. This means no access to laptops or phones for the entire lesson. Yep, like a 19th century schoolhouse. Pencil and paper only plus any other physical materials needed for the independent practice portion of the lesson.
Students are allowed—and should be encouraged or required—to take notes during the lesson. They are, after all, responsible for learning and understanding what is taught. (A crazy concept, I know.)
Part Two
Teach a compelling lesson based on your expert content knowledge. The objective may be narrow or broad and include the scaffolds of past learning. Your passion for the performance of teaching is a must.
Other elements would likely include:
- Storytelling
- Explicit Detail
- High Clarity
- Surprise, Novelty, Curiosity, etc.
- Precise Modeling
- Student Participation
- Proof of Understanding
- Proof of Ability to Perform
If you believe that it isn’t possible to teach a lesson your students would be interested in learning, then all hope is lost. You’re done for and probably shouldn’t be teaching. You’re also wrong. Even in this day and age, good teaching works.
Part Three
Shift 100 percent of responsibility to do the work, write the essay, solve for x, conduct the experiment, etc. over to your students while you observe. In other words, they do the work right then and there, in class, with the material tools you allow them.
No internet. No “research.” No cheating. Just, let’s see what you got. Let’s see how well you’ve learned and what you can create. Allow your students to think through, overcome, and wrestle with the assignment you’ve placed before them.
If you must, you can allow use of a Word document on a laptop. However, pencil and paper is best for all grade levels and for many reasons that we’ll cover in a future article.
DNA Ingrained
Again, if you’re convinced that your students will just sit there and do nothing, then go sell insurance or scream from the rooftops that allowing students anytime access to AI is somehow good for them.
With the right leadership and teaching skills, kids still love to learn and solve problems. This will never change. It’s ingrained in their DNA.
Remove the technology, take responsibility to teach them something cool, and they’ll tenaciously get after it.
This doesn’t necessarily mean that you’ll entirely remove technology from your classroom or that you’ll never allow your students to use AI.
It just means that you’ll constrain its use to ensure them the best and most well-rounded education.
PS – If teaching has become stressful for you, check out my new book Unstressed: How to Teach Without Worry, Fear, and Anxiety.
It’s a perfect summer read.
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