WN #1

Chatbot Wars

Every educator’s journey into generative AI should start with chatbots. They are at the heart of the recent AI boom, and getting familiar with them gives you foundational knowledge that will help demystify the evolving world of AI, empowering you and your students along the way. And the best part? All of the chatbots listed below are FREE to use. ChatGPT is the most popular, but all have their strengths and limitations. As an educator, it’s a good idea to eventually have a few of these in your arsenal so you can use the one best suited for your specific needs. For example, you might use ChatGPT for most tasks, but switch to Claude when you are working with a PDF, and Perplexity when you need to work with the most up-to-date information available.

Links: ChatGPT, Bard, Bing, Claude, Perplexity

There are other, lesser-known options out there as well, and some major players are entering the room, too. Meta has recently released its own, open-source model called Llama 2, and Apple is expected to roll out its own AI chatbot soon. Then there’s Google, which seems to be self-aware that Bard’s reception has been underwhelming. They’ll be releasing a new AI product, Gemini, later this year.

On the education-centric side of things, ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education) is building its own education-focused AI chatbot that is only trained on data that ISTE and its partner, ASCD, have created or approved. Khan Academy has built a similar chatbot designed to work alongside its own curriculum. On the one hand, this approach ensures that the chatbot stays within the realm of educator-approved material. However, if each education organization builds their own, we could end up with a bunch of chatbot silos, limiting overall potential and exacerbating bias concerns.

Adapting to a New Reality

As we head back to school this fall, Time has put out a piece highlighting some different ways teachers are using AI in their classrooms, while professor Ethan Mollick warns of a looming Homework Apocalypse, and gives his thoughts on what this means for educators.

AI Detectors Aren’t the Answer

Among the first lines of defense against the risks of AI-fueled cheating has been the use of AI detectors. These tools claim to be able to detect AI-produced writing, but have already led to several high-profile cases of students being falsely accused of using AI on papers that they had actually written themselves, and have proven to be especially problematic for non-native English speakers. Even the US Constitution has been flagged as AI-generated. OpenAI, the creators of ChatGPT, recently took down their own AI detection tool, citing a low rate of accuracy. As of right now, AI detectors seem to cause more headaches than solutions.

District Leaders Take Note

School district leaders across the country are beginning to see the various ways AI can save them time and money, if used the right way. This follows a recent surge of AI use in the business world to maximize operational efficiency. A recent McKinsey survey shows that a third of all respondents say their organizations are using generative AI regularly in at least one business function (and this data is a few months old by now). With AI bursting onto the scene, the skills employers are looking for are evolving as well. As educators, we must take this into account when thinking about how to best prepare our students for the careers that await them.

AI and SpEd

The gap between what is required of special education departments and the resources they have to work with is often alarming. AI presents a massive opportunity to address this issue, but it still has some hurdles to overcome in this arena.

📌 Bing Expands Access

Bing’s generative AI tool can now be used (with some limitations) on Chrome and Safari browsers. Originally, Bing could only be used on Microsoft’s Edge browser (and in the Bing app), which drove many potential users to other products.

📌 Google’s New Search Tools

Google is continuing to experiment with integrating generative AI into its search and browsing experiences. It recently announced another batch of updates. If you want to give them a try, you can do so here.

📌Custom Instructions for Everyone

ChatGPT rolled out its “Custom Instructions” feature to free users. This allows you to give ChatGPT customized context, instructions, and preferences that apply to all of your chats so you don’t have to keep typing in the same things over and over.

Leveraging Connections

ChatGPT and other LLMs excel at drawing connections between ideas. This brings many opportunities for educators, such as horizontally aligning content across courses (see image above). For more examples, see my thread on Twitter (er, “X”).

Lupe’s TextFx

Grammy Award-winning artist Lupe Fiasco has teamed with Google to launch TextFx, a suite of 10 free AI-powered tools to enrich the writing process. The tools encourage playing with words and sounds in various ways, and are easy to use. I wrote about some ways you can use these tools in the classroom.

• AI has helped a stroke survivor walk again. This comes after a string of other medical breakthroughs using AI technology, including detecting breast cancer, creating new antibiotics for superbugs, and helping a paralyzed man regain feeling and movement.

• Would you like to win millions of dollars? All you have to do is protect critical U.S. infrastructure from cybersecurity risks. What are you waiting for?

• MIT has developed a technology to protect images from unauthorized manipulation. If this proves to be effective, it mitigates one of the biggest concerns about emerging AI technologies.

• Rather than just deliver your order, Robomart wants to bring the store to you. What could go wrong?

That’s all for this week! If you appreciate the content in this newsletter, consider subscribing for free, or sharing with people in your network who may find value in it.