In the same way that teachers embraced new technologies like interactive whiteboards and the power of the internet back in the 2000s, educators today are finding a path to maximise the potential of generative AI.
As with anything this revolutionary, there must be a paradigm shift that re-evaluates how teaching and learning will progress.
Government View on Generative AI in Education
The Department of Education published the results of its consultation into AI’s impact on education in England.
The results recognised the growth of AI use in the classroom and the wide variety of potential applications. Areas such as admin tasks, SEND support and ideas for providing tools directly impacting the teaching and learning process were included.
What do teachers need to know about generative AI in the classroom?
Teachers should acquaint themselves with both the benefits and challenges AI presents.
Benefits include time-saving opportunities, especially for mundane, repetitive tasks. It is also great for individualising education and access for students with various needs.
Challenges presented by AI use are concerns over plagiarism and integrity, data privacy and quality of information sources. The bigger picture includes recognising the need to retain the human element in teaching and learning.
Teachers who do their research are far more likely to confidently embrace generative AI in education.
It seems that AI should be integrated into existing teaching and learning rather than established as a tool to replace current practices.
As always, there is a balance to be achieved that will ensure AI is used effectively. By combining traditional practices with AI, there are fantastic opportunities for teachers to get assistance with planning and admin tasks and provide students with more engagement.
Top Ideas to Integrate AI in Education
If you don’t know where to start with integrating AI into your school, please take a look at our suggestions as a starting point to kickstart enthusiasm and AI use.
- Streamline lesson planning
- Personalised learning for pupils with SEND and EAL.
- Differentiation in the classroom
- Perform tasks such as report writing
- Generate questions to be used in the classroom
Discussion Topics for Teams in Education
Leadership teams must develop a strategic policy for using AI in their school. It is a good idea to start by holding open discussions and discovering what staff already know and understand.
It also allows staff to voice any concerns about using AI. Staff can then share ideas they are already experimenting with and provide evidence of positive and negative outcomes.
Here are some of our suggested discussion topics.
- What strategies can we develop for integrating Gen AI?
- How can we safeguard academic integrity and avoid plagiarism?
- How do we develop data privacy measures and maintain security?
- How can we create an action plan for keeping up with Gen AI?
- How can we investigate teacher workload reduction possibilities?
- How do we monitor possible bias?
- What training is required for developing a plan for professional development in AI use?