From Caution to Calcification to Creativity: Reanimating Education with AI's Frankenstein Potential
A Critical Analysis of AI-Assisted Lesson Planning: Evaluating Efficacy and Pedagogical Implications
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I. Introduction
As we navigate the rapidly evolving landscape of artificial intelligence in education, a troubling trend has emerged. What began as cautious skepticism has calcified into rigid opposition. The discourse surrounding AI in classrooms has shifted from empirical critique to categorical rejection, creating a chasm between the potential of AI and its practical implementation in education.
This hardening of attitudes comes at a significant cost. While educators and policymakers debate, students find themselves caught in the crossfire. They lack safe, guided access to AI tools that are increasingly ubiquitous in the world beyond school walls. In the absence of formal instruction, many are teaching themselves to use these tools, often in less than productive ways. Others live in a state of constant anxiety, fearing accusations of AI reliance in their work. These are just a few symptoms of an overarching educational culture that has become resistant to change, even as the world around it transforms at an unprecedented pace.
Yet, as this calcification sets in, I find myself in a curious position: the more I thoughtfully integrate AI into my teaching practice, the more I witness its potential to enhance and transform education. This article aims to bridge the widening gap between the categorial skepticism surrounding AI in education and the remarkable experiences that mindful integration can produce. Through a detailed case study of developing an innovative exercise for my senior English class studying Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein," I hope to demonstrate how AI can be a powerful tool for educators, fostering creativity and critical thinking in both teachers and students.
II. The Current Landscape: From Caution to Calcification
The evolution of attitudes towards AI in education has been swift and, in many ways, alarming. What began as reasonable caution has morphed into an almost dogmatic resistance. This shift from empirical critique to categorical rejection has several concerning aspects:
Blanket Bans and Restrictions: Many educational institutions have implemented sweeping bans on AI tools, rather than developing nuanced policies for their appropriate use. This one-size-fits-all approach fails to recognize the diverse applications and potential benefits of AI in different educational contexts.
Fear-Based Decision Making: Instead of evidence-based policymaking, fear and speculation often drive decisions about AI in education. This approach neglects the potential benefits and fails to prepare students for a world where AI is increasingly prevalent.
Widening Skills Gap: As the professional world rapidly adopts AI tools, the reluctance in educational settings to engage with these technologies is creating a growing skills gap. Students are leaving educational institutions ill-prepared for the AI-augmented workplaces they will enter.
Missed Opportunities for Innovation: The categorical rejection of AI tools means educators are missing out on opportunities to innovate in their teaching methods, create more personalized learning experiences, and prepare students for the future of work.
Underground AI Use: In the absence of formal guidance, students are turning to underground, unsupervised use of AI tools. This not only raises ethical concerns but also means students are not learning to use these tools critically and responsibly.
Anxiety and Mistrust: The atmosphere of suspicion around AI use has created a culture of anxiety among students. Many fear being accused of AI reliance, even when they haven't used such tools, leading to a breakdown of trust between educators and learners.
Neglect of AI Literacy: By avoiding engagement with AI, educational institutions are failing to foster AI literacy – the critical skill of understanding, using, and critically evaluating AI tools and their outputs.
Meanwhile, the concerns that initially sparked caution remain valid and unaddressed. Issues of plagiarism, the potential decline in critical thinking skills, and the ethical implications of AI use, including data privacy and bias, are still significant. However, the shift to categorical rejection means these concerns are being used as reasons for inaction rather than catalysts for developing thoughtful, nuanced approaches to AI integration.
This calcification in attitudes towards AI in education stands in stark contrast to the rapid evolution and adoption of AI technologies in other sectors. As industries transform their practices to leverage AI, education risks falling behind, potentially failing in its mission to prepare students for the world they will inherit.
In this context of rigid opposition and missed opportunities, it becomes increasingly crucial to explore and share experiences of thoughtful AI integration in education. These case studies can serve as bridges between the world of possibility that AI represents and the practical realities of classroom implementation.
III. A Personal Experience: Crafting a Frankenstein Exercise
To illustrate the potential of AI in education, let me share a recent experience in developing a lesson plan for my senior English class. We were studying Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein," and I wanted to create an exercise that would engage students deeply with the text while developing their own AI-assisted work cycles.
The process began with a simple prompt to an AI assistant, asking for help in creating an innovative activity centered around Margaret Saville, a character often overlooked in traditional analyses of the novel. What followed was a fascinating back-and-forth that led to the development of a unique and engaging exercise.
The Evolution of the Exercise
Initial Complex Approach: The process began with a detailed request for an innovative activity centered on Margaret Saville. The initial response was comprehensive but lengthy, involving multiple parts. Check out the full activity here.
Part 1: Evaluating the Messages Directed at Margaret Saville
Part 2: Margaret Saville's Perspective
Part 3: Reader's Position and Shelley's Intent
Each part had several sub-questions and points of analysis, making the activity quite complex.
Request for Condensation: Recognizing that the initial approach was too elaborate, I asked for a more condensed version. The AI then provided a more focused version, still maintaining the three-part structure but with fewer questions and a more direct approach to analysis.
Addressing Assumptions: I then pointed out an assumption in the revised version about Margaret's detached view, which led to another iteration that removed this assumption and encouraged a more open interpretation of Margaret's perspective.
Request for a More Dynamic Approach: Seeking something more engaging, I asked for a different way to approach the exercise, emphasizing the need for something with more "punch."
