Artificial Intelligence in Education

Understanding Generative AI

• Generative AI refers to technology that creates new content based on large volumes of data.
• ChatGPT and Google Bard are examples of generative AI tools built on large language models (LLMs).
• These tools can answer questions, complete written tasks, and respond to prompts in a human-like way.
• Other forms of generative AI can produce audio, code, images, text, simulations, and videos.

Opportunities for the Education Sector

• Generative AI tools can quickly analyze, structure, and write text, and turn prompts into audio, video, and images.
• Used appropriately, generative AI can reduce workload across the education sector and free up teachers' time to focus on delivering excellent teaching.
• However, the content produced by generative AI can be inaccurate, inappropriate, biased, taken out of context, or unreliable.

Using AI Effectively

• Teacher workload is an important issue, and the government is committed to helping teachers spend less time on non-pupil-facing activities.
• Generative AI tools can make certain written tasks quicker and easier, but cannot replace the judgment and deep subject knowledge of a human expert.
• It is essential that our education system ensures pupils acquire knowledge, expertise, and intellectual capability.

Limitations of Generative AI Tools

• Generative AI tools can produce unreliable information, requiring professional judgