Most educators say it’s important to teach students how to use technology tools powered by artificial intelligence.And understanding the potential pitfalls of this technology should be a priority.
But only 1 in 10 say they know enough about the basics of artificial intelligence For teaching it or using it to some extent in my work. This is according to a nationally representative sample of teachers, principals and district leaders surveyed by the Edweek Research Center in May and June of this year.
The survey results show professionals keenly aware of how artificial intelligence is rapidly changing what students should learn and how educators work, but are ill-equipped to meet these new demands. It highlights the reality of what is possible.
Most notably, how few educators report receiving professional development in how to implement AI. Work commitments in K-12 education: 87% said they had no such PD at the time of the survey.
It’s not hard to see why. Advances in artificial intelligence are progressing rapidly. AI is already being used in schools with adaptive assessments, translation services, programs to plan bus routes, and late last year the free and easy-to-use AI tools ChatGPT 3 and DALL-EE were released. . Changed the playing field almost overnight. Chat GPT You can write an essay in seconds and even pass the standard bar exam.
ChatGPT raised early concerns that students would use the technology for cheating, but, generative AI, which can create text, voice, images, video, and computer code with simple prompts, is fueling a proliferation of new uses and tools for educators. Teachers can ask her ChatGPT to create grading rubrics for assignments, or use new AI-powered tools that can create entire slide decks for presentations on specific topics and grade them in seconds. However, generative AI also raises many thorny ethical challenges around data privacy, disinformation, and bias.
Experts say advances in AI will transform many industries, including K-12 education, and the jobs that today’s students will be looking for in the future.
The three graphs below show how teachers, principals, and district leaders view the importance of teaching AI, how they rate their knowledge of the technology, and how much training they receive on AI. It details what it looks like, if any.
