‘We nicknamed it Eddy’: what do schools and teachers think of AI in classrooms?
https://www.education.sa.gov.au/parents-and-families/curriculum-and-learning/ai/edchat
EdChat is a generative AI tool owned by the SA Department for Education, which was designed with Microsoft. It can be used in classrooms and at home. According to the department, it has “extra safety features” to protect students’ privacy and stop them accessing inappropriate content.
In the first phase of the trial, EdChat was used in eight SA government high schools for eight weeks. In the second phase, a further eight schools were included.
We have been evaluating the trial using survey data from about 90 teachers and 700 students. A journal article on this work is currently under review. In this article, we speak about our results from teachers.
‘It reduces time pressure’
Teachers told us they felt safer using EdChat than other tools such as ChatGPT, because student data is not being used to train generative AI models.
However, teachers still wanted to know more about how the student data is stored and who can access EdChat records.
Teachers also reported significant benefits of the tool. They said it helped save time developing lesson plans and learning materials – allowing for more time with students in the classroom.
One teacher told us how the tool had been adopted by the class.
We nicknamed it Eddy as a class and Eddy is now embedded as part of our class culture.
Teachers also used EdChat to provide personalised learning activities to students and “reduce time pressure and brain power required to create [teaching examples] and plan fun activities”. EdChat also allowed students to get personalised feedback or support when teachers were not around.
‘We need to be careful’
Teachers noted issues with hallucinations (when the AI comes up with nonsense) and incorrect information. This means students need to have the skills to recognise this.
As one teacher told us:
I think we need to be careful since students can treat AI like how they treat anything on the internet, without any critical thinking and taking it at face value.
They also said students need to learn to write better prompts and develop their critical thinking skills for working with AI.
They said content filters could also be challenging. While designed to keep students safe, they sometimes interfered with learning, especially for sensitive topics such as history, reproductive health or politics. For example, one history teacher said the “censorship was difficult to get around”.
Teachers also said it was more difficult to work out whether students’ work was plagiarised or not.
Here is ChatGPT description of the service:
EdChat is a dynamic online conversation platform primarily focused on education. It takes place on social media, particularly Twitter, and allows educators, administrators, and education advocates to engage in discussions about various topics in the field of education. Here’s a breakdown of its key features:
1. Weekly Chats
EdChat typically occurs weekly at a scheduled time, where participants gather to discuss specific educational themes or topics. Each session usually revolves around predetermined questions, allowing for structured yet open conversations.
2. Hashtags
Discussions are organized using a specific hashtag (commonly #EdChat), making it easy for participants to follow the conversation, contribute their thoughts, and connect with others interested in the same topics.
3. Global Participation
One of the strengths of EdChat is its ability to connect educators from around the world. This diverse participation brings in a variety of perspectives, enriching the dialogue and providing a broader understanding of educational issues.
4. Professional Development
EdChat serves as a form of professional development, where educators can share best practices, innovative ideas, and resources. Participants often leave with new strategies and insights that they can apply in their own classrooms.
5. Community Building
The platform fosters a sense of community among educators. Participants often build relationships, collaborate, and support one another beyond the chat sessions, creating a network of professionals dedicated to improving education.
6. Variety of Topics
Discussions can range widely, covering subjects such as teaching strategies, technology integration, classroom management, curriculum development, and educational policy, among others.
In essence, EdChat is an engaging way for educators to connect, share, and learn from one another in the fast-evolving landscape of education.
Whether EdChat is a "good thing" for public schools depends on several factors:
Benefits of Implementing EdChat in Public Schools:
- Professional Development for Teachers: EdChats often serve as great platforms for teachers to exchange ideas, resources, and best practices. It can improve teacher collaboration and professional development.
- Student Engagement: An EdChat platform for students could promote more engagement with learning materials by encouraging collaboration, reflection, and discussion, even outside of class hours.
- Community Building: Parents, educators, and students can all participate in discussions, fostering a stronger sense of community within the school.
- Real-Time Problem Solving: Teachers or students can use these chats to resolve issues quickly, share resources, and find new teaching or learning strategies.
- Global Learning: Many EdChats connect people worldwide, exposing teachers and students to new perspectives and innovative ideas in education.
Potential Drawbacks or Challenges:
- Distraction: If not properly monitored, students might get distracted from academic discussions and veer into irrelevant or inappropriate topics.
- Equity and Accessibility: Not all students may have equal access to devices or internet at home, leading to inequities in participation.
- Oversight and Management: Monitoring EdChats to ensure they remain productive and appropriate might require additional time and resources from educators or administrators.
- Digital Safety and Privacy: Ensuring that student data remains private and that students are safe online is a critical concern. Schools would need robust policies and platforms designed with security in mind.
Is it a good fit for public schools?
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If well-structured and monitored, EdChats can be highly beneficial in promoting collaboration and engagement among students, teachers, and parents. However, successful implementation requires:
- Clear guidelines on how to use the platform.
- Monitoring systems to prevent misuse.
- Ensuring digital equity.
Public schools that can address these concerns may find EdChat to be a valuable addition to their learning environment.