How to Deal With AI in Your High School Classroom: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Imagine having a personal assistant that can help you grade papers, answer student questions, and present complex concepts to your class with ease. This is what AI (Artificial Intelligence) promises to do in the classroom. 

However, while the benefits of AI are undeniable, there are still challenges that must be addressed to ensure that the technology is used ethically and responsibly. 

In this blog post, we will discuss the challenges of AI in the classroom and how you can address them.

What Are the Challenges of AI in the Classroom?

Before diving into the ways AI can be used for good (not evil!) in the classroom, let’s take a look at some of the challenges it poses. 

Plagiarism

One challenge of AI in the classroom is that it can be used to facilitate plagiarism. Students who use AI-powered writing tools can quickly produce essays and papers that are plagiarized. 

While these tools promise to save students time and effort, they can also undermine the very purpose of writing assignments, which is to teach students how to think critically and express themselves in their own words. 

Ethics

Another challenge of AI in the classroom is ethics. AI can be programmed to collect data on students and their learning habits. However, this data collection raises questions regarding data privacy, consent, and ownership. 

Bias/Misinformation

AI systems are only as good as the data they are trained on. This means that if the data is biased, the AI system will also be biased. Bias can lead to AI systems making incorrect assumptions or decisions, which can be particularly concerning in educational settings where AI is used to guide student learning. 

How to Prevent Students from Cheating with AI

Cheating has become a widespread problem in academia, and teachers are constantly looking for ways to prevent students from cheating. The emergence of artificial intelligence (AI) has both intensified and complicated this issue. 

However, instead of viewing AI as a threat, educators can use it as a tool to outsmart cheating students. Here are some tips. 

1. Reflect With Students About the Threats and Opportunities of AI

Incorporating discussions about AI in your classroom can be an effective way to raise awareness of its potential applications, such as face recognition software and online proctoring tools that are used to prevent cheating. 

You can also highlight the challenges faced by AI and how it can be biased when used improperly. Encouraging these conversations can help students understand how AI is used and appreciate its benefits if used ethically.

2. Try it for Yourself 

Try AI tools out yourself to understand their limitations and how they can be manipulated. 

By doing so, you’ll also become more familiar with the tools used to detect plagiarism, which will enable you to spot signs of cheating more efficiently.

3. Revise Your Assignments to Require a More Personal Touch 

Creating assignments that involve critical thinking, creativity, or originality is one of the most effective ways to prevent cheating. This will require students to apply what they’ve learned and have a unique perspective that can’t be replicated by copy-pasting from online resources. 

Designing assignments that encourage open thinking rather than regurgitation of material can also help foster collaboration and independent thought. 

4. Consider Data and Privacy Policies

Before implementing AI in your classroom to detect cheating, be sure to review all data and privacy policies before starting. Privacy policies will give information that you must and must not do when watching over students. 

Verify that the AI service you’re choosing is following these policies – they can give you the confidence to integrate AI into your classroom. It is also important to inform students of the data that is being collected and how it will be used to prevent cheating.

5. Get More Hands-On

Gone are the days of stagnant lectures that put students to sleep, making it easy for them to cheat. Engage your students with more hands-on activities and group projects that require participation, creativity, and critical thinking. 

These kinds of activities will not only discourage cheating but also foster learning in a way that students enjoy.

6. Monitor Students during Work Time

One of the easiest ways for students to cheat is during exam-free periods. During such times, students can use AI to look up answers or collaborate with others.

It’s absolutely necessary tto monitor your students and make sure they are staying on task during work time and not using AI for evil. Setting up visual cues and dividing the classroom into work-stations will help avoid such behavior.

7. Consider Handwriting Whenever possible

AI’s anti-cheating technology tools can detect plagiarism, but what about when students copy-paste work that has already been submitted? 

Allow for handwritten work whenever possible instead of electronic submissions, and design the exam so that a person would be unable to replicate it using Google. These checks make it nearly impossible to cheat, and students will be less confident attempting it in the first place.

8. Encourage Student Collaboration

Collaboration is a powerful tool that helps students learn and grow. By encouraging students to work together, they build mutual trust and learn from one another while avoiding cheating as they hold one another accountable. 