Margaret Saville's Courtroom: This prompted the creation of the "Margaret Saville's Courtroom" activity, which introduced a role-playing element and a more interactive approach to analyzing the text. Here's an excerpt from this iteration:
Activity: Margaret Saville's Courtroom
Imagine Margaret Saville is holding a "courtroom" where she must evaluate the three stories presented to her. Each speaker (the creature, Frankenstein, and Walton) is a witness, and you, as the jury, must quickly determine the truth and motives behind each story. Then, decide how Margaret—armed with her intelligence, social background, and understanding—would deliver her judgment.
Check out the full activity here.
Final Refinement: Pushing for even more creativity, I asked to imagine how Margaret responds to Robert after hearing his letter and narrative.
Margaret's Response Letter: This resulted in the final "Margaret's Response Letter" activity, which asks students to step into Margaret's shoes and write a response to Robert Walton, incorporating their analysis of the novel's themes and characters.
IV. Analysis of the AI-Assisted Process
This iterative process demonstrated several key benefits of using AI in lesson planning:
Rapid Iteration: The AI allowed for quick refinement of ideas, enabling multiple versions of the activity to be developed and improved upon in a short time.
Challenging Assumptions: The process encouraged critical thinking about character perspectives and narrative structure, leading to a more nuanced understanding of the text.
Creativity Boost: Each iteration built upon the previous one, eventually leading to a highly creative and engaging activity that I might not have conceived on my own.
Adaptability: The AI was able to adjust quickly to specific pedagogical needs and preferences, resulting in an activity tailored to my teaching style and student needs.
V. The Resulting Lesson: Margaret's Response Letter Activity
The final activity asks students to imagine they are Margaret Saville, writing a response to her brother Robert Walton after reading his letters and the embedded narratives of Victor Frankenstein and the creature. This exercise achieves several important educational goals. Check out the full activity here:
Deep Textual Engagement: Students must closely analyze the text to understand the perspectives of multiple characters.
Critical Thinking: By synthesizing information from various narrative layers, students engage in high-level critical thinking.
Creative Writing: The exercise encourages students to use their imagination while staying true to the themes and style of the novel.
Perspective-Taking: Students must consider the historical and social context of a 19th-century woman's perspective.
Thematic Analysis: The activity naturally leads students to engage with the novel's major themes, including ambition, responsibility, and the consequences of creation.
VI. Broader Implications for AI in Education
This experience highlights several important points about the potential of AI in education:
AI as a Collaborative Tool: Rather than replacing teacher creativity, AI can enhance it by providing a springboard for ideas and helping to refine concepts.
Importance of Human Guidance: The success of this activity relied heavily on my input and understanding of my students' needs. AI is a tool, not a replacement for teacher expertise.
Encouraging Innovation: AI can help teachers break out of conventional teaching methods and explore new, engaging ways to present material.
Modeling AI Use for Students: By using AI in lesson planning, we can model responsible and creative AI use for our students, preparing them for a world where AI will be increasingly prevalent.
VII. Conclusion: Embracing AI's Potential and GPT-4 Experiments
While concerns about AI in education deserve consideration, my experiences suggest that thoughtful integration can powerfully enhance teaching and learning. The key lies in approaching AI as a collaborative tool, not a replacement for human intelligence and creativity.
Recent experiments with ChatGPT-4 further illustrate this potential. Through an extended series of prompts, I generated a nuanced rhetorical analysis of "Pride and Prejudice," which I shared on LinkedIn. One reader noted it as the first truly intriguing textual content they'd seen from the new inferential model, showcasing its advanced analytical capabilities.
As we navigate this AI-augmented landscape, it's crucial that educators remain open to AI's expanding possibilities while staying vigilant about its limitations. By continuing to explore, experiment, and share findings, we can guide the thoughtful integration of AI in education.
This balanced approach will ensure we're preparing students not just to survive in a world with AI, but to thrive in it. We can equip them to critically engage with AI tools, understand their strengths and limitations, and leverage these technologies for deeper learning and innovation. In doing so, we bridge the gap between current educational practices and the AI-driven future, readying our students for the challenges and opportunities ahead.
Nick Potkalitsky, Ph.D.
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Terry Underwood’s Learning to Read, Reading to Learn: The most penetrating investigation of the intersections between compositional theory, literacy studies, and AI on the internet!!!
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Alejandro Piad Morffis’s Mostly Harmless Ideas: Unmatched investigations into coding, machine learning, computational theory, and practical AI applications
Amrita Roy’s The Pragmatic Optimist: My favorite Substack that focuses on economics and market trends.
Michael Woudenberg’s Polymathic Being: Polymathic wisdom brought to you every Sunday morning with your first cup of coffee
Rob Nelson’s AI Log: Incredibly deep and insightful essay about AI’s impact on higher ed, society, and culture.
Michael Spencer’s AI Supremacy: The most comprehensive and current analysis of AI news and trends, featuring numerous intriguing guest posts
Daniel Bashir’s The Gradient Podcast: The top interviews with leading AI experts, researchers, developers, and linguists.
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Riccardo Vocca’s The Intelligent Friend: An intriguing examination of the diverse ways AI is transforming our lives and the world around us.
Jason Gulya’s The AI Edventure: An important exploration of cutting edge innovations in AI-responsive curriculum and pedagogy.
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