Google.org recently announced ai-initiatives-funding-educators-students/” target=”_blank” data-url=”https://blog.google/outreach-initiatives/google-org/google-ai-initiatives-funding-educators-students/” referrerpolicy=”no-referrer-when-downgrade” data-hl-processed=”none”>a new funding program focused on ai which will provide equitable access to artificial intelligence for both students and teachers. Part of the more than $25 million contribution will be allocated to ISTE for the creation of GenerationAI, an initiative that will educate teachers on the appropriate use of ai in their classrooms.
For this initiative, ISTE is partnering with the National Education Association (NEA), the Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA), the Center for the Development of Black Educators (CBED), Latinos for Education (L4E), Indigitize and Playlab. The goal is to reach educators across the country through high-quality professional learning on ai, created specifically by and for educators.
Tara Nattrass, Managing Director, Innovation Strategy, ISTE + ASCD, discusses the importance of GenerationAI and how it will achieve the goal of reaching ai educators across the country.
<h2 id="expanding-the-conversation-of-ai-3″>Expanding the conversation about ai
The introduction of ai into classrooms has been at the forefront of the recent technological movement. Instead of blindly following trends, ISTE wants to take charge by leading the conversation on ai with the GenerationAI initiative.
“One of our big goals in working with our partners is to build identity-affirming communities of practice,” Nattrass says. “The communities of practice will be with teachers, building leaders and district leaders. It will give educators in those communities the opportunity to explore the opportunities and risks related to ai and also identify some of the practice challenges they see. (The goal is) to find solutions and resources that can be used across the field.”
GenerationAI will help close the knowledge gap surrounding ai in education. It will help educate teachers and students while simplifying the classroom experience, helping teachers and students connect more effectively.
Four keys to empowering educators with GenerationAI
GenerationAI hopes to achieve its goals through four core principles, according to Nattrass:
– Understanding ai: “We know that we need to promote ai literacy for both teachers and students,” he says. “(Students) are interested in guidance on responsible use and educational applications and things they can use ai for to help them in their learning. (This is) facing the things that can be most detrimental to them in their learning.”
– Using ai to improve teaching and learning: Giving teachers the ability to improve their teaching methods through the use of ai can help them regain more time in the classroom. ai can also play an important role in helping students understand their work by uniquely appealing to individual student needs.
– Amplify the voices of educators: Teachers will continually deal with technology and ai in the future, so it is important to understand their needs in the developing environment. The best way to deliver ai services to the classroom is to understand how to best help educators reach their students, perform their roles, and achieve their goals.
– Strengthening the dialogue on ai in educationn: Since the early days of ai in education, the dialogue around its use in the classroom has fluctuated wildly. GenerationAI seeks to help normalize the conversation about ai to help everyone better understand how ai works and what it can do for both students and teachers in education.
What will GenerationAI consist of?
GenerationAI has the difficult task of bringing a comprehensive conversation about ai to educators, students, and administrators everywhere.
“The goal is to reach more than 200,000 educators in the next three years,” says Nattrass. “As we do the work within communities of practice, as well as some of the foundational learning experiences that we will provide through courses and other things, educators will help build this. We call it an innovation and creativity hub, where they capture case studies, videos, frameworks and other resources that can then help other educators.”
ai is a hot topic right now and, one way or another, everyone is jumping on the bandwagon. ISTE+ASCD, however, seeks to create a framework for the future, helping teachers adapt ai in the classroom, helping students better understand work through ai, and helping clarify how ai helps and It is used in education.
