Empowering Students Through Writing: Nurturing Critical Thinkers in the Age of AI
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In the digital age, where communication transcends traditional boundaries and artificial intelligence (AI) affects various facets of our lives, teaching writing goes beyond the basics of composition. It isn't solely about topic sentences, creating a coherent thesis, or making sure a paragraph contains one idea. It's about instilling and nurturing critical thinking skills and honing the skills to communicate effectively. Writing is a powerful communication tool that students can use to get their point across to others and even advocate for social change. The ability to convey one's thoughts through writing with clarity and precision is also indispensable in today's job force. However, the emergence of AI has reshaped the dynamics of communication, presenting new avenues for expression and interaction while presenting challenges about ethics and authenticity. As AI rapidly evolves, instructors must now consider if can students learn to communicate effectively while leveraging the use of generative AI in the classroom?
As generative AI simulates human conversation, it can be easy for students to plug in a question or an idea and have AI expand upon it. However, in the classroom, it's up to instructors to discuss technology and how to harness it safely. While an answer from generative AI appears natural, it can't engage in constructive dialogue like a human. To help students learn critical thinking skills, here is one of the main questions Andrew McAninch, associate professor at Milwaukee School of Engineering who teaches a course on ethics in AI, poses: is AI instrumental to the fundamental values we want to promote in our classroom? Like writing, every professor's answer to this is different. However, this doesn't mean that AI has no place in the classroom. Like teaching students how to harness appropriately, it's important for instructors to ask themselves if it's appropriate as well.
Three things you can ask yourself to determine if you're using AI appropriately to teach writing in the classroom:
- Is it instrumental to meeting goals in the classroom? If a student is having difficulties brainstorming, as an instructor it's important to consider whether the goal of the assignment is to build brainstorming skills. If not, AI is a great tool to help students come up with ideas on topics. Tammy Rice-Bailey, associate professor at Milwaukee School of Engineering, explains how she has her students map their ideas and draw parallels between them. After they complete a rough draft, she has them use AI to make suggestions. However, if focusing on critical thinking skills is part of the exercise, then using AI to brainstorm is not going to help the student practice their critical thinking skills, nor will it offer the constructive dialogue a student can engage in with others in the classroom.
- Are you teaching your students to think critically about sources? McAninch asked "Would a patient trust a new medical procedure that had not yet successfully gone through all trial phases?" "Would a patient trust a new medical procedure if AI was the one recommending it?" Chances are that a person would have doubts. McAninch continues, "We expect careful vetting of other technologies used for important purposes, so we should have the same expectations with respect to AI, including generative AI." The same concept should be carried out in the classroom. If a student uses AI to create arguments but does not vet the sources AI may have come up with, then the student is not developing their research skills. Concurrently, these ethical questions come up in the workforce as well. If students learn to be skeptical in the classroom, they will take these critical thinking skills to the workforce. Corporations are careful of using AI in the workforce, so it doesn't give away proprietary information. In both cases, the information is created quicker than humans can, but is the quality the same?
- Does learning AI mean you have to use it? It's okay to teach students about AI, but not allow it in the classroom. Simply because we teach something, does not mean we need to let students use it in the classroom. Teaching responsible uses of technology is important, but if the goal is to work on creating new skills themselves before getting help from AI, then it's okay to say no to AI in the classroom. If AI doesn't add value to the classroom and cannot help students meet their goals, why use it?
It is through writing that individuals refine their thoughts, analyze complex issues, and formulate compelling arguments. By honing writing skills, students increase their capacity for critical thinking -- a skill set that is indispensable in navigating the modern world. While many instructors want to use AI in the classroom, it's important to consider the social implications and encourage responsible use of the technology.
