Screens and digital technology have infiltrated every aspect of daily life from our jobs to our children’s schooling.
There is no subject we can’t tackle without the help of the mighty search engine, and our kids know that.
Advanced systems software has opened up a world of opportunity and information to our children than earlier generations could ever dream of – but can it go too far?
Artificial intelligence (AI) used to be something most people only saw in movies.
From the first AI film in 1927, “Metropolis”, where a humanoid wreaks havoc on a city, to the popular Will Smith film, “I, Robot”, the futuristic machines were viewed as something to be feared.
Now we are seeing AI in practical life situations like the self-driving Tesla Model S, and everybody’s favorite, Siri on the iPhone.
Scientists can’t get enough of this fascinating field and continue to push the boundaries of societal norms, exploring areas to put their lab experiments to good use.
But there are some areas of life that are just designed for the human mind…or should be.
Chatbots are now making their way into our children’s education.
The AI will actually complete students’ homework assignments – including entire essays!
Peter Laffin, founder of Crush the College Essay and writing coach, tells Fox News:
“The introduction of new artificial intelligence technologies into schools that enables students to auto-generate essays has the capacity to blow up our entire writing education curriculum.”
“It may make us have to rethink it from the ground up, and that might ultimately be a good thing.”
Shocking new AI chatbots, like the ChatGPT by tech company OpenAI, will go as far as “answering open-ended analytical questions, draft marketing pitches, write jokes, poems, or even computer code,” Fox News unveils.
As if parents needed another source to program their children’s thinking and sense of humor!
How will teachers be able to distinguish between a student’s authentic homework assignment versus one generated by AI?
The truth of the matter is they won’t.
The program is designed to avoid plagiarism and appear unique.
Laffin told Fox News his concerns regarding this:
“I do believe that students will be able to use this technology undetected to complete assignments.”
“It’s going to be increasingly difficult for teachers to be able to tell the difference.”
Now of course a teacher would easily be suspicious if an otherwise failing student suddenly turned in an exceptional essay, or a student who frequently uses a particular word or phrase suddenly no longer used it in their writing…
But most students will slip under the radar and suffer the repercussions as a result.
Yes, kids will get through school – with passing grades – but won’t be able to apply the concepts of what they were taught. This will make it almost impossible for them to pursue higher education and will severely limit their career options.
It would be nice if kids were too good to take advantage of ChatGPT, but that isn’t the case – in the first month of launching the AI, one million users had signed up for the program.
Of course, it doesn’t help that they made the interface super user-friendly – and free!
Kids are often a step ahead of teachers when it comes to technology (if not several steps ahead).
Perhaps presenting the long-term repercussions this AI technology will have on their future will give students the opportunity to make an informed decision and not choose the easy route.
Do you think there’s a way to avoid the presence of AI in our children’s education?
And what will come of the education system as a stronger digital presence makes its way into the classroom?