My subject, English, is currently graded grotesquely, so I hope that AI will bring about a change in student assessment.
If you’re a student who excels at writing essays quietly at set times, that’s great, as are educators who adore academic essays above all else.
It’s an unpopular idea of mine that writing essays should be just a part of learning English.
Yes, well written is beautiful. Some of the essays I receive from my students really make me stop. But in such a great subject as English, it’s really scary to use it as the only method of assessment.
The fact that oral literacy is ignored in Leaveing Cert is very offensive. It’s indefensible to say there’s no real room for spontaneous creativity or collaboration.
AI may change this. Last week, an AI opinion column written and published as if it were written by a human made an interesting point. It was perfectly accurate. Because AI is the perfect essay writer.
Therefore, the evaluation method should be broadened.
Does this mean giving up teaching the basics of grammar and spelling? of course not. Language is a system and students must understand its parts.
But general competence in any field can no longer be defined by small human inaccuracies in essay writing.
If you graduate from Cert English, the emphasis is on both essays and spelling and grammatical accuracy.
According to the grading scheme, a small fraction of the grades are given for such accuracy, but from my speaking with examiners, I’ve found that students are rarely actually graded by this. I know.
If you can’t use apostrophes, your syntax isn’t perfect, you won’t get high marks. No chance.
No matter how enlightening or inspiring your ideas may be, you will be judged harshly.
You’re less than a bot, but that’s not enough.
I already hear pedants, intellectuals and snobs screaming about how this subject is ridiculed. No, the subject extends beyond mechanics.
In the world of AI, human error can even be a sign of text reliability.
Two weeks ago, I was criticized online for using the wrong homonym. According to one outraged commentator, it meant that I was inferior in intelligence and should never write a column again or be in the ass-roar of a classroom.
Little did he know that I was telling my students that I was always the worst speller.
But I love my subject and enjoy the sound of words every day.
I get lost in the world of poetry and wander through the imaginary worlds of characters. I am driven by pretend play and motivated by the human mind’s powers of opposition, reflection and imagination.
He (Homophone Spotter) takes a masculine, hierarchical approach to learning.
They try to make teachers feel smart and learners feel stupid. Creates an ivory tower-like atmosphere in the classroom.
And most importantly, we miss the opportunity to celebrate and encourage different perspectives and modes of expression.
I heard the great poet Paul Muldoon say recently that the only thing he knows is that he knows nothing. Now he sounds like a really intelligent person.
My hope is that in this new dawn of AI, educators will realize that small mistakes do not mean that a person is less intelligent or less capable, in general or even in that field. is.
Even such students should have access to the highest available grades.
We need humans to be more emotionally intelligent now than ever before. We ask our students to think critically, spontaneously, and creatively in ways that a timed, silent essay cannot.
The presence of AI aids in continuous evaluation and rejection of essays as sole arbitrator.
Continuous assessment should take place in the classroom, in a relaxed, collaborative, offline and spontaneous environment.
Teachers will also need to participate. We also require our unions to stop blocking the road away from 100% exam subjects at Leiving Cert.
This will require the ministry to give teachers sufficient time and training.
We still have to teach accuracy and grammar, spelling and punctuation. But we need to be open to the possibilities of any subject beyond the fixed point of mechanical precision. It is now as small and insignificant as the homonym I misused.
- PS This article was written by a human. Any errors in accuracy should be commended as proof.
