HOW DO WE DO AUTHENTIC LEARNING

IN A AN AGE OF SMART MACHINES?

THE AI REVOLUTION
IS HERE
 HOW DO WE DO AUTHENTIC LEARNING
HOW DO WE DO AUTHENTIC LEARNING
IN A AN AGE OF SMART MACHINES?

IN A AN AGE OF SMART MACHINES?

The AI Revolution is already here.

Right now, we are having a cultural
moment where we are recognizing
the power of Artificial Intelligence.
 HOW DO WE DO AUTHENTIC LEARNING
IN A AN AGE OF SMART MACHINES?

It's been a slow build. Auto-correct here. Grammarly

suggestion there. An auto-fill option in Gmail and in Google
Searches. A small chat at the bottom left-hand corner with AI
who will help you get that refund on the flight you purchased
from Expedia. But it always felt small and in the margins. But
then ChatGPT came along and suddenly we are left asking,
"What does this mean for the future of work?”
“What does mean for teaching and learning?"
 WHAT IS AI ?
The term "artificial intelligence" was coined by John
McCarthy, an American computer scientist, in 1956.

AI is any technology that allows machines to think and

learn like humans do. McCarthy envisioned a time when
computer networks could engage in human-like
cognition, ranging from recognizing images to
understanding language to making decisions, to solving
problems, to deeper creative thinking.
 WHAT IS AI ?
So how does it do this? Through algorithms,
which are like sets of instructions that tell the
computer what to do. These machine learning
algorithms can analyse large amounts of data and
learn from it, improving the AI’s performance
over time.

AI isn’t new. Instead, it’s been a slow evolution

over decades. For this reason, you can think of AI
as an evolution as much as a revolution. .
So, why does this newest generation of AI feel so
different than something like a Google Search or a spell
checker?
The newer generation of AI uses something called machine learning. This means the algorithms
can learn from itself by refining how it makes predictions and performs tasks. These algorithms
use statistical techniques to find patterns in the data and learn from them. This then improves
their performance over time. We see this machine learning in everything from image
recognition to natural language processing to fraud detection.
About a decade ago, researchers began
making enormous leaps in the development of
deep learning. Deep learning is a type of
machine learning with self-adjusting neural
networks. Deep learning uses artificial neural
networks to process data.
 WILL AI REPLACE US?

What is the difference between cheating and using AI?

What does this mean for academic integrity?
What happens to student voice?
What does this mean for information literacy?
What will we do in an era of deep fakes?
What does the future of education look like in a world of AI?
What kinds of jobs will our students do in the future?
If something can be easily automated by AI, do we still need to teach it?
We have already seen futurists claiming that AI will replace teachers.
Who needs direct instruction if students can ask a chatbot an
endless array of questions and receive personalized answers? Who
needs assessment if an AI can give targeted feedback?

We’ve seen bold predictions about AI destroying the essay and

causing the end of English Language Arts.
TECHNO FUTURISM looks at the transformative power of AI and asks:

WHAT LEARNING TASKS CAN AI REPLACE?

BUT MISSES THE POINT...

JUST BECAUSE YOU CAN AUTOMATE SOMETHING,

DOES NOT MEAN YOU SHOULD AUTOMATE IT.
We need students to “make thinking visible”.
Students need to play with information in every
stage of the thinking process.

A student can use a calculator but they benefit

from doing math by hand or engaging in mental
math. Does it mean we ban calculators? Nope. It
just means we use a mix of strategies.

A student can snap a photo of a plant but they

actually learn how to observe in science by
sketching out what they see.
This happens every time a school says, “We’ll just
block that site from the network.”

We’ve seen this approach happen in schools where

they block sites like YouTube, online gaming, and social
media.

In terms of ChatGPT, I’m already seeing people say,

“I’ll just make students handwrite all their essays in
class.”
But actually, AI has some great potential uses:

• In building background knowledge, students can ask

specific questions and get personalized answers. They
can ask follow up questions and engage in a dialogue.

• In writing, there might be times when students start

out with AI and then modify and rework it to have their
own unique voice and style.
 • AI has the power to help synthesize certain
information, clarify misconceptions, and provide
tutorials for skill practice.

• It can help us get unstuck during writer’s block.

• It can be an excellent tool in converting complex texts

to one at a more accessible reading level or in
translating to another language.

When we focus solely on how AI might be misused as a device for

cheating, we fail to recognize its power in helping students learning
— especially those who are the most vulnerable.
To be clear, we need to follow the laws and policies on
technology. But we can’t do this from a place of fear and
reactivity.

