AI IN EDUCATION

Mike Lehnert, Teacher of Music Technology, Sherborne School

The challenge of writing about Artificial Intelligence (AI) is that by the time this article is published, the technology will have already advanced, and the innovative work we’re undertaking today in the classroom will be yesterday’s news. Working with AI feels like Gromit furiously laying down tracks before a speeding train, with no clear direction and the constant threat of a train wreck. Everything is up for grabs, and there is potential to revolutionise the way we teach and learn. Yet like most technology, it moves faster than individuals and society can adapt, before we can even fully conceptualise the implications. While developments in technology can be exciting, we must consider how AI will affect jobs, privacy, and the laws around General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Most importantly for educators, we need to ensure that the quality of student education remains at the centre of advancements in teaching. The issue is that technology changes and develops at such a rapid pace, being assimilated by young learners more quickly than educators can keep up. I’ve been amazed at how quickly students have adopted this new technology into their vocabulary and adapted their approach to AI to suit their learning style.

AI is already capable of producing materials for students and personalising the learning to fit their needs in various subjects at different levels. It can differentiate the material according to an individual learner’s level of ability and learning style. Lessons can be adapted for learners with Special Educational Needs and it can generate resources and exam-style questions tailored to the student’s individual needs. AI can draw various diagrams, create specific video resources on any topic, translate into many languages and source relevant and up-to-date research papers for high-functioning learners. AI can create resources on these papers and provide countless examples and analogies. Many tasks a competent human teacher can perform, AI can also do, and it does them far quicker.

We have initiated a variety of teaching groups, along with staff training, to explore different ways AI can benefit students. We’re developing diverse uses for AI in the classroom. Teachers are experimenting with AI for marking, providing feedback, creating personalised resources, data analysis and supporting SEN and EAL students. Examples of using AI in classes are abundant but to highlight a few:

• Collaborating with students through shared chats to monitor and encourage critical thinking

• Flipping the role of student and teacher to reinforce understanding (Feynman Technique)

• Interactive lessons where the AI engages with the student’s strengths and weaknesses

• Supporting dyslexic students through AI-generated audio resources instead of written ones

• Visual diagrams to assist in explaining difficult topics Self-correcting assessments which provide students with immediate feedback on areas for improvement sherborne.org

What has been interesting, and scary, is where the teacher’s role comes into this new model of educating students. Consider my subject, Music Technology, where students are asked to record, compose and produce contemporary music. An AI can now listen to and analyse a song, giving students a breakdown of the sonic qualities and suggesting improvements. Unsure how to proceed? The AI will guide you step by step, answer questions, test you on content, or, as with Google’s MusicLM, compose a piece of music based on text input.

While the potential of this new technology can be exciting, educators must collaborate across sectors, exam boards, independent and state schools, and online and face-to-face lessons. We need to start a conversation about using AI in the classroom, share our experiences, discern which methods work best and discard those that don’t support learning. Collaboration with schools to discuss ideas and implications is vital because currently, there is no blueprint — it’s all up for grabs and we’re creating it as we go along.

Above all else, we need to find a way forward with using AI in the classroom to prepare students for their future, to be able to give them the tools to think critically and differentiate between facts from fabrication. We must cultivate an environment of critical thinkers who are not over-reliant on the AI’s ability to do the work for them.