As an Instructional Coach, she has been trying to stay ahead of AI, especially to support new teachers. She has turned to AI for ideas on presenting material more creatively. Valerie, one of our district’s AI Ambassadors, has been disappointed in the lack of creativity in AI-constructed products but concedes that AI provides a good starting point. However, AI tools like ChatGPT and MagicSchool have been effective in generating lists of instructional strategies. She also has been playing around with the chatbot feature in School.AI by helping teachers establish ways for their students to interact with a literary character. She likes the immediate feedback AI provides. As a former World Language Teacher, Valerie sees promise in chatbots for increasing fluency and confidence when learning a new language.
Regarding teacher anxiety associated with AI, she knows it’s coming from a good place. She believes teachers' concerns typically relate to kids not getting what they need. In the meantime, many teachers at NHS have been experimenting with what Valerie calls background tasks, including managing email and creating newsletter content. I asked Valerie what it would take to level up staff confidence with AI. Her response was time, exposure, practice, and a little faith.
“At first, I thought AI was smarter than it is. Now I think it will get smarter, but right now it needs very, very specific input. I feel like it needs to read my mind a little bit better (to create what I really want).”For Valerie, it comes down to ease of use. She appreciates MagicSchool’s clean, inviting interface. She likes that MagicSchool does the heavy lifting of prompt engineering with its robust tools library. She thinks cluttered websites are a barrier to entry for many educators and adds that teachers don’t have time to work to understand how a product operates. Valerie points out that prompt engineering is key. Understanding the elements of a good prompt unlocks the doors to better use, and admits that much of this work comes with trial and error. She is impressed with how much MagicSchool can do and thinks that open-ended professional learning may be one way to get teachers on board.
Exploring AI at home has mostly involved pinging ChatGPT to better understand its potential and limitations. Recent prompts have included meal plans (with shopping lists and macros breakdown!), workout routines, and “good gifts for 13-year-old girls.” Now, if we could just get AI to do our gift shopping! I’m with Valerie. Let’s keep exploring!
Kristin Patrick
Digital Learning Blog
* I Used to Think … Now I Think is a core routine within the Harvard Graduate School of Education Project Zero Thinking Routines Toolbox.
Thanks for sharing.
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