Artificial intelligence is becoming increasingly influential in our everyday lives. It can write anything with a single prompt, recommend music or movies, drive cars, and recognize faces. Experts predict that in the coming years AI will be used in even more aspects of people鈥檚 lives.
Such predictions concern students and teachers. Nearly half of educators who responded to a recent EdWeek Research Center survey said AI would have a negative or very negative impact on teaching and learning in the next five years. A recent survey from nonprofit Junior Achievement found that 66 percent of teens are concerned they may not be able to find a good job as adults because of artificial intelligence.
In hosted by language learning platform Memrise, five ed-tech company founders discussed how artificial intelligence will likely change what and how students will learn in school. All five companies are using artificial intelligence in their products and services.
The panelists were Josh W枚hle, the CEO and co-founder of online learning platform Mindstone; Patricia Scanlon, the founder and executive chair of SoapBox Labs, which develops voice recognition software for children; Sarah Touzani, the CEO and co-founder of Waggle, an AI co-pilot for managers; Raza Habib, the CEO & co-founder of Humanloop, which develops tools to make it easier for companies to adopt AI technology; and Ben Whately, the co-founder and chief strategy officer of Memrise.
What skills will be worth learning in an AI-powered world?
For W枚hle, students will need to focus on honing their soft skills, or interpersonal attributes, to prepare for future jobs.
鈥淭he evolution of software engineering in the last 15 years can give us a window to understand what the evolution in other knowledge-intensive disciplines might look like in the next two or three [years],鈥� W枚hle said.
In the early years of software engineering, someone鈥檚 ability to code granted them higher status in the job market. But now, the ability to code isn鈥檛 in the 鈥渢op five鈥� skills that chief technology officers are looking for, W枚hle said.
The top three skills that CTOs are looking for when they鈥檙e hiring software engineers are the ability to learn, the ability to problem solve, and the ability to collaborate, according to W枚hle.
鈥淎s we move towards a world where we have all of these [AI] tools, those are some of the core skills that will enable you to differentiate yourself in the workplace,鈥� he said.
How is student testing and assessment likely to change?
Some educators who responded to a recent EdWeek Research Center survey said they鈥檙e worried that AI-powered technologies might hinder students鈥� ability to think critically and that these tools might make it easier for students to complete assignments without really learning anything.
Because of the capabilities of artificial intelligence, schools will need to rethink how they evaluate student learning, according to the panelists.
鈥淭he classroom really hasn鈥檛 changed that much,鈥� said Scanlon, 鈥渘either has assessment in a very long time. It鈥檚 time.鈥�
Schools need to assess 鈥渋n a more dynamic way, as opposed to static summative assessments or submission of essays,鈥� Scanlon said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e going to have to really get imaginative about how we assess.鈥�
For some grade levels, assessments could look more like a Ph.D. defense, where students show what they learned, Scanlon said.
Schools could also blend assessments into the background, she said. For example, with some speech recognition technologies, early elementary teachers can assess students鈥� language learning and reading skills by listening to students interact with each other.
Assessments are important, because educators need to know whether a student is progressing or if they need a little bit of intervention, Scanlon said. But assessments don鈥檛 have to look like kids sitting in front of a computer or at their desk with pen and paper.
鈥淢y vision for the future for assessment would be: Kids don鈥檛 know they鈥檙e being assessed but they鈥檙e practicing, they鈥檙e interacting, they鈥檙e being playful,鈥� Scanlon said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 engaging, it鈥檚 fun, it鈥檚 dynamic, but we鈥檙e still progressing along.鈥�
