Teaching AI skills: Seven teaching tips for adult educators
Reading time approx. 5 minutes
Author of the original article in German: Karin Lamprecht / CONEDU
Artificial intelligence (AI) has been hyped in the media for several years, and since the release of ChatGPT in autumn 2022, the topic has finally reached the general public. AI tools such as speech and image generators are no longer just used by computer scientists and technology professionals, but by people from all walks of life - and of course in educational contexts too. The fact that AI is here to stay is also confirmed by the latest trend study by the mmb-Institute.
Skills for a future with AI
What skills and abilities are needed to work with AI? This is being discussed under the heading of ‘AI literacy’. A comprehensive and empirically based competency model was developed as part of the AIComp project. It comprises twelve competence fields in three competence areas and relates to personal skills, the social environment and working and designing with and for AI.
There are also already proposals for AI competence frameworks for adult educators - from the European Commission and the international eLearning service provider paradoxlearning, among others. As part of the European AL4AI project, a self-study course aimed specifically at adult educators will be developed by the end of 2024.
The fact that educators - especially in adult education - have a special responsibility towards their learners is a common basic tenor of these competence models. Adult educators are called upon to explain the opportunities and risks of AI and to encourage learners to use the new technologies competently and responsibly.
Seven concrete didactic tips
The following collection provides an overview of didactic tips for adult educators to help with the teaching of AI skills.
Tip 1: Take a holistic view of AI technology
Technology training courses often focus on an application-oriented perspective (‘How does it work?’). Wolfgang König (Network Q 4.0) argues in favour of using the Dagstuhl Triangle as a compass (in German). In addition to the application-oriented perspective, the technological (‘How does it work?’) and socio-cultural (‘How does it work?’) perspectives should also be taken into account. Anyone planning to use ChatGPT as a learning medium can, for example, start with an explanation of how the tool roughly works (technological perspective). Then the tool is tested in practice (application-orientated perspective). This provides a good basis for discussing how the use of AI chatbots is changing learning (socio-cultural perspective).
Tip 2: Find a personal introduction to the topic
Especially in heterogeneous groups, it is a good idea to discuss assumptions and opinions about AI right at the start. Nele Hirsch (eBildungslabor) has developed the ‘get-to-know-you card swap’ method for this (in German), in which the participants each receive a card with a statement and use it to start the discussion (for example, ‘I really enjoy exploring different AI tools’ or ‘Until there is clarity about the use of AI tools, we must ban them in an educational context’). This creates a discussion that can then be used as a basis for further work on the content.
Tip 3: Make AI tangible
Learners who have had little experience with AI tools benefit from experiencing AI live. Working with teasing questions, for example, is a good way of experiencing the difference between a human answer and a generated answer.
Comprehensive application possibilities of AI can be demonstrated, for example, with the ‘AI Worlds’ of the NRW Artificial Intelligence Competence Platform. The interactive map shows where AI technologies are used in everyday life and the world of work - for example in the sale of products for dynamic pricing. This provides an interesting starting point for further discussions in professional development programmes.
Tip 4: Demonstrate the psychological effects of AI
When using AI systems, there are also some psychological effects to consider - for example the ‘Uncanny Valley’ effect: According to this, the more an artificial figure resembles a human, the more positively it is perceived - up to a certain point at which the effect is reversed. This effect can be made tangible by showing a picture of the humanoid robot ‘Sophia’, for example, and discussing their impressions with the participants (pleasant or rather unsettling?)
Psychological effects such as the ‘competence trap’ (German) also play a role and need to be addressed: as AI systems show no linguistic signs of uncertainty, people often judge them to be competent, which can lead to misinformation. It is therefore particularly important for teachers to use language sensitively in order to make it clear that AI systems are not independent thinkers (‘AI systems’ or ‘AI tools’ instead of ‘the AI/she/they’; ‘the following output was generated in response to my input’ instead of ‘ChatGPT recommended to me’). (Source e-bildungslabor.de) Instead of stereotypical robot representations, images from ‘Better Images of AI’, for example, are suitable for illustrations.
Tip 5: Communicate technical functional understanding as clearly as possible
Adult educators can show how AI language models work with the help of short, precise explanatory videos (e.g. from eLearning provider youknow, in German). For learners who like to experiment, the provider Tensorflow offers an interactive neural network to try out.
However, technical functional understanding can not only be taught digitally, but also in a completely analogue way with the exercises from ‘AI Unplugged’: These were developed for school lessons, but are also suitable for adult education.
Tip 6: Use quizzes for (self-)control
Adult educators can use short quizzes to activate participants' prior knowledge on the topic of AI or to consolidate content through (self-)checking. Two examples for the school context that can also be used for adult education are the quiz by VEGA (in German language) and the Learning Snack provided by App Camps.
Tip 7: Exemplify critical and reflective practice
In general, a reflective approach to AI in educational events is advisable. Birgit Aschemann and Gunter Schüßler explain which methods can promote critical thinking in their (German language) article on erwachsenenbildung.at.
The 12 thought-provoking impulses formulated by Nele Hirsch from eBildungslabor are also suitable for interactive and exchange-oriented reflection in learning programmes.
If you would like to slip into the role of AI experts with your learners and help citizens with their enquiries, you can do so with the ‘AI Compass’ card game provided by the Alexander von Humboldt Institute for Internet and Society.
Further information:
Author of original article in German: Karin Lamprecht/CONEDU
Editing of original article in German: Birgit Aschemann/CONEDU
Translation by EPALE Austria
Image: KI-generated by CONEDU using Adobe Firefly, prompt: „Mehrere erwachsene Teilnehmende in einem Seminarraum, leger gekleidet, unterhalten sich paarweise und halten kleine Kärtchen mit Text in den Händen“
