Artificial intelligence (AI) learning needs to go beyond the basics of AI literacy to prepare students for the future, according to an Irish expert.
Dr. Gearóid Ó Súilleabháin is Head of the Department of Technology-Enhanced Learning at the Münster University of Technology (MTU), where he leads the development and management of online and blended programs, advances research into enhancing teaching and learning with technology, and supports the mainstream use of technology-enhanced learning.
In an interview with BreakingNews.ieDr Ó Sillabahn said AI learning needs to go beyond the basics to help students understand more fully.
“I think the best thing we can do is increase AI literacy, not only teach people how to design good prompts for these generative AI systems, but also help people understand what these systems are doing, how they’re built, some of the ethical issues that arise when using them, and how they’re now moving toward the mainstream.
“I think this is absolutely important. We don’t just give people instructions and guidelines on how to use this technology, we need to understand where this technology is coming from and what’s going on behind the scenes.
“I think we need to understand that this is just a kind of statistical echo of human behavior, if you like, and that it may have the same structure and texture as the reactions and products of the human mind.”
Dr Ó Silabane said university educators’ attitudes towards AI were mixed. One would think that students would be more positive about AI, but he said they share many of the same concerns.
“How do we prepare our students for a world where these tools are available, and even more so, a world of work where these tools are an important part of how we work and organize? I think many higher education institutions and the education sector in general are probably balancing vigilance and curiosity at this point.”
“It’s a mixture, so the whole thing is somewhat reminiscent of when the World Wide Web was born. It was originally developed in the 1990s, but many initially overestimated its short-term impact, but perhaps underestimated its long-term impact.
“Right now, I think that’s probably the case with generative AI. I think a lot of the anxiety and optimism about how AI will change things is probably overestimating how quickly those changes will happen.
“But I think over time there will be big changes in the way we live, work, play and communicate. We’re going to have to work toward some kind of future where we start doing more things in parallel with this new technology.”
“I think the academic response will probably span that continuum, if you like.”
students’ anxiety
He added: “I think they’re more mixed than people realize.” [students]. They are concerned about this new technology and what it means for their roles as students and our roles as educators. I think they’re very concerned about the jobs that are going to disappear, or at least how that will affect the future if certain jobs change dramatically.
“I think one of the big questions parents have is, ‘What courses should I put my son or daughter in to prepare for this world of AI?'”
“What are the old jobs that are going to be challenged?
“It’s hard to say what jobs won’t be affected.” [AI]. In many ways, we may perhaps be witnessing the same kind of change that automation brought to blue-collar jobs decades ago.
“We may now be seeing similar automation in so-called white-collar jobs and certain occupations.”
Detecting abuse of AI is one of the areas of interest in education in general and at third level in particular.
“Arms race”
“Detection will be more difficult and I think it will be like an arms race. Even the tools that I’m familiar with have both false positives and false negatives,” Dr Ó Sillabahn said.
“False positives are very problematic in terms of knowing what to do with the results of tools like this so as not to unfairly incriminate someone.
“But I think in many cases, that may be a bit of a misdiagnosis. What we have to think about is how we assess students, how learning is evidenced, and what we’re trying to provide our students with and the future we’re trying to prepare them for.”
“That’s certainly a concern, and in some cases there’s going to be an argument that we shouldn’t allow any AI at all, and in some cases there’s going to be an argument that we should allow a certain amount of AI. Maybe there’s going to be an argument that we should give people some freedom.”
“We need to figure out a way to understand what that looks like, in a way that is fair and just and that results in a better educational experience.
“And that goes back to the earlier point of preparing students for a world where these tools are widely used, increasingly sophisticated, and increasingly integrated.
“The way we do everything will no longer be a choice between using generative AI or not, but will be embedded in our offices, operating systems, and smart devices.”
In an interview with BreakingNews.ieDr Ó Sillabahn said AI learning needs to go beyond the basics to help students understand more fully.
Despite the challenges, he feels there are many great opportunities when it comes to AI and education.
These include tailoring learning to students with different needs, removing some of the mundane aspects of an educator’s role to have more time with students, and preparing students for how AI will change their jobs.
“I think it’s really important to be proactive with any technology…to look at its application and see how it aligns with our strategic priorities at an organizational level and at a national level.
“I would like to see us move towards thinking about how we can use generative AI as a partner and how we can work together.
“Maybe I’m being too optimistic, but I think the ideal is that generative AI will take away some of the drudgery and routine work and allow us to do more creative, more human things.
“In the world of education, relationships matter. Relationships matter and trust matters. So we focus on providing guidance, support and encouragement to our students. All of that falls on those of us who teach and support our learners.
“I think it’s important work to do to consider how we can best support and scaffold that new hybrid relationship.”
AI opens new possibilities for personalized learning for students.
“I think in education, we need to prepare users. We need to prepare learners for a world where humans and machines work together, where AI can potentially augment what humans can do,” he added.
“Enhancing human intelligence in education means using AI to enable teachers and technology to work closely together rather than in competition.
“This provides a situation where educators and others can focus on what they do best in terms of instructing, motivating, and mentoring students, while supporting certain day-to-day tasks that are yet to be determined.
“AI is opening new possibilities for personalized learning for students, and I think there are many opportunities in terms of improving accessibility.
“This means leveraging the ability of generative AI to take something and deliver it to students with specific needs in different formats and ways to increase their confidence and understanding.
“I think the key is to strike a balance between using AI as a tool rather than as a teacher, and not as a replacement for teaching or a replacement for learning.
“It should exist to support human judgment, not replace it.”
Some AI skeptics have argued that AI should be completely banned from education, but Dr O Sirabane argued that this was a passive measure.
“It would be technically and operationally unfeasible to ban it, and promoting its use underground would not be a positive development, because things are happening invisibly in a way that we cannot provide any guidance or direction.
“Certainly there are concerns that some other countries are approaching this technology more thoughtfully and more aggressively in certain industries.
“Well, you don’t want to see existing inequalities, and you don’t want them to get worse as things progress, for example, so whatever benefits there are, they need to be fairly and widely distributed.
“Human judgment is always needed. So, for me, we always have to take sides with the technology. Simply put, we are the ones creating the inputs and prompts. We are the ones applying human judgment.”
evaluation
Evaluation is another area where the use of AI is controversial. Dr Ó Sillabahn added that while it could be useful for ongoing assessments and projects, human judgment would always be required.
“Already with the introduction of digital learning, I think the line between the learning process and the assessment process is becoming increasingly blurred.
“I think we are moving away from the paradigm where students are ushered into the gym every summer and have to pour out their hearts and demonstrate their learning in one shot because they are making progress in their learning.
“I think there are a variety of points where AI can assist in the assessment process from the beginning. AI could be used for formative assessment purposes, so it’s important that feedback feeds into the learning process. I think high-stakes assessments require a human to be in the driver’s seat, so to speak. But AI may be there as a co-pilot, by analogy.”
