Latest news with #AIinEducation
CBC
2 days ago
- Science
- CBC
AI and social media are an inescapable part of teens' lives. But at what cost?
Social Sharing Adam Davidson-Harden is admittedly a latecomer to appreciating William Shakespeare, but the Ontario high school teacher now likens studying the Bard to "lifting weights, for language." He said he worries that mental muscles aren't getting a workout these days if students lean on shortcuts like generative artificial intelligence for schoolwork. When Davidson-Harden queried a student about a recent assignment on The Tempest that included a non-existent quote, the student admitted to using GenAI "to avoid the messy and slower process" of sifting through the play, the English and social studies teacher from Kingston, Ont., said. That student lost a valuable opportunity, he said: engaging with the content, formulating an opinion, finding support for their perspective and stringing together sentences to express it. "If students or teachers overrely on GenAI to perform tasks that involve thinking critically for them ... they're losing an opportunity to improve their skills and to think creatively." Technology is an integral part of schooling today, but when students use ChatGPT to complete assignments or scroll TikTok to research topics, what's happening to their cognitive skills? Concern that dependency on technologies like generative AI and social media will impact young people's thinking and development has some educators urging caution. In schools, "foundational opportunities to mess around with language and think and react and explore should be insulated," Davidson-Harden said. An early adopter of educational technology who now teaches online, he said certain tools have been beneficial, yet "we've now reached a point where ... bland technology acceptance is maybe not the right move." 'Difficulty with focus and concentration' Childhood is a sensitive period of development "where we're gaining a lot of foundational skills," said Emma Duerden, an associate professor in the faculty of education at Western University in London, Ont., and Canada Research Chair in Neuroscience and Learning Disorders. When we spend large amounts of time doing something — whether it's playing tennis or studying German — it influences our thinking and behaviour, she said. If you're scrolling social media apps for three, eight or even 12 hours a day — as some Western students admitted to in response to a recent study by Duerden's team — it can be a problem for young brains. "We're seeing university-age kids that are having difficulty with focus and concentration because they're always used to scrolling and to getting information quite rapidly," she said. Endless social scrolling — including split screens that jam ever more content into frames — could be considered similar to the divided attention brought on by multitasking, Duerden said. WATCH | Why teens can struggle with cutting down on social media: "Doing two or three things all at the same time, where people have the psychological impression that they're getting more done ... is associated with high levels of mental fatigue," she said. Multitasking triggers the release of reward chemicals in the brain — one of which is dopamine. Too much "can in turn lead to a kind of state of confusion [and] brain fog," Duerden said. "Long-term multitasking is actually associated with cognitive difficulties later on." Social media can benefit students by making connections or exposing them to new content or ideas, the researcher said, but she urges keen attention to its overuse, which can lead to harmful effects like increased anxiety. GenAI is another technology the education community is grappling with, as enterprising students flock to it and educators seek guidance and training, while researchers explore whether the convenience it allows for can impact the development of critical thinking or have consequences on recall and other cognitive activity. Cognitive offloading — using an external aid to support an internal process, like scribbling a shopping list on a piece of paper instead of remembering it — isn't new, but the use of GenAI to do so is being hotly debated. When offloading, the idea is you free up mental resources to be redirected elsewhere, but there can be costs. What if, for instance, you lose that slip of paper or the GPS directing your driving route loses its connection? WATCH | Teachers seek direction on how to use AI in the classroom: Teachers seeking instruction on AI in the classroom 28 days ago As artificial intelligence becomes a more popular tool, many teachers in Canada are looking for clearer instructions and policies on how to use it effectively in the classroom. Replacing skills with a tool can mean losing them "For those kinds of skills that require that kind of intentional effort to develop and maybe even practise, replacing those activities with a tool may put us in a position where we're not developing [them]," said Evan Risko, a professor in the University of Waterloo's psychology department and Canada Research Chair in Embodied and Embedded Cognition. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, Risko said, since offloading may result in losing some cognitive skills, but it paves the way to developing new ones. What's key, however, is how that newly freed-up mental capacity is used. "The hope is that our students can use [GenAI applications] productively ... and use them in a critical manner, right? To think hard about what the tool is doing well and what the tool is not doing so well." Joel Heng Hartse, a senior lecturer in the faculty of education at Simon Fraser University who leads a program teaching new students academic reading and writing, said he believes educators must underline how GenAI actually works and "let a student know, 'Hey, this isn't like a fact machine. This is a probability machine,'" he said from Burnaby, B.C. While he said it too early to tell if ChatGPT and its ilk have impacted young minds or learning capabilities, his students have nonetheless shared that they feel "lazier now because they know they can take shortcuts with AI," he said. If more students turn to GenAI for writing, Heng Hartse worries about a flattening of opinions as fewer students practise expressing their unique voice, which he considers the very point of learning to write, read through texts and construct arguments to support one's views. WATCH | Perfect papers aren't what this writing teacher wants to see: Why this instructor values struggle and 'friction' in his students' learning 4 minutes ago Joel Heng Hartse, who oversees a Simon Fraser University program teaching academic literacy to new students, talks about why he's not looking for perfect papers. "In academia, we want friction. We want struggling with difficult things. So are [students] losing their abilities to do these things? I think they're making choices — some of them — to not develop those skills," he said. Like Ontario teacher Davidson-Harden, Heng Hartse also used a weight-training analogy for emphasis. "If the goal is the weights need to be lifted, you can do that or a weightlifting robot can do that," he said.
