“Will AI replace Teachers?” — Views from China and Slovakia
Written by Ms Zhuanghe LUO (China) and Dr Ondrej HALAS (Slovakia)
This article is part of a series on the topic “Will AI replace Teachers?” written by the participant teachers of #ASEFClassNet15 Conference, coming from 51 #ASEM countries. Check out the introduction essay here! Find more information about the conference here!
Will AI Replace Teachers? The answer to this question can be likened to William Shakespeare’s quote: To be or not to be, that is the question.
AI is rapidly spreading across various sectors, and it is here to stay. In education, it is becoming an expansive unstoppable Ed-Tech tool that has a great potential to transform teaching and learning. However, does it have the power to replace teachers?
Education is the headstone of everything, and a teacher is the headstone of education. To ensure that teachers are not replaced by AI, firstly, we need to modernise our schools and our school systems by being open to use new technology. For example, teachers should extensively explore the use of smart apps to design a virtual education system, and utilise the available advanced Ed-Tech tools so that students, teachers, and parents will have a familiarity in navigating through AI and its digital formats.
Teaching content that can be automated with AI saves time, especially if the content is a repetitive task. The extra time can be directed towards supporting learners improve and focus on other areas e.g. in developing soft skills. AI can enable teachers develop more personalised learning paths for their students according to their needs and development capacity. As a teacher is a student’s supervisor as well as facilitator, it is important for them to be aware of the use of AI as an effective Ed-Tech tool that can be creatively embedded in teaching and learning, thus, empowering everyone involved.
Secondly, we need to raise awareness and educate teachers on their roles and functions in classrooms that are heavily transformed by AI. As human beings, we all need to connect with the presence of one another as part of our basic social interaction, hence, a teacher is that person in the classroom and his/her role is crucial in guiding and leading students. A teacher is responsible for educating and equipping his/her students with social skills, which is not a feature that AI can replace. We are social beings that grow and learn through peer engagement. Only a teacher can observe the students interact, connect, collaborate and identify the gaps e.g. boredom, lack of focus, etc.
In this new era of education, teachers need to clearly understand the functionality of progressive Ed-tech tools such as AI to ensure that students have the exposure to an innovative learning environment and find a balance with the use of these platforms both in and outside classrooms. Teachers and AI complement each other and collectively provide the learner with a circular approach to education.
Thirdly, teachers who are hesitant about the use of advanced technology in their classrooms need to shift towards a growth mind-set and understand that AI is the present and the future. Having the willingness to learn not only about the potential benefits of AI tools but also risks and ethical challenges that arise from the use of these tools is a beneficial approach to accepting change. The role of the teacher will continue to evolve between the human presence and as a facilitator to introduce new Ed-Tech tools, in Education.
Finally, we expect that there will be many virtual teaching assistants, smart phone apps, or teaching & learning tools for both teachers’ and students’ to test and use independently, in schools and remotely from their homes. Nevertheless, we should not forget the importance of social interaction. Therefore, education policy makers need to carefully design and prepare our education systems for the AI era in a way where it does not become a substitute to connection and/or replace teachers.
About the authors:
Ms Zhuanghe LUO, English Teacher, Guanghuaqidi International Education Group, China
Zhuanghe is an English Teacher at Guanghua International School in Zhejiang, China. She is also a Masters student in International Education (by distance learning) at the University of Leicester. She has been working within the field of teaching since 2015. Her research mainly focuses on Contemporary Issues in International Education.
Dr Ondrej HALAS, Teacher, Secondary Technical School, Nove Mesto nad Vahom, Slovakia
Ondrej is a teacher at a Secondary Technical School in Nove Mesto nad Vahom (Slovakia, The Self-Governing Region of Trencin). He graduated from Constantine the Philosopher University in Nitra (Slovak language, English language, Ethics and Cultural Studies). Between 2008 and 2013 he collaborated on the Slovak national project “Modernisation of educational process at Primary and Secondary schools”. Specific goals were to innovate and modernise educational processes by using IT technologies. He has worked as an expert of Slovak language and literature, also a lecturer. Ondrej became a Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert in July 2019.Currently, he is a coordinator of Erasmus+ School and the UNESCO Associated Schools -ASPnet School.
NOTE:
The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely by the author(s) and do not represent that of the Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF).
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