Podcast: Eight Key Questions Educators Should Ask About AI (full presentation)

This podcast is of a presentation I recently gave to 800 educators on Eight Key Questions Educators Should Ask About AI¹. Educators will play a central role in how society deals with AI because it radically disrupts how knowledge development, transmission and assessment occur. These are all central to the work of educators.

I based the presentation on eight questions that I think educators should be asking about AI. This presentation is not a technical discussion of which AI systems you should use. With different versions of chatbots and other AI systems, things are moving so fast that any talk at that level will rapidly become outdated. Instead, this podcast focuses on helping educators orient themselves toward AI in education. This is important for getting the most from AI now and in the future. I have listed the questions I answer in the podcast below.

The 6-minute video you can also watch if listening to this podcast

I created a 6-minute video for the presentation outlining where AI is at the moment by looking at the skills that AI has developed so far. One of the points I make in the podcast is that the best way to look at AI is that it is an entity that has come into our world (think of it as a sort of new ‘species,’ if you will). Its developers are progressively ‘upskilling’ AI month by month.

The eight key questions for educators about AI covered in the podcast

• Are we currently talking about AI in the right way; what’s the best way of thinking about how it is developing?
  No, we need a new language to talk about AI at a strategic, educational, social, and psychological level rather than just at a technological level.

• Is AI ‘intelligent’ or ‘sentient’, will it take over? We should be looking at what AI can do, not whether it is the same as us.

• Why are educators central to any discussion of AI? Because AI radically disrupts knowledge development, transmission and assessment—all key elements of education.

• How can you educate for the future when no one knows what it will look like? Not easy, but we should think in terms of AI ‘What Ifs’.

• Will AI make going to school pointless, and what will its impact be on teaching? There is likely to still be a key roles for teachers.

• What will be AI's impact on inequality? If implemented correctly, AI could assist with reducing at least some aspects of educational inequality.

• How can I personally cope with AI? Use the CHILL tool which sets out five steps to dealing with getting to grips with AI and dealing with any anxiety that AI might create for people.

1. Duignan, P. W. (20224). Eight Key Questions Educators Should Be Asking About AI. LoopEd Teacher Professional Development Conference. Wellington, NZ. 31 May 2024