By Heather Stapleton
How do we shift from remediation to unlocking human potential? Can AI help scale compassion and wisdom? How do we bring awe and wonder back into learning? What core values, principles, and questions spark curiosity and creativity in students?
These are the questions, among others, that we are exploring at Inner Strength, in our own discussions and in some Future of Education dialogues with other leading educators and thinkers. BTW, the first live Future of Education event will be on April 17 in NYC at Tibet House, featuring leaders Jon Kabat-Zinn and Robert Thurman and moderated by Inner Strength’s own Amy Edelstein. Join by webstream or live, more info here!)
Of all the questions presented by the changing landscape of education, I am most fascinated by the potential role of artificial intelligence (AI) in helping to teach compassion and wisdom in the classroom. I will admit that at first I was skeptical. I wasn’t sure that AI belonged in the classroom at all. Doesn’t AI allow students to bypass their own learning by quickly producing answers– even entire essays– with just a few simple prompts typed into ChatGPT? As any high school English teacher will tell you, yes, AI can do that. But what if the power of AI could be harnessed in a completely different way? The answer to this question might be limited only by our collective imagination.
Consider one possibility: What if AI could create environments that would allow teachers to do more of what they are uniquely capable of doing? What if AI could be used to enhance, rather than replace, meaningful human interaction by shifting teachers’ roles from basic knowledge transmitters to curators of holistic learning experiences? If AI were used for tasks such as lesson selection, content delivery, and basic assessment, teachers could be freed-up to focus on broader, more nuanced aspects of education, such as the ability to make good judgments in complex, context-dependent situations and the transmission of secular values. In such a model, there would be no danger of computers taking over teachers’ jobs because teachers would focus on the uniquely human aspects of teaching; the work of fostering socio-emotional skills, sparking creativity and motivation, and providing mentorship.
Even if AI could be used to create individualized, perfectly matched programs that could understand any given student better than a human can, there are many situations where those AI teachers would not be desirable. Having the perfect teacher would deprive students of the healthy stress (i.e., learning) that results from the process of seeking to understand another human being. For example, a student with a perfectly matched AI teacher would never need to ask for clarification concerning an assignment. Therefore, there would be no opportunity for a human teacher and student to engage in the dynamic process that occurs when there is a misunderstanding between two people. Did the teacher misspeak? Did the student mishear? Is there a processing issue going on? Cultural difference? There is inherent value in the sometimes difficult and imperfect process of two humans communicating to find common understanding. It is in this space– the fostering of human-to-human bonds of care and common purpose– where human teachers are singularly valuable.
To be sure, the emergence of AI technology presents very real challenges, including protecting the privacy of students’ data, as well as identifying and correcting algorithmic bias. But exciting opportunities exist as well. In considering how to best use AI in the classroom to augment human intelligence and connection, we are invited to explore, in a new way, one of humanity’s oldest and most fundamental questions: what makes us uniquely human?
