How students learn
and where does AI fit into this picture?
Recent conversations with school leaders have reignited the important question of how students learn. Not just the nuts and bolts of what approach works best - rows vs pods, individual vs group, lecture vs discovery, test vs project, and more - but how AI fits into our current model of education. I spent 25 years in the classroom, and one thing I’ve learned is that once you think you have things figured out, things change - maybe the students, parenting styles, community expectations, curriculum standards, or even you as a teacher.
That said, I think there are general statements or principles that are true about learning, and I want to explore how AI can help or hinder student learning. Here are some things that I think are true about “how students learn”, and I encourage each of you to formulate your (or your school’s) own list:
there is a difference between learning and achievement; we love to root for students who are successful at both, and we often take credit for those who achieve without having to put in the heavy lifting.
learning happens when you are forced to wrestle with ideas and concepts that you were previously unaware of, or at least unaware of the connections between the ideas or concepts. This can be hard work for students and teachers, but the aha moments are priceless.
while some learning is paradigm changing, most of the learning done in schools is incremental; it builds on what you learned yesterday, last week, a few months ago, last year, or in another subject. We spend a lot of time building the foundation of a subject, which gives students the tools to explore at deeper levels.
some students learn new concepts and can apply them immediately; however, many students need several kicks at the can - review the next day(s), practice, do an assignment, take a quiz or test, etc. Circling back to a new concept gives it time to settle more firmly into your mind - like that song from the radio when you were 12 years old … and still know the lyrics to!
students need to have time to reflect on their own learning, to see how and where it fits into the many things they already know; they also need opportunities to think about their learning in different ways - writing/drawing, speaking, tutoring a classmate, even through kinesthetic activities.
it’s hard to do things like project-based or holistic learning because there are so many things that need to be taught at the same time; there is a level of knowledge that students need to know before they can wrestle with “real-world problems” that we introduce in the curriculum. In a very real sense they need to learn the language of the discipline before they can speak to a complex issue.
When I think of how AI might (or WILL) impact education, I need to consider the impacts on the PROCESS of learning. Questions like:
if AI can do the heavy lifting, where does the student learn to wrestle with ideas or new/challenging concepts?
will students lose their ability to think creatively and critically if there is an over reliance on AI tools?
do we still call it learning if AI makes it possible for students to disengage during class and still achieve at a high level? I’m aware that this has always happened in some shape or form, but AI seems to raise this to a new level.
will students examine alternate viewpoints, or look for solutions or examples that are outliers, when AI tends to package their questions so neat and tidy? What about considering the experiences, tradition, or culture of others?
how about idea generation? AI can generate dozens of high quality ideas for your essay, project, research, presentation, and writing. But if part of LEARNING is brainstorming ideas and then examining which ideas might warrant further investigation, isn’t AI short circuiting that process?
Here are some suggestions for starting points that MIGHT help you to keep your focus on the processes of learning. I expect you will have your own, or at least add to this list. I am confident that students will be using AI in their future education, in their careers, and tasks that we can’t even imagine now. AI is not a passing fad, and AI tools will only get better in the future. So there is an expectation that schools help students navigate the changing landscape.
teachers should explain how they make use of AI to their students, rather than treating it as a secret sauce that is “for me but not for thee”. Explain how you decide what to do on your own and what to hand off to AI so that students see you wrestling with new ideas in real time.
where students are learning a new skill or concept, use AI to review and solidify their knowledge. Use AI to investigate examples or analogies that you might not have class time for. Start by doing this as a whole class, so that students learn how to get the best response to their questions.
for learning a second language or to investigate another culture, have the AI interact as a person from that language or culture. You’ll be surprised when your student learns vocabulary and traditions like they would from a pen pal.
stop treating the AI like it’s a villain - it’s not. The AI is friendly, endlessly patient, helpful, and well-intentioned. It’s not out to get you and it has no hidden agenda.
where an assignment is on analysis or synthesis, have the AI collect relevant information that the students can use; where the assignment is on data collection, have the AI do analysis - have it look for patterns, or for connections that might not be obvious. It’s possible to have AI do some of the heavy lifting some of the time.
AI makes it possible to create a personalized learning plan for each student, based on their strengths, weaknesses, and the types of learning that they prefer (or struggle with). You might even have the AI help students figure out what type of learner they are; give a few starting points and then have students share how they fine-tuned the questions and whether or not they agree with the results.
test review - have a competition to see who can get the AI to create the best review activity for a specific unit.
have student design the rubric for an assessment activity after discussing the learning objectives and success criteria. Engage students in the process of learning and they will likely surprise you.
accessibility - last, but certainly not least. You need something rewritten at a 5th grade (or 11th grade) level? Easy. You need questions that are based on recall of information, or on analysis? You want to transcribe and summarize a classroom lesson for a student that has an IEP or a disability? AI can do that too. Just ask.
As I noted in a previous post, about 70% of students are already using AI to help with school work. In the absence of teacher instruction and involvement, students will develop poor habits with AI use - they will use it to replace important parts of the learning process, rather than using it to complement their learning. We want students to develop in the areas of critical thinking and problem solving, collaboration and communication, creativity and innovation, adaptability and life-long learning, and we want to give them the 21st century skills that will help them succeed.
Please share your stories and your questions.
That’s all for now,
Cheers,
-Rick