Our students will need to learn how to use these tools

wisely. If we completely lockdown all generative AI, we
run the risk of not helping students see what it means to
wrestle the hard questions about how AI is shaping our
world.

We miss out on the opportunity to teach a new kind of

digital citizenship and help students develop a critical
eye needed for information literacy in an age of smart
machines.
This approach often embraces the notion of VINTAGE
INNOVATION which is the process of taking old,
established ideas and concepts and updating them in a
new and innovative way.

This can involve reusing, repurposing, or adapting older

technologies or designs in order to create something
new and improved.
WHAT WILL STUDENTS NEED?

In a world of constant change, students will need to be divergent thinkers.

In an automated world, students will need to use analog tools.
In a world of Artificial Intelligence, students will need wisdom.
In a connected world, students will need to be empathetic.
In a world of instant information, students will need to be curators.
In a world with infinite possibilities, our students will need to be curious.
Every time we experience a new technology, we also
experience a moral panic. We hear dire warnings
about what the technology will destroy and how our
world will change. Some of these concerns are
always valid. Others turn out to be the result of a
moral panic.
It’s at this boring phase that we need to be most
concerned. If the freak-out phase is an overreaction, the
boredom phase is an under reaction. It’s an uncritical
acceptance of technology as the tools become more
normalized and eventually invisible.
The hard truth is that we can’t predict how technology
will change our world.

AI will impact our social, political, and economic systems

in ways we can’t even predict. We will think and act
differently. We will live differently. However, none of us
can predict these changes to any degree of accuracy.
Not social scientists. Not technologists. Not futurists.
None of us.

We will all be surprised.

 ENGAGING STUDENTS TO DIALOGUE
❑ Where are you using AI without even thinking?
❑ How might people try to use AI to inflict harm? How might people try to use AI to benefit
humanity? What happens when someone tries to use it for good but accidentally causes harm?
❑ What does AI do well? What does it do poorly?
❑ What are some things you would like AI to do? What is the cost in using it?
❑ What are some things you don’t want AI to do? What is the cost in avoiding it?
❑ How are you combining AI with your own creative thoughts, ideas, and approaches?
❑ What is the danger in treating robots like humans?
❑ What are the potential ethical implications of AI, and how can we ensure that AI isaligned with
human values? What guardrails do we need to set up for AI?
❑ What are some ways that AI is already replacing human decision-making? What are the risks and
benefits of this?
❑ What types of biases do you see in the AI that you are using?
❑ What are the potential ethical implications of AI, and how can we ensure that AI is aligned with human
values? What guardrails do we need to set up for AI?
❑ What are some ways that AI is already replacing human decision-making? What are the risks and
benefits of this?
❑ What types of biases do you see in the AI that you are using?
❑ Who is currently benefiting and who is currently being harmed by the widespread use of AI and machine
learning? How do we address systems of power?
❑ When do you consider a work your own and when do you consider it AI-generated? When does it seem
to be doing the thinking for you and when is it simply a tool?
❑ What are some ways AI seems to work invisibly in your world? What is it powering on a regular basis?
ChatGPT has raised some significant questions about when something is plagiarism and when
it is simply a learning tool. This is because generative AI offers users the opportunity to
create new images, audio, and text with a simple command prompt.

Here are a few areas where they might use generative AI in creative work:

1. Generating new ideas: when students are stuck, they might use AI for inspiration.
2. Clarifying misunderstandings: when students are confused, they might use AI to clear things up
as they create new works.
3. As a feedback tool: students might use AI as a chance for targeted feedback on their creative
work.
4. As a starting place: students might start with an AI generated text or image and then modify that
with their own ideas. They’ll expand it.
REDEFINING CREATIVITY: A BLENDED MODEL

Moving forward, creativity will blend together the human

voice with the AI-developed content. This overlap will
allow creators to provide their own unique voice while
tapping into the strengths of the AI systems. Artists,
engineers, and makers will all need to decide when and
where they use AI.
The project should involve authentic tasks that are relevant to
the students' lives and interests, and that require them to use
a range of skills and knowledge. The tasks should be
challenging, but achievable with effort and support. Often,
students engage in inquiry and research and they create
original works that solve a real problem.

