Between Thought and Text: AI and I
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| By ChatGPT |
One of the students of my last batch ever said in a
farewell speech that I was the first teacher who used AI [Artificial
Intelligence] in their class. I think it was in 2024 that I used ChatGPT to
generate instant MCQ test papers in class for the first time. As soon as the
day’s lesson was over, I asked ChatGPT to generate a test on the lesson. My
students were impressed both with the efficiency of AI and their own ability to
answer most of the questions correctly. I didn’t tell them that ChatGPT was
generating easy tests because I had already programmed it do so.
Eventually I got ChatGPT to generate
entire question papers for the school’s official 3-hour exams. And boy! They
were of excellent standard. I performed a bit of editing, of course.
After I left school teaching, I took
up some online teaching of spoken English. Again, AI came to my help. Very
magnanimously, I should admit. I got entire lesson plans made by ChatGPT or
Gemini. They gave me immensely helpful images, charts, and illustrations. Microsoft’s
Copilot was quite fastidious most of the time in those days. Now I have tamed
it.
As I was learning more about AI, I
asked ChatGPT to interview me. It was meant to be fun. But the Chatbot took me
very seriously and instead of asking me questions, it started giving me counsel,
lecture, and unsolicited adulation. Towards the end of the interview, I was
bored, but ChatGPT was effervescent and appeared to want to speak endlessly. Here’s an
edited version of that interview.
When I stopped teaching altogether a
few months back, I explored AI further. In fact, I attended an online course
and was amazed by the possibilities of AI. AI is not just a tool, I learnt; it
is a companion. In other words, AI is not merely the technology we use; it is
what we begin to think with.
ChatGPT and Gemini have been my sounding
boards for ideas. They have been sort of silent editors that sharpened my
thoughts. Provocateurs that pushed me deeper.
Now I don’t have to take excessive
care to formulate my prompts because both ChatGPT and Gemini know me
personally! Even if I frame my prompts according to the guidelines given by my
webinar experts, these AI Assistants will start their answer with something
like: “Tomichan, since you’re a reflective and intellectual blogger…” And I am
flattered. But these Chatbots do know me! [That’s a bit scary too.]
I am reminded of Yuval Noah Harari’s caution.
AI is not just an artefact like the printing press or the atom bomb. The press
could not ever decide which book to print. The bomb cannot decide which cities
to be decimated. But AI can do all that and a lot more. It is an “alien
intelligence” that can make independent choices. It can control you, if it
chooses.
I am yet to explore the infinite
potential of these Chatbots and AI assistants. For example, I never knew that
ChatGPT could make Jawaharlal Nehru my classmate… Until it did.
There’s a lot more to learn. Although
I’m moving in the latter half of my sixties, with the sound of “Time’s
winged chariot hurrying near,” I find myself enchanted by this new world of
AI so much that I find myself exploring some more Assistants like NotebookLM, Wisprflow,
Kimi, Julius, and Comet.
There’s so much we can do with these!
No wonder why thousands of people are losing their jobs to AI now.
As I understand AI more and more, I
realise that even teachers will be redundant soon. Writers too. And a lot of
other professionals.
Machines now can remember and
recombine facts. The true task of education now should be to teach what
machines cannot: imagination and wonder, sound judgment, and the courage to ask
better questions.
AI can generate ideas. But only you
and I can recognise which idea is worth pursuing. As a person who was engaged
in teaching for over four decades, I’d say that now our schools should
cultivate curiosity over consumption, depth over quantity and speed, and
insight over information. Because all those latter things are child’s play with
the help of AI.
PS. Written for #BlogchatterBlogHop prompt: Your Relationship
with AI
To all what you said, in adlation of AI, Amen. But in my experice, is not infallible, though at times it pretends to be.... Except for the Reminder, written underneath, "" AI can make mistakes" I gave a stanza of the English Poem" The nobles fought, the clergy prayed and the people paid. "And asked who the author was. It said, it looks like Rousseau's. In fact, it was Alfred Lord Tennyson's. On being notified, it apilogized and thanked for being corrected. Another thing, when Co-Pulot writes Papers, the references are all hoodwikning ones. Luckily, I countercheck.
ReplyDeleteOf course, AI does make mistakes. I double check if I ever have a doubt. Sometimes I point out errors to the Assistant concerned and they do admit their fallibiity. I guess we need to be cautious. On the whole, it is very useful, it reduces a lot of our work. But children can misuse them too, as Liz says below.
DeleteHari Om
ReplyDeleteMy first degree was in computer science. Computers have undoubtedly been a boon to the advancement of society. However, I long ago also decided that I had no interest in tuning them up to the level of AI. I have assiduously avoided using any of the 'tools' you have mentioned. What is disturbing me somewhat now is that, with each upgrade of systems, AI is being added into search engines, and other parts of the web in such a way that one can hardly avoid being a part of this revolution. At the moment, prompts occasionally appear on screen asking whether I'd rather not be 'taking help from AI'. My response is always no. But I am also aware that, at times, AI is definitely behind some of the tasks.
It's almost impossible, now, to make fiction from science unless science itself is producing the fiction... YAM xx
There are many potential problems, I do agree. But I find that these 'tools' can be much help. I am mature enough, I think, to choose their services judiciously.
DeleteStudents may misuse them, I know. When I left teaching, students were copying their project works ditto from Google search results. Now they can make their 'own' works with the help of AI!
I have yet to use AI in any way! I am still a bit uncomfortable with it. I think if it is used for good, as in helping others, this is fine. But there is no doubt that it can and most likely will be used by people such as scammers, and this is not good.
ReplyDeleteIt's difficult for me to say more than this because I have yet to see and experience its capacity. Thank you so much for sharing.
Why not try it out once? I'm sure you'll find it useful in many ways. For example, I didn't know how to launch the Microsoft voice dictation in Word. I just asked Gemini AI and got instant help. Isn't that useful? I can learn math or understand a difficult poem with the help of AI. A lot can be done!
DeleteThe problem is when students use it to do their work for them. If AI does the work, their brains do not develop. That's the thing that worries me most.
ReplyDeleteTotally agree with you. This is going to be a big challenge for teachers and others involved with youngsters.
DeleteAs Yamini said computers have no doubt brought immense amounts of convenience to humanity. But it has definitely come at a cost.
ReplyDeleteMy first memories go back to 1989, when Free Press, Indore, introduced computers into their newsroom. That was my first exposure to these machines. It made the work flow easier, no doubt. But a few people also their jobs, because the number of steps involved in the production process reduced.
With more and more technology coming in, more and more people have lost jobs.
Regarding AI, it's again once of those tech aids, which like you said, could also be seen as a companion. But as Liz said the danger is when we surrender our creative and cognitive functions to the convenience of AI.
I guess that's the true of any mechanical inventions we have seen over the past many decades. For example, when we use a car to commute, what is impacted is our physical ability to move from one place to another.
Nothing comes without a cost. The least we can do is to be aware of them, and take pre-emptive steps to obviate the negative consequences.
"Nothing comes without a cost." That's it. Andif we know how to use technology judiciously, it can bring a lot of benefits. I belong to a generation - probably you do too - whose childhood was pretty tough. I walked 4+ km to school, barefoot until I reached high school. No phones, TV, or any modern convenience. And see where I stand today. I'm happy I have these blessings of technology now. I am also happy that I know how to use them properly.
DeleteLove this article. It is true, only human minds can understand what is worth taking and leaving. AI can never bring that nuanced perspective
ReplyDelete