By Christian Talbot, President of MSA-CESS
Reach Capital co-founder Jennifer Carolan knows a thing or two about the intersection of classroom teaching and artificial intelligence.
For seven years she taught in traditional public schools. Then, after earning her Master’s in Education from Stanford University, she began investing in educational technology.
In our recent conversation about AI in education, Jennifer and I agreed that education is at the threshold of a “before and after” moment. We talked about four key takeaways for school leaders:
- Develop an AI policy now.
- Define what great learning looks like so that AI does not amplify weak practice.
- Encourage teachers and students to experiment with generative AI tools.
- Provide time and resources for teachers to become comfortable with AI tools. Don’t simply put one more thing on teachers’ plates.
This landscape is rapidly changing. The following resources will orient you:
- Watch my full conversation with Jennifer here.
- Peruse “AI in Education,” the slidedeck that Jennifer shared during our conversation.
- Follow Ethan Mollick and Philippa Hardman for creative applications of AI to learning situations.
- Read “Barbie was the first avatar,” by Maria Salamanca and Jomayra Herrera, which addresses how generative AI is going to accelerate the crisis of adolescent identity formation.
- Read Weapons of Math Destruction, by Cathy O’Neil, which details the pervasive and invisible power of algorithms in our lives.
- Read 21 Lessons for the 21st Century, by Yuval Noah Harari, which cites multiple ways in which artificial intelligence is already changing “what it means to be human.”
- Browse this folder of all the things I’m reading about AI applications for education.
Middle States will continue to keep a close watch on the impact of AI on education, and share our findings.
In the meantime, please register for our next “Year of the Middle States Network” event on Thursday, Feb. 16 at 11 a.m. EST, when I will sit down with acclaimed author Annie Murphy Paul. We will discuss her latest book, The Extended Mind, about how we can tap the intelligence that exists beyond our brains—in our bodies, our surroundings, and our relationships.
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