This authenticity includes a real-world context and often leads

to a final launch. I love connecting design thinking to project-
based learning because of the emphasis on empathy.
 THE LAUNCH CYCLE
Look, Listen, and Learn: In the first phase, students look,
listen, and learn. The goal here is awareness and empathy.
Ask Tons of Questions: Sparked by curiosity, students move
to the second phase, where they ask tons of questions.
Understanding the Process or Problem: This leads to
understanding the process or problem through an authentic
research experience.
Navigate Ideas: Students apply that newly acquired
knowledge to potential solutions. Here they not only
brainstorm, but they also analyze ideas, combine ideas, and
generate a concept for what they will create.
Create a Prototype:. It might be a digital work or a tangible
product, a work of art or something they engineer. It might
even be an action or an event or a system.
Highlight and Fix: The goal here is to view this revision
process as an experiment full of iterations, where every
mistake takes them closer to success.
Launch to an Audience!
 REDEFINING PBL: A BLENDED MODEL

While PBL focuses on authentic learning, students can still

leverage the power of AI within PBL. Here’s what it looks like:

• Generating additional questions: Toward the beginning of a

project, a student might start with a list of research questions
they have. They can then go to AI to get a list of additional
questions. Or they could use AI to refine their questions to be
more specific. If they’re asking interview questions, they could
ask the AI to refine their questions to be more open-ended or
convey more critical thinking. Notice how they’re not outsourcing
the inquiry but they are using AI as a tool.
 REDEFINING PBL: A BLENDED MODEL

While PBL focuses on authentic learning, students can still

leverage the power of AI within PBL. Here’s what it looks like:

• Clarifying misconceptions during research: Sometimes

students struggle with conceptual understanding. AI can function
in a similar way to Wikipedia, in that it’s not the best source but it
is a great starting place when students are trying to develop a
schema.
 REDEFINING PBL: A BLENDED MODEL

While PBL focuses on authentic learning, students can still

leverage the power of AI within PBL. Here’s what it looks like:

• Restating research in simpler terms: If students are doing text-

based research, they might see a website with great research.
They’ve looked at the reliability of the source and explored the
bias. Unfortunately, the source contains technical language and
dense grammatical structures. Students can use AI to simplify
the language.
 REDEFINING PBL: A BLENDED MODEL

While PBL focuses on authentic learning, students can still

leverage the power of AI within PBL. Here’s what it looks like:

• Navigating ideas: After students have engaged in a deep dive

brainstorm, they can go to AI and ask for additional ideas.
Students can then analyse these ideas and incorporate them into
their design.
 REDEFINING PBL: A BLENDED MODEL

While PBL focuses on authentic learning, students can still

leverage the power of AI within PBL. Here’s what it looks like:

• Generating project plans: ChatGPT is really good at taking a

larger task and breaking it down into smaller tasks. After they
have navigated ideas, students can use AI as a starting place for a
project plan with dates and deadlines. They can then modify this
based on their skill level, group dynamics, etc.
 REDEFINING PBL: A BLENDED MODEL

While PBL focuses on authentic learning, students can still

leverage the power of AI within PBL. Here’s what it looks like:

• Prototyping: If students are writing code, they might start with

AI and then modify the code to make it better. They could mash up
two examples. In this way, the AI functions like an exemplar within
a project. The critical idea is that it should occur after students
have engaged in ideation.
 REDEFINING PBL: A BLENDED MODEL

While PBL focuses on authentic learning, students can still

leverage the power of AI within PBL. Here’s what it looks like:

• Coming up with group roles: Students can use AI as a starting

place for group roles and then modify them to fit the group.
Afterward, they can negotiate norms and consequences for
breaking norms. The group can then use AI to create group
contracts with norms, roles, and consequences.
 REDEFINING PBL: A BLENDED MODEL

While PBL focuses on authentic learning, students can still

leverage the power of AI within PBL. Here’s what it looks like:

• Project management: Students can take the tasks and the

progress they’ve made and use AI to help them determine what to
do next and what they might need to change to stay on schedule.
 REDEFINING PBL: A BLENDED MODEL

While PBL focuses on authentic learning, students can still

leverage the power of AI within PBL. Here’s what it looks like:

• Receiving feedback: I’ve been surprised at how well AI does in

giving quality feedback. While peer feedback should remain a
student-to student endeavour, groups sometimes fall victim to
groupthink. AI is a great tool for helping avoid the groupthink.
Personalized learning is human-centred and adaptive
learning is machine-centred. A human-centred approach
helps us avoid the extremes of Techno-Futurism or the
Lock It and Block It Approach.

So, how would we use AI within this more human version

of personalized learning? One idea is though an inquiry-
based learning activity.
Inquiry-based learning is an educational approach that
emphasizes the role of questioning and investigation in
the learning process. It is a student-centred approach
that encourages learners to actively participate in their
own learning by asking questions, exploring ideas, and
constructing knowledge through their own experiences.

