Teaching & Learning in a Post-AI World
Teaching & Learning in a Post-AI World
How to leverage the *real* power of AI to drive learner outcomes, today
🥡 Key Take Aways This Week
AI is already driving a shift from teaching & testing students’ recall of “what “ and “who” to teaching & testing students’ ability to explain “how” and “why”.
With the right prompting, ChatGPT can rapidly turn a pre-AI lesson plan into a post-AI, “ChatGPT proof” lesson [try my Edu-Mega Prompt].
AI will accelerate our ability to develop students’ key skills, giving educators a renewed sense of purpose and greater social, political and economic significance than ever before.
Let’s go! 🚀
There are many things that ChatGPT can do. There are many things it can’t do.
ChatGPT is pretty impressive at generating and restructuring data, but it can’t cite & analyse evidence, it can’t create logical links between different answers & interpretations and it can’t arrange those claims by level significance or reliability.
Look at any formal education grading scheme, from Elementary School through to Higher Education, and you’ll see that these skills - skills of analysis, critical thinking and evidence-based opinion - are the basic stuff of what we have defined as learner excellence for decades, if not centuries.
Let’s dive straight in and look at how ChatGPT can be used to drive student outcomes through a case study.
Case Study: K12 Physics Class
Context
I chose this case study at random. The “before” is a real lesson plan and the “after” is a lesson plan generated with ChatGPT.
This K12 Physics class focuses on the concept of gravity, taught to 10 year olds of average levels of achievement in the US. The objective of the class is to give students an understanding of gravity.
Before ChatGPT
Class dismissed.
With ChatGPT
Class dismissed.
The post-AI version of the class is arguably more complex to teach. It may also take more time to deliver. It also requires learners to have access to technology and an internet connection, which of course is not always the case.
However, by focusing on the why and how, rather than that the who, what and when, it does a significantly better job of:
driving learner motivation & mastery
delivering on long-held definitions of student excellence
developing the skills students need to thrive in the 21st century
Of course, most of these skills can be taught without ChatCPT: ChatGPT simply makes it quicker and easier to design (see below) and deliver these sorts of learning experiences than ever before.
The additional benefit of using ChatGPT where possible is that we are able to:
Deliver C21st ICT literacy skills: students can practice using AI in a safe and supported environment.
Deliver AI-Education: students can develop an understanding AI’s strengths, weaknesses and risks in the process of learning, guided by an informed educator.
Used in the right way, AI will accelerate our ability to change students’ lives, giving educators a renewed sense of purpose and greater social, political and economic significance than ever before.
DOMS™️ Edu-Mega-Prompt for C21st Lesson Planning
Research Question: is there a ChatGPT prompt that I can use to rapidly generate ChatGPT powered lessons which drive my learning objectives, develop C21st skills and educate my students about the risks and benefits AI?
Findings: Yes! After experimenting with various prompts, this one generated some consistently strong results:
Access a copy & paste version of the prompt + download a copy of this poster here.
ChatGPT’s Response:
As ever, think of ChatGPT as your assistant. If its initial suggestion isn’t tailored-enough to you and your students’ needs, ask it to make edits until you get what you want.
Try it for yourself! You can access a copy & paste version of the prompt + download a copy of the poster to share with your network here.
Happy designing! 👋
Phil
PS: If you liked this and want more edu-mega-prompts, check out my new course on AI for Educators (coming soon).