Generative AI as a Learning Technology
I wrote this blog post early in the ChatGPT-era (May 2023) to help college instructors think a little differently about generative AI. Instead of thinking of AI as doing the work of learning for students, might there be clever ways to use AI to actually enhance student learning?
When I was learning photography, there was a lot of conceptual learning about light and depth of field and composition but also learning how to use my digital camera, what all the knobs and buttons did. As I experimented with taking pictures, my use of the camera helped sharpen my understanding of the relevant concepts of photography. And my better understanding of those concepts in turn informed the ways I used the knobs and buttons on the camera to take better photos.