RNZ News
05-08-2025
- Health
- RNZ News
Midday Report Essentials for Tuesday 5th August 2025
money technology 6 minutes ago In today's episode, Doctors are being warned to be on alert for people with symptoms of Dengue Fever as the number of cases in New Zealand doubles; Dairies say they are having to act like banks as more and more customers ask to get cash-out with their purchases, and local banks reduce services and access to cash; and a new report shows an urgent need for policy around the use of AI in primary schools.
Yahoo
08-07-2025
- Yahoo
I work in AI, and now I use it for parenting my 5 kids. Shielding them from it would be a mistake.
Adam Lyons trains people how to use AI and is the dad of five. He uses AI for homeschooling, stopping arguments, and streamlining bedtime. Using AI is going to be imperative for the next generation, he says. This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Adam Lyons, partner and chief AI officer at It has been edited for length and clarity. As a dad of five kids ranging in age from 5 to 15, I use AI throughout the day. It's my profession, but it's also a powerful tool for parenting. It not only makes my life easier in some ways — it also helps my kids prepare for the world they're entering. AI is inevitable. I like to tell people, "You're not going to lose your job to AI." But you will lose it to a person using AI. AI is the tool that's going to shape our future, so I've integrated it into our household. I homeschool all five of my kids. I try to follow the Ancient Greek model of education, where you learn, you do, you teach. My kids learn a skill and practice it, then they demonstrate their knowledge by teaching it to their siblings. If the little kids get stuck on a problem, they ask the older kids for help. But if the older kids can't help, they turn to AI. All of the kids have AI on their phones and tablets, and it acts as their tutor. This is most powerful when the kids get very frustrated with a problem — the type of problem that makes them want to throw their hands up and say, "No one can figure this out." In that moment, AI can guide them through solving the problem, showing them that it can be done. In our house, "Have you asked AI for assistance?" is a common refrain. It doesn't just happen with schoolwork, either. Recently, the electronic gate on our ranch broke. No one in the family knew how to fix it, so we used AI to walk us through buying a multimeter and testing the electronics. It became a family project, and we all learned a lot. We've also used AI — followed by a trip to Home Depot — to fix our HVAC system. People worry that AI will hinder problem-solving, but I'm teaching my kids to use it creatively to enhance their problem-solving. I don't think it's too different from learning from another person. Like many kids, mine love to ask a million questions at bedtime. I'll answer the first three or four "but why?" questions, then I hand it over to AI. The computer system has relentless energy to answer questions from even the most persistent kid, and my children usually get tired out after a few minutes. I do the same thing when the kids are arguing. Sometimes, I'll ask AI for a second opinion. It leads to good conversations about objective facts versus opinions, and how we're influenced by the arguments we hear. The biggest difference between humans and AI is that humans can think creatively. I want my kids to know how to step outside the box. My 15-year-old is working on a capstone project, creating a video game. He's using AI to do it, but he has about four different AI models involved. Using all those unique tools, he's able to build a game that's better than the sum of its parts. That's what I want my kids to understand about AI: It's most powerful in our hands. As we integrate AI into our lives, we also require some screen-free time. The kids spend time outside without electronics. Recently, they entertained themselves by swimming during that block, and the younger kids invented a new dice game that kept them entertained for days. Not getting the kids outside would be a mistake. But so too would shielding them from AI. By integrating it into their lives, I'm equipping them for their futures. Read the original article on Business Insider
Irish Times
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Irish Times
The Irish Times view on Leaving Cert reforms: AI must be taken seriously
The Government and teachers' unions may be on a collision course over the introduction of major reforms to the Leaving Certificate later this year. The changes, due to be introduced for all students entering the senior cycle this September, will see nine new or revised subjects incorporating research projects worth 40 per cent of overall marks, a radical shift from the traditional reliance on written end-of-year exams. Secondary teachers' unions will conduct ballots in the coming weeks on whether to accept the package proposed by the Government to ease the introduction of the reforms. These include pay increases, permanent contracts for new teachers and the creation of additional middle-management positions. The Teachers' Union of Ireland has recommended acceptance, but the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland has made no recommendation. Further votes on industrial action are expected should the proposals be rejected. READ MORE These reforms have long been sought by educationalists who believe the current Leaving Cert is too rigid, places excessive pressure on students and encourages rote learning rather than critical thinking. Some supporters of the changes will undoubtedly be frustrated that the concerns expressed by the unions might lead to delays. There is merit, however, to some of the criticisms of the timing and manner in which the reforms are being introduced. Particular concern centres on use by students of artificial intelligence (AI). Generative AI tools already produce work that achieves high grades at postgraduate level. AI detection tools are unreliable and a thriving market has sprung up for software that makes detection impossible. It would be a tragic irony if reforms that are supposed to encourage individual development and independent thinking were to be undermined by a technology that bypasses exactly those human qualities. Minister for Education Helen McEntee should take teachers' concern seriously and engage further with them on the issue.
