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Within months of ChatGPT's launch at the end of 2022, the nation's largest public school system had banned the chatbot. It would have negative impacts on student learning, the NYC education department said, also citing concerns about the security and accuracy of ChatGPT's content.
Across the Hudson River, Franklin School took exactly the opposite approach. The private school in Jersey City, New Jersey, made AI a central part of its curriculum. Opened in 2022, the school began integrating AI tools not to replace teachers, but to enhance their work and deepen student engagement.
"We looked at the integration on how to enrich the learning for students, but also, at the same time, we wanted to see where we could create efficiencies at our school for our teachers," said Will Campbell, head of Franklin School. "We have incredible teachers in our building. How can we give them more time to be even better for our students?"
Also: Why AI chatbots make bad teachers - and how teachers can exploit that weakness
Franklin's early AI experiments included custom chatbots trained on approved course material, designed to function as tutor-like learning aids. Faculty, including Campbell himself, found they could offload routine administrative tasks to AI, freeing up time for instruction and student support. The school also redesigned assessments, allowing students to use AI to tackle more complex problems that emphasize critical thinking.
A similar philosophy emerged at the university level. Ethan Mollick, Ph.D., a professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, added explicit AI-use guidelines to his syllabus as early as January 2023, permitting students to use the technology in all of his classes.
Three years later, Mollick has become one of the leading voices advocating for AI in education. He has worked with AI companies, including OpenAI, to develop education guides and authored the New York Times bestselling book Co-Intelligence, which examines the role of AI in learning and work.
Also: Can AI save teachers from a crushing workload?
Why? He finds there is extreme value to unlock in AI.
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