Using AI for learning

This simple activity uses AI to answer simple questions to gather answers. It usually focuses on core assumptions of knowledge and key concepts that have been well documented.

You can use AI to look up core concepts and ask for ideas about how they would be applied in context. This can be a useful activity to conduct either independently or in groups to clarify terminology and ideas. However, it is recommended to check and compare the answer with wider resources to ensure that the information is correct.

With the wide range of AI outputs available to staff and students, it can be a useful tool to display information in new and engaging ways. Not only can AI be used to break down complex ideas, but it can also be used to adapt the idea into new formats such as infographics. These can then be used in presentations or to share with the wider class.

AI can summarise articles into bitesize chunks which can be a useful way to consume articles or data to develop better understanding. However, AI will also be able to take that summary and develop some core questions to extend your knowledge and this will require you to look through the article in more depth to evidence.

Many AI tools have a chat/reply function built in and can act as a discussion facilitator. This can be applied in two ways: either you can ask the AI tool to generate a list of questions based around a particular scenario or topic, or you can use the AI as another voice in the discussion (i.e., feedback your group’s thoughts and getting the AI to extend this by asking it for wider considerations).

To help facilitate a discussion it can be useful to have AI produce a scenario or case study to use as a basis for conversation. This will enable discussion and application of knowledge on the given subject. You will have to be specific in your prompt if you would like it written in a particular style or approach. AI can also help to provide some questions to think about when looking at a case study to extend or support you throughout the activity.

We learn just as much from bad examples as we do good. By creating a purposefully bad example your tutor could get you to analyse and discuss what you would change, which will allow you to apply your own understanding and learning and reflect upon what good practice looks like. AI can be used to create examples of reports, safety plans, presentations etc.

AI can be used as part of a debate to help stimulate conversation. You can ask AI to write some persuasive arguments based around one key side of the debate, and then you can then work on a rebuttal based on the information created.  AI can also be prompted to reply to the arguments you or your group have created to get additional feedback and justification.

Applying skills in context is a useful area of development for students. AI can be asked to create a situation based around a core knowledge area as a case study.

To generate these more complex outputs, prompts can require some work, especially if you are asking it to feedback on what it would do in a particular situation. You may need to mention specific formats, frameworks or approaches that you would like it to use to create the scenario. It is recommended to tell the AI that you would like feedback on how to improve your work.

Most AI’s can feedback on key inputs that they are given. For example, AI systems can develop or read coding and can give feedback on core problem areas. This can be a useful learning tool that will also enable you to work with AI to develop code and learn from your mistakes. However, this can also be applied to wider skills and can be used as a coach to help you develop skills dependent on your subject-specific discipline.

AI as a research tool can be used to bring together a culmination of information. This can be especially useful as starting point when researching and enables you to gather a mass of information relatively quickly. There are specific research-focussed AIs available; however, it is important to consider the source and trustworthiness of the information found to ensure accuracy.

This is a jig-sawing exercise where different groups go off to research key information about different topic areas. Each group compiles their research and can then feed this back to the session in a microteach approach. AI can be used as part of the researching toolset they have available, or even to generate content (e.g. summaries, slides, infographics) to share back to the group based on what has been found.

AI can be used to compare and contrast two approaches, arguments and ideas and give some feedback on the differences between them. This can be useful when looking at key elements of research to form critical arguments.

AI can be used to identify and give feedback on elements of work as a way of providing direction to your development. However, the way which feedback is actioned needs to be considered, especially if being used for assessment-based work. AI should be used to identify areas of development but not be used to paraphrase or rewrite content.

AI can be a useful source of inspiration when creating new ideas or outputs. You can use AI to explore presentation ideas or structuring written work. It can also be used to create elements of multimedia e.g. infographics, to share with the wider class as a way of presenting information.

AI can be used to create a wide variety of materials for both staff and students. One way in which this can be used is as an evaluative exercise, by getting the AI to create content or to explore a concept, then, using appropriate frameworks or evaluative approaches to foster critical thinking to improve and develop the idea.

AI tools can be useful if you have a base format (such as a document etc…) that you would like converted into a wide array of formats. By adding a basic prompt, the information held within the document can be redesigned as multimedia or new formats. For example, AI can easily take text and reformat it into a much more visual approach including presentation formats or infographics to help display information more readily. This could be useful for when you are presenting information back to the classroom in the form of a mini teach or presentation.

AI can be used as a researcher to help gather the information, but sometimes collating information into a readable format can be difficult. If you have already gathered accurate information, this can be used to summarise, collate, and clarify information which can then be created into a simple revision guide.