On AI Aware courses

Our courses should acknowledge that AI is now out there

Some of the teachers I admire most don’t use technology beyond pdfs and word processors in their classes. These are teachers who continually show up as “most influential” on our senior surveys. They’re the ones with lines outside their door for office hours. When I’ve sat in on their classes, I’m inspired by the ways they can lead students through complex discussions about texts, writing, and meaning.

To ask these brilliant teachers to integrate AI into their classes is ridiculous. I don’t think they should have to spend weeks on AI literacy exercises or encourage students to explore AI writing techniques. But their world of texts, writing, and meaning is impacted by AI, just as mine is.

I don’t think that all of our courses need to engage with AI. But all courses need to consider AI’s now ubiquitous presence in our writing and reading environments. Consideration of AI could include active refusal, minimal engagement, or embracing AI. With a mix of these approaches, the curriculum as a whole can support AI literacy—along with a host of other established learning outcomes like critical reading and thinking.

I think of this as AI Aware curriculum. And I wrote more about it on the Norton newsletter, AI and How we Teach Writing. Thanks for reading!