^{Themes: Ethical challenges in using AI, How I’ve been using AI, Teaching Strategies
Audience & Subject: Grades 9-12; Literacy}

Introduction

With the knowledge that artificial intelligence (AI) is here to stay and is useful as a teaching tool, this lesson looks for ways to integrate AI into the classroom. Please note that while the following activity was created for an English class, it can be readily modified to fit any topic.

Activity: Ethical Use of AI Lesson for StudentsOverview

This activity provides an introduction for pupils who have never used an artificial intelligence program. In addition to showing the students how to use the information they gather, the teacher guides them through the kinds of questions and prompts that will provide the most useful data. Students will also learn how teachers determine whether AI created the content they turn in. After the teacher has gleaned knowledge from the AI, they work to teach pupils about acceptable behaviour and ethical use.

Description

The activity steps are below, and an example of the entire lesson plan can be found here [word doc].

A Difficult Reading

• Based on their aptitudes, assign the pupils a challenging text to read. I decided to use an audio version of “Masque of the Red Death” with my class, but you could use a journal article or anything else. Many students will need help comprehending this challenging read. Listening to it via an audio app is best because emotions and other concepts are conveyed more accurately.
• After the reading, pose straightforward questions about the storyline or any other fundamental reading comprehension strategy to determine how well the students understand. Eventually, ask the kids if they understood what was happening and have them admit it was challenging to comprehend.
• Inquire as to how they plan to decipher what the story was about. Have them brainstorm in small groups and discuss as a large group once again.

Introduce AI

• Introduce ChatGPT as an option at this point—discuss what it is for those who don’t know.
• Ask students what they believe you should ask the AI to find out what happened in the story—Students frequently ask surface-level inquiries; thus, the answers will be brief and ambiguous.
• Explain to students that their questions aren’t deep enough; therefore, their answers are not specific or detailed, and their audience will know they did not read the story.
• Have the students practice asking more profound questions about the short story to ChatGPT.
• Show them the types of questions that matter.
• Explain what you are asking the AI to do. Articulate the purpose and scope of the prompt you provide.
• Once you have answers, you can transfer them to a Google Doc and edit them as a class.
• Evaluate the quality and relevance of the output together. Note where the AI response is strong or lacking. Does it fully address the question?
• Show how you edit and build upon the AI’s ideas. Modify, add to, or omit specific passages to improve the content.
• Once you have the response, paste it back into ChatGPT and ask if it wrote it. This is to show that it is still plagiarized. Teach them to take the information, re-read the text and create your own work.
• Discuss hallucinations etc.

Quillbot

• Explain the purpose of Quillbot and the fact that the data you provide will be paraphrased. It is free and has a word limit of 125. It will only paraphrase what you feed it as it has yet to learn whether the content is accurate.
• Choose a passage to add to Quillbot, then use the information gathered from the last activity to have it paraphrase the text. Direct the students to read it out loud.
• Describe the possible errors that could occur (tense events, for example, in the original piece can cause the AI to become confused and change its meaning).

Infographics

• Go over the supplied infographics about Critical Thinking and the Risks of AI, and then have a class discussion. Give time for inquiries.

  Exit card

• Have the students complete the Exit card before the end of class

Key Benefits

In this activity, students will learn how to use modern technology (AI) in an ethical manner. It will function as a tool and provide constructive application.

Possible Challenges

It would be prudent to speak with principals and other educators before implementing this lesson or anything else AI-related in your classroom, as some school boards and instructors are not yet prepared to accept AI into the classroom. Given that some parents are still apprehensive about AI and have not fully embraced it, it would be beneficial to communicate with them beforehand to minimize any potential angst following the lecture.

During this activity, teachers should be aware that they are feeding data into an AI program in front of the students. They should also be mindful of the questions, anticipate possible answers, and be familiar with the material the students are discussing. Being able to recognize misleading information provided by AI is also essential.

About the author

name: Donna Farquharson-Goheen

Donna Farquharson-Goheen, M.Ed., is a secondary teacher and former consultant with PVNCCDSB. Her research interests are character education, ethics and religious education. With more than 15 years of expertise, Donna likes to challenge her pupils to participate in new learning projects. As Donna also likes to challenge herself, she is completing a second master’s degree in religious education.