Teachers can encourage group work and assign students to various groups to make sure everyone participates evenly.

How Can AI Be Used in Schools?

AI has become a hot topic in education as it opens up new opportunities for learning and teaching. Let’s take a look at a few of the ways in which it can be used.

Emphasize the Importance of the Human Touch

While AI technology is up and coming, it’s important to note that we still need the human touch in education. Teachers have the ability to connect with their students on a personal level and create a safe learning environment where students can thrive. 

AI should be used as a tool to aid teachers, making their jobs easier and more efficient, not replacing them entirely. Emphasize the importance of the human touch in your teaching practices to make sure your students reach their full potential with the help of AI.

Design Your Assessments and Assignments Around AI

AI technology offers more access to information and metrics that can be used to personalize each student’s learning experience. 

For instance, analytical algorithms can help teachers analyze what their students know and adjust their lessons accordingly. AI can also be used to grade multiple-choice questions, saving teachers time and increasing the reliability of assessments.

Continuously Research AI Opportunities and Challenges 

AI technology is still evolving in the education sector. As such, it would be wise to keep track of AI’s opportunities and applications in the classroom. 

Familiarize yourself with a range of AI tools and algorithms to help you make decisions concerning AI technology. There are numerous successful case studies and examples of how AI in schools has benefitted students and teachers. Also, be aware of the challenges so that you can avoid these issues.

Keep the Benefits in Mind

AI’s potential uses in teaching go beyond just time and resources. It can open up a whole new world of opportunities for education. By personalizing a student’s education with the help of AI, you can create an environment that challenges and encourages them to succeed. 

With AI, students can have immediate and substantive feedback that can improve their learning skills and even improve their participation in a classroom setting. In any case, if AI is being used for assessing or recording student performance, it has the potential to improve the overall accuracy and veracity of teacher grading.

Use it to Showcase the Importance of Critical Thinking

One of the greatest benefits of using AI in the classroom is that it can help promote critical thinking skills among students. 

AI technologies can be used to create interactive and engaging learning experiences that require students to use their problem-solving skills. For instance, using AI-powered quiz applications that present students with multiple-choice questions often forces them to think about and justify their answers. 

Teachers can also use AI-powered chatbots and virtual assistants to help students improve their communication and thinking skills, learning from the data gathered along the way.

Partner With a Reliable AI Provider

School districts must make sure that they are investing in quality AI technology that meets their specific needs, provides value for money, and has an excellent reputation. Site visits, demonstrations, and extensive reviews can be helpful in determining the right provider. 

Fortunately, there are now a lot of AI providers that offer solutions tailored specifically to the education sector.

Use it to Automate More Time-Consuming Tasks

In addition to enhancing student learning, AI can help educators save time. 

Teachers can leverage AI-powered tools such as grading software, attendance monitoring tools, and personalized feedback systems, which can save significant amounts of time. 

With AI-powered tools, teachers spend less time grading and more time planning and teaching, which results in better outcomes for students.

Try it for More Differentiated, Individualized Learning

One of the best things about AI in education is the potential for personalized learning, which is essential in ensuring students have equitable access to educational resources. With AI-powered teaching tools, it is possible to create tailored learning experiences to suit each student’s needs. 

For instance, AI-powered adaptive learning platforms can adjust their content and pace to suit individual students’ learning styles, abilities, interests, and ambitions.

Use AI for Tutoring and Academic Support Outside of the Classroom

AI-powered tutoring systems can also provide students with academic support outside of the classroom. With AI-powered tutoring systems, students can get additional help for difficult topics, especially in times when schools are closed due to a pandemic. 

Teachers can assign AI-powered tutoring systems for homework to avoid missed learning opportunities. When AI commands are intelligent enough, they can help to catch even small knowledge gaps in real time to provide better support.

The Takeaway

AI in the classroom is not something to be feared. 

Instead, it should be viewed as an essential tool to improve teaching and learning. Time has proven that education systems that evolve with emerging technologies gain a competitive edge in shaping and propelling the student populace to the next level. 

However, educators must be vigilant and look out for warning signs that could potentially result in a compromise in teaching standards or undermine students’ privacy. 

With these considerations in mind, the future looks bright and prosperous for AI in the classroom.