Suspicious, excited but overwhelmed, lost, ready to learn, nervous. These were some of the feelings toward artificial intelligence that educators shared at the start of the Educational Resource Services’ (ERS) AI workshop.
Held last Friday, July 28, the “Artificial Intelligence: Unpacking Standards and Lesson Design with AI” session helped educators feel more comfortable with the technology. The workshop was led by Adam Juarez, an ERS educational technology consultant, and Joe Marquez, the director of Academic Innovation at CUE.org, a technology support organization for educators founded in the late 70s. The workshop was held at the ERS Makerspace, where educators learned how to unpack standards and design lessons using AI.
At the beginning of the workshop, Juarez and Marquez shared the benefits of using AI. These included quicker grading, improved productivity, more effective lessons, and improved communication with parents. They also stressed the importance of adapting to the changes AI will bring.
“AI isn’t going anywhere, so we need to learn how to use it,” Juarez said. Marquez added, “The world is changing; we can’t rely on ‘this is the way we’ve always done it.’”
The pair then introduced the attendees to entry-level tools such as Chat GPT, Google Bard, and Canva Magic Design. After some time experimenting with the programs, Juarez and Marquez helped attendees become “prompt engineers” by providing sample prompts that educators could give to AI programs. With these prompts, educators utilized AI to simplify complex standards and generate their own custom lesson plans.
Educators interested in learning more about using AI are encouraged to register for one of two upcoming “Artificial Intelligence: Unpacking Standards and Lesson Design” workshops, being hosted on August 17 and September 5 from 4:30 until 7:30 p.m. To register for the August session, visit http://tulare.k12oms.org/147-237093. To register for the September session, visit http://tulare.k12oms.org/147-237099.