Great interview! As an educator who knows just how hard it is to find teacher talent, I’m hopeful all the changes coming with AI and the workplace will lead to an infusion of people interested in teaching. (Although your point about needing it to pay people enough is well received—when I was a teacher with TFA in 2000, people would coach or work summer jobs for extra money—but the number of school leaders I work with who have teachers driving for uber or bartending at night is a significant increase…)
I suspect AI will replace teachers, not because it can successfully do the job, but because the authorities who make those decisions will decide to pretend that it can. If it saves them money and having to deal with a human workforce, they'll jump at AI, no matter the consequences to students.
I actually respectfully disagree, only because a room full of students (any grade!) will eat any AI instructor situation alive. I work with a lot of senior educators (heads of school, superintendents, etc.) and while people vary in their optimism about the role ed tech can play in effective instruction, teaching and learning is so deeply human and relationally driven that I don’t see AI ever replacing it. Covid also taught us that kids in front of screens all day is bad (or at best: not great) for kids and learning and well being.
Great piece Rachel.
Great interview! As an educator who knows just how hard it is to find teacher talent, I’m hopeful all the changes coming with AI and the workplace will lead to an infusion of people interested in teaching. (Although your point about needing it to pay people enough is well received—when I was a teacher with TFA in 2000, people would coach or work summer jobs for extra money—but the number of school leaders I work with who have teachers driving for uber or bartending at night is a significant increase…)
I suspect AI will replace teachers, not because it can successfully do the job, but because the authorities who make those decisions will decide to pretend that it can. If it saves them money and having to deal with a human workforce, they'll jump at AI, no matter the consequences to students.
I actually respectfully disagree, only because a room full of students (any grade!) will eat any AI instructor situation alive. I work with a lot of senior educators (heads of school, superintendents, etc.) and while people vary in their optimism about the role ed tech can play in effective instruction, teaching and learning is so deeply human and relationally driven that I don’t see AI ever replacing it. Covid also taught us that kids in front of screens all day is bad (or at best: not great) for kids and learning and well being.
I hope you are right! I would love to be wrong about this
In general I have a lot of concerns about AI and the workforce but if it helps, this isn't one of them! At least right now.