Hello everyone!
What an incredibly informed and balanced discussion of ChatGPT and its ilk! I have really enjoyed reading these posts and will be following up on many of the links shared.
I agree that it is concerning that there seem to be two extreme responses to this evolution; head in the sand or jumping in the deep end. What I am most concerned about is the way that so much conversation centres around ChatGPT as it exists today. While it is great that some teachers are taking the intiative and playing in this space, to spend extensive time designing very specific ways to use the tool seems to me to be missing the point…that the free iteration of ChatGPT we are working with is just a very brief pitstop along the way. I’m definitely not suggesting we avoid using the tool completely – however I’d rather the debate, time and energy be devoted to the bigger picture – taking a step back to ask ‘how might this evolving technology impact not just single lessons or assessment tasks, but teaching and learning in general?’ ‘What are the ethical implications of using these tools and how do we prepare our students (and fellow teachers) to use them in an informed and balanced way?’ ‘What are our responsibilities as educators to walk the line between building students’ skills in using technologies and building students’ capacities to problemsolve and think deeply and critically without technologies (e.g. exercise their human brains rather than their digital brains)?’
There may not even be answers to these questions, and I believe having read your discussions that you are all thinking along the same lines, but I do think this is where the Teacher Librarian/School Librarian can really take a leading role – being freed to encourage the bigger picture thinking that teachers who are tied down to specific curricula may not have as much opportunity to undertake. It seems to me that AI is not something we will become competent in – we will never understand what’s happening inside the black box – but it is something we can encourage a spirit of inquiry about, and an ongoing questioning and challenging rather than just accepting everything presented at face value.
That’s just my personal thinking at this stage. I’m hoping to initiate some research, and have been asked to write and present on this topic, so I am really looking forward to learning more, and have already learnt from your generously shared thoughts in this forum!
My colleagues and I will be attending IASL in Rome, and I’m really looking forward to meeting you in person and having some great chats about this and other school library related topics – I think we can build a strong international network :).
Warm regards,
Kay.
