WN #7

Beyond the First Hello

Teachers often complain about large class sizes, and rightly so. When a single teacher is responsible for over 30 (sometimes 40!) students, the intricacies of education tend to get compromised. With larger classes, a teacher must sacrifice a level of depth and richness in dialogue and feedback that they know students need.

Depth is equally important when conversing with generative AI tools like ChatGPT, but it’s too easy for new users to get stuck on the surface, placing an unequal weight on the initial prompt and response. This leads to an endless quest for perfect prompts that will generate perfect outputs. But much like the rewarding back-and-forth between a seasoned teacher and an inquisitive student, the true power of generative AI shines when users lean into a continuous exchange of ideas.

For educators, this iterative dialogue is a goldmine. It allows them to better tailor content, ideas, resources, and feedback to align more closely with their students' needs and curiosities, as well as their own. It also means that an output that is initially disappointing doesn’t have to be a sign that AI can’t handle the task, just as a student who struggles to grasp a concept initially isn’t incapable of learning it. AI is ever-adaptable, always ready to fine-tune and recalibrate based on your feedback. Persistence will often lead to richer, more applicable content.

When I try out generative AI tools that are marketed to educators (and there are lots of them!), the first thing I look for is if the tool allows you to refine outputs through ongoing dialogue. If it doesn’t, it’s a bit of a red flag for me. It doesn’t mean that the tool can’t be helpful, but it certainly limits its usefulness. Approach generative AI not as a static tool but as a dynamic collaborator, always ready to refine, reimagine, and resonate with your unique and shifting needs.

Closing the Skills Gap

Several studies have shown the potential for AI to serve as a skill leveler, providing the greatest benefits to below-average performers. This recent study backs up those claims (here is a summary), though it also points out that results vary by type of task. While AI excels at tasks like writing, idea generation, and analysis, it falls short in other tasks where the group utilizing AI was actually less likely to produce correct solutions compared to the group that did not use AI.

Colleges & Universities Add AI Offerings

An increasing number of colleges and universities are helping prepare the next generation of workers with AI-centric offerings, such as AI MBA programs from schools like Northwestern, Villanova, Wharton, and MIT, and Harvard’s new AI in Medicine Ph.D. track. This comes as IBM launches an initiative to train 2 million people in AI over the next 3 years to address a growing AI skills gap.

Australia Gives Green Light for AI in Schools

While many schools continue to ban access to tools like ChatGPT, and some teachers return to handwritten work or restrict Wi-Fi access, Australia has moved forward with approving the use of AI in all of its schools starting next year after education ministers unanimously approved a national framework guiding schools’ use of the new technology.

📌 More AI Features for Canva & Adobe

A few weeks ago I wrote about several AI tools embedded into Canva’s platform to aid in graphic design. Now they have bundled all of these tools into their new Magic Studio, along with some new features such as improved image generation, the ability to generate video, and a tool called “Magic Switch” for repurposing content. Not to be outdone, Adobe has added several new AI updates to its own design and creation suite.

📌 AI with Vision

As a ChatGPT Plus user, I have been continually impressed by its new ability to see and interpret images. However, access to this feature requires a paid monthly subscription. If you want a free version of an AI tool with vision capabilities, try the new, open-source LLaVA tool developed by Microsoft, the U. of Wisconsin, and Columbia U. Alternatively, Bard and Bing Chat have vision capabilities with free access as well.

📌 Bard to Add Memory Feature

Speaking of Bard, Google is giving it the ability to retain certain “memories” to help better customize its responses. The feature functions similarly to ChatGPT’s “custom instructions”, allowing the chatbot to remember certain details across conversations rather than starting each chat with a clean slate.

Challenge Students to “Beat GPT”

Getting students to genuinely critique the work of peers can be challenging. There are lots of social risks and pressures at play. Give them a robot's work, however, and watch them tear it apart as they try to show they can outdo AI. “Beat GPT” is a simple and fun way to help students learn about AI while also building traditional academic skills and content knowledge.

A “Choose-Your-Own-Adventure” Educational Mystery

Matthew Wemyss has designed several prompts that experiment with using AI as a “choose-your-own-adventure” engine for students to explore a topic in a fun and engaging way. His latest prompt attempts to create an educational mystery for students to embark on. While these text-based adventure prompts are still far from perfect, they are fun to play around with as a window into what is possible as AI continues to advance. Here is a link to some of his other prompts.

• After seeing 17 doctors over 3 years, a family finally got a diagnosis for their son’s chronic pain from … ChatGPT.

• UPS is using AI to combat porch piracy.

• Generative AI could be the beginning of the end of smartphones, especially if it’s just a quick phase serving as a stepping stone to “Interactive AI”.

• Stability AI has released a new product for music and sound generation. Try it out for free.

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