

Majority of US K-12 Teachers Now Using AI for Lesson Planning, Grading (apnews.com) 21
A Gallup and Walton Family Foundation poll found 6 in 10 US teachers in K-12 public schools used AI tools for work during the past school year, with higher adoption rates among high school educators and early-career teachers. The survey of more than 2,000 teachers nationwide conducted in April found that those using AI tools weekly estimate saving about six hours per week.
About 8 in 10 teachers using AI tools report time savings on creating worksheets, assessments, quizzes and administrative work. About 6 in 10 said AI improves their work quality when modifying student materials or providing feedback. However, approximately half of teachers worry student AI use will diminish teens' critical thinking abilities and independent problem-solving persistence.
About 8 in 10 teachers using AI tools report time savings on creating worksheets, assessments, quizzes and administrative work. About 6 in 10 said AI improves their work quality when modifying student materials or providing feedback. However, approximately half of teachers worry student AI use will diminish teens' critical thinking abilities and independent problem-solving persistence.
A Friend is a K-12 Teacher... (Score:3)
Re: (Score:2)
While the kids using AI to do their work for them is an obvious problem, I don't think there is anything wrong with using AI to help with lesson planning and testing as long as the teacher actually understands what they are teaching and checks that the AI isn't hallucinating when it produces the material. Grading could also be a net positive, again as long as the teacher understands and reviews what the AI does.
Giving more teachers time to actually teach is a good thing.
Re: (Score:1)
Why would you presume the AI isn't biased?
There have been NUMEROUS documented instances of AI being biased, for one reason or another.
Real-life example from my then 11 year old nephew (Score:2)
Assignments for US history included the pre-GPT following:
- Make up 10 quiz questions and 3 multiple choice answers for chapters 4 and 5
- Make up a test study guide for chapters 6, 7 and 8
- Make up 3 essay questions on the Great Depression
All of those were to be electronically submitted, were graded assignments; and, obviously, the top 10% of students' work would be used in next year's course materials.
And most likely be sold on "Teachers pay Teachers" web site.
Unethical is getting your students to write yo
Re: (Score:2)
While the kids using AI to do their work for them is an obvious problem, I don't think there is anything wrong with using AI to help with lesson planning and testing as long as the teacher actually understands what they are teaching and checks that the AI isn't hallucinating when it produces the material. Grading could also be a net positive, again as long as the teacher understands and reviews what the AI does.
Giving more teachers time to actually teach is a good thing.
I don't think there is anything wrong with using a hydraulic exoskeleton to deadlift 24,000lbs and run 200 miles a day, as long as you actually keep up your muscle tone and maintain glucose/caloric stores and usage and make sure your bone density isn't rapidly dropping from outsourcing the biological work of being alive.
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:2)
I disagree. Delegating human tasks to AI, regardless of the age of the user, degrades the person by eliminating the formational activity of doing the analysis, development, grading yourself. "Faster, at all costs, faster!" It's no way to be human.
I didn't say "faster" I said "more time teaching" which is, you know, the purpose of the exercise. There's nothing morally repugnant about removing labor to free up time for other, more important things (unless you're a Luddite or a Calvinist, I guess).
Re: (Score:1)
I didn't say "faster" I said "more time teaching" which is, you know, the purpose of the exercise. There's nothing morally repugnant about removing labor to free up time for other, more important things (unless you're a Luddite or a Calvinist, I guess).
How is our hypothetical teacher gaining "more time teaching" except by having AI 'complete' their other tasks *faster*? If faster, I ask, at what cost?
All technology use involves a tradeoff or reshaping of ourselves of some kind, in that it automates or precludes the practice of some other craft or art. So even in mundane examples (dishwasher, computer, etc) the situation is not as neat as you say. Technology is never neutral. AI, however, is especially significant in that it automates and precludes not j
Re: (Score:2)
Technically he teaches 5/6. The way he describes it, the latest batch of teachers are using AI to write their lesson plans and tests; the students are (if they can get away with it) using AI to finish assignments and tests; and AI are grading it all. Beyond the obviously all important "free (tax payer) childcare" what is even the point!?
The point could be better training for the AIs, but only if the teachers are at some point checking that the hallucinated AI work the kids are turning is is being graded fairly by the AIs doing the grading and it's somehow getting fed back to the AIs that produced the work. If some few students use the opportunity to teach the AI producing the work how to better fool the AI grading the work into assuming its learned something, it's a net win for the AI companies. At some point, they'll be able to fully simu
Re: (Score:1)
But sure let's keep undermining the importance of education. Why should anyone who isn't wealthy have access to education? And why should anyone who isn't wealthy have education for any other purpose than to get a job that generates shareholder value?
If it's one
Re: (Score:2)
what is even the point!?
Keeping up appearances. We are probably going for a rather extreme class divide between those that can think and solve problems and the 85% or so of dumb masses that cannot do anything.
Re: (Score:2)
what is even the point
People said the same thing each time a new technology disrupted education - the typewriter (what will it do to the teaching of handwriting!), the spell-checker (what will it do to the teaching of spelling!), Wikipedia (what will it do the use of the library!) - and so on and so on.
The AI genie is out of the bottle, and schools and teachers need to adapt their practices and curricula so it meets today's AI reality.
stupid is as stupid teaches dumb kids to be dim (Score:2)
This is a cycle, and a vicious one. As an illustration: In past decades, there has been a steady degradation among the general public in their proficiency in spelling, punctuation, and grammar. In a feedback loop, this has caused proficiency in spelling, punctuation, and grammar to decline ever faster. And now we currently have ENGLISH TEACHERS who openly--proudly!--state that they don't care about spelling, punctuation, and grammar. One can only imagine what their students will say about it.
And now, wi
A truly revolutionary approach to education (Score:2)
**Local English Teacher Continues to Inspire Students Despite Unprecedented Grammatical Creativity**
BROWNSVILLE, TX—In a stunning display of linguistic innovation, local high school English teacher Mrs. Linda Thompson has once again captivated her students with her unique approach to the English language, which some describe as "boldly avant-garde" and others as "completely incomprehensible."
Mrs. Thompson, who has been teaching at Brownsville High School for over a decade, is renowned for her fearless
It's okay: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
So AI is grading the output of AI. Nice.
In unrelated news (Score:2)
Speaking as a teacher who has used AI (Score:2)
I teach at a highly rated high school. I use AI to help me come up with ideas for lesson plans. I don't just accept it whole: even if I wanted to, AI lesson plans simply aren't coherent enough to actually use for an extended time.
As for the criticism that teachers use AI to make it, students use AI to do it, the process is a joke: it's two separate issues. Nobody cares how the teachers do it. We could use tarot cards, and if it made good lesson plans, hell yeah. The whole focus is on the students. Stu