AI Caveats.......

So today's blog is for some levity and some nerdy exploration lol:) A break from the heaviness found in this week and my life as of late......we did a training on AI for in service yesterday.....and as the technology relates to our profession, and shaping young minds.....and we all kinda bounce around.....and I mean that collectively....in all of our roles in our current society, without fully understanding the massive shifts that have taken place in our world, and really in technology specifically.....these changes having changed our world forever, and so completely.....and the reality is that the education system has some antiquated systems, that certainly need to be overhauled as the world changes.....that is true.....it is time to meet our kids where they live.....and the disconnect I think has been felt as our world transformed before and after Covid.....the divide growing larger.....so the speaker shared that AI is here to stay.....not going anywhere.....and as an older generation, it comes bearing some trepidation......I mean I am not sure it would make any sense to not have trepidation, when you think of the enormous implications that AI taking over our lives can bring.....that is true......we all watched "The Terminator" right :) and the fact remains that as our children grow, their experiences are different than ours....and they need to be prepared to live and thrive in this brave and wildly innovative world......and so having said all of that....I learned so much yesterday and got my own innovative wheels spinning, realizing some of the ways that it can be utilized that will absolutely be magnificent in education.......and in my own life.........arguably the greatest teaching tool ever in a lot of ways......and we just scratched the surface yesterday......however.....as with nearly everything, there was a struggle within me to grow to accept that this is where we are headed....and quickly....and that the system my daughter will experience as she continues schooling, will look very different than the one I experienced, and there is a deep panic that finds me sometimes to hang onto old fashioned ways.....having just reveled in my daughter's old fashioned summer, free of technology mostly........and I loved that for her, and I am an old fashioned gal, in so many ways....wanting to connect in real time.....face to face......grin to grin......eye to eye.....roaming the woods and visiting friends and family and chatting endlessly........and connecting with my students is what I love most about my job.....face to face, and so in discussing AI we all highlighted the importance of utilizing it as a TOOL......not a replacement of the human part of teaching and connection......and placing limits on its use within our classroom....realizing during Covid......the huge implications and impact on mental health that occurred when you take teachers away from kids.....and when they are so isolated.....bathing in technology, but starving for connection....so as we embark on this new world, we need to be so very mindful of the needs of all of us to remain connected....technology has been amazing in so many ways....but I know we can all name so many things that have suffered as a result of it too.....and resisting it all is not the way......but showing some discipline and mindfulness in how we embrace it is key I believe.....and to never use it as a substitute for getting our very human connection needs met.....coffee dates....parties with friends......dinner with our families.....all of it.....one application that I found so useful and practical was the ability to use Chatgpt, the voice version, to practice for an interview and receive feedback, or study for a test, or just learn about a nerdy topic that lights you up........or brainstorm, or the editing feature for people that may feel challenged by writing.....but it should never be used to substitute for a person's thoughts or experiences......that I truly believe......if we don't explore how WE think and AI generate our writing that would be a tragedy in every way......I am seeking to publish a book or perhaps a few books, that are written by me.....and as the world changes, I better get on it.....novels may become a lost art form, gulp.......and I would never use AI in my blog......never disrupting the authenticity of an experience, one that is solely my own......and the truth is, yesterday as I sat there, the understanding and implications came fast and furiously........highlighting some of what the next 10 years of education could look like.....that the last part of my career will look vastly different than the beginning part.....and that as with my entire life these days, I have to have a willingness to evolve and adapt to meet my students well and my life where it is headed.......despite my feelings, or my understanding of who I am.....just an old fashioned gal, seeking the simple pleasures in life on repeat....all of which don't require any technology at all.....we are all living in an interesting time.....that is for sure....and may we never lose our humanity to robots.......Amen