Blog Post 5

     

    Believe it or not, this is actually my second class using blogging. In a previous class, we used WordPress. It was a very interesting process, but honestly, I enjoy Blogger much more. Blogger has a lot more features, it is easier to use, and you do not have to pay for core features like you did in WordPress. As for what I have learned so far, I am most amused by learning how Blogger puts all of the blogs together. WordPress keeps everything separate, so learning how to put all of the blogs together on Blogger was a game-changer for me. Something else I learned, which is kind of small, is the use of sharing URLs on Blogger. WordPress URLs are different from the ones in Blogger, so that was challenging but fun.

    As for AI in education, I am somewhat in the middle. I certainly do believe that AI is a very useful tool in the classroom. It can help with lesson planning, organization, fresh ideas, and so much more. However, I worry about the dependency on it. It is okay to refer to AI for support, but to completely depend on it is unacceptable. Children observe their teachers, and if they see teachers using AI for everything, so will they. This is shown today in how many students are using AI to do their work, fill out their resumes, college applications, and so much more. AI is a fascinating tool that should be used as a support tool, but when it is abused, learning can be hindered, and this is a serious and foreseeable problem today and in the future. But if we can use AI for its intended purpose, I have no quarrels with it in the slightest.

    When I used Generative AI, it was amazing. It still amazes me what AI can come up with in such a short period of time. I asked ChatGPT to write my lesson plan, and it gave me a lot of information. Some of the ideas were good, some were bad, a few were too vague, and others were not. I asked it to be a little more specific and not too complex. All in all, it was a pretty cool thing to watch. If I could change anything about my lines of questioning, I would already jot down a few ideas or lesson plans of my own and ask ChatGPT to expand on those ideas.

    I would definitely use Generative AI in my teaching courses. But I would use it in a way to assist me in projects or make complicated concepts easier. I would use it as a tool, and I would not depend on it. As for how I would use it with my students, first, I would be sure they could manage well without it. Then, towards the end of the year, I would introduce AI and teach them how to properly use it. I would teach them to use it in ways that help their brains work, rather than in ways that allow it to do the work for them. If I found out any of my students were using AI in ways that were unethical, I would cancel the project. It is very important to me that students use technology in the way that it is supposed to be used.