In inquiry-based learning, the teacher serves as a

facilitator and guide, rather than a source of
information. Students are encouraged to explore topics
of interest and to ask their own questions, rather than
simply memorizing information provided by the teacher.
 REDIFINING PERSONALISED LEARNING
1. Students can begin with their own questions but then ask a
How might students use AI in this process? chatbot to help generate new questions as well.
Here are a few ideas: 2. As partners or small groups engage in research, they can start
with a conversation with the chatbot to clarify
information and build background knowledge.

3. As they engage in research, they might copy and paste

complicated text into a chatbot that then simplifies the language for
them.

4. As they summarize their information and work on a video, they

might use an AI to summarize some key concepts or evengive
feedback on how to improve the script.

5. As they make a final video, they might use generative AI to create

certain visuals.
Adaptive learning programs promise precise, targeted intervention
to any student who is behind.

However, differentiated instruction isn’t the same as adaptable

learning. Genuine differentiation is what happens when teachers
design structures and scaffolds so that all students can access the
the learning.

Here’s where the AI can be helpful. Teachers can use tools like
ChatGPT to design levelled reading on nearly any topic. They can
create additional handouts so that students can practice a specific
skill.

The biggest challenge to differentiation is time. It simply takes a long

time to design the scaffolds and supports that studentsneed. AI can
help save time.
 REDIFINING DIFERENTIATED INSTRUCTION
Here are a few ways you might use AI to design scaffolds and
supports for neurodiverse students:

1. Providing additional handouts to facilitate task-analysis and

executive function.

2. Using AI to help schedule small groups.

3. Using AI speech recognition software as an assistive technology

to help students with writing.

4. Using AI image generators to help students who need a more

concrete example of what they are learning in class.
5. Designing targeted skill practice (high interest levelled reading,
word problems for math, etc.)

6. Using AI to modify assignments to reduce cognitive load (fewer

steps) while encouraging students to still access the grade level
content.

7. Using AI to reduce the amount of work while still maintaining a high

challenge level. For example, a student with dyscalculia might need
fewer problems but can still master the math content at the same
grade level.
8. We can also use AI as an initial starting place for creating language
supports. These include:

▪ Front-loading vocabulary: While you’ll still need to create a list of

vocabulary yourself (and rely on student feedback) the AI can be a great
starting place. If you couple this with an AI image generator, you can save
time in generating front-loaded vocabulary.

▪ Providing translating help: The dynamic aspects of an AI bot allow students

to interact with the content in their native language while also being
exposed to content in English.

▪ Using visuals within the project to help facilitate language development. As

AI generated visual art continues to improve, we can potentially create
additional visuals that can aid with accessing English.
8. We can also use AI as an initial starting place for creating language
supports. These include:

▪ Using AI to design structured listening/discussions within the project,

including sample questions and scripts

▪ AI can be used to assess language proficiency by analysing a student's

speech or writing. This can be particularly useful in assessing language
learners who may not have access to a native speaker or who are learning
in a remote setting.
REDEFINING ASSESSMENT

AI has the potential to change the way we assess students.

However, it’s important that we maintain the human element in
assessment. At its core, assessment is a conversation where
students determine what they know, what they don’t know, and
what they need to do next.

The challenge is time. We know that immediate feedback is ideal

but that’s hard to do with a full teaching schedule. This is where I
see some promise in having students use AI as a self-directed
assessment tool.
The following are a few ways students might use AI for assessment
purposes:

1. Asking specific questions to clarify misunderstandings.

2. As a diagnostic tool to determine what they have done wrong (finding mistakes in
computer code or math problems)

3. As a performance assessment with specific feedback. For example, AI might help

students figure out when they’ve hit the wrong notes in playing an instrument.

4. As a reflection tool. A programmed AI could ask students questions and then

follow-up questions based on what they type.

5. For goal-setting. Students can use AI to set their own goals, add deadlines, and
eventually design their own customized plan to stay on track
As teachers, we can use AI to design our own assessments as well. Here are a few of
theways you might use a tool like ChatGPT:

1. Creating student surveys.

2. Designing rubrics. I’ve been amazed at the way you can create a rubric, have it modify
the rubric, and ultimately turn it into a chart.

3. Using the AI to create a set of saved feedback prompts that you use within your LMS.

4. As an extra set of “eyes” to catch details you might have missed (finding mistakes in a
math problem, catching grammatical errors, etc.)

5. Analyzing data trends to see who needs intervention and enrichment.

REDEFINING THE ROLE OF TEACHER

As we think about AI, we need to recognize that its

impact will look different depending on the classroom
and the grade level.

Generative AI is still a relatively new tool and schools

are right in taking a thoughtful and nuanced approach.

You are the expert of your own classroom. You know the
subjects, the grade level, and your students in a way
that no AI expert ever could. The challenge moving
forward will be in asking what it means to use AI wisely.