Professor Laura McLaughlin helped ten local teachers explore the ethical and effective uses of artificial intelligence in the classroom this summer.
In a special topics graduate course titled Educational Leadership in the Age of AI, McLaughlin led a mix of elementary and secondary educators in an examination of how AI can be used to enhance instruction, support student learning, and inform decision-making. Her students explored emerging AI tools and designed a culminating project that applies AI in a teaching context.
The course is part of the MS in Ed Teaching and Learning program.
“AI is a hot topic in their schools,” McLaughlin notes. “Some districts provide training, and some don’t. Some have policies, some don’t. We discussed issues and introduced them to a variety of AI tools.”
Artificial intelligence is “a game changer for educators who have so many things on their plate,” she says. It can help create lesson plans, connect those plans to required standards, and suggest accommodations for students with learning differences. Teachers still have to execute the lessons, but AI is a time saver.
Potential pitfalls of AI –that it encourages cheating and downplays critical-thinking skills – were “less of a concern with pre-K through 12 teachers,” who were focused on using the tools to increase student engagement and creativity.
Final projects included teaching their students how to use AI and Canva to create posters about animals, creating a historical character to act as a chatbot, writing an outline of a presentation about the Lenape tribe, and creating an AI tutor to practice Spanish.
"AI is here to stay,” concludes McLaughlin. “We can’t ignore it.”
Through the Center for Teaching Excellence, she is offering Harnessing AI in Higher Education, a professional development session for faculty and staff, starting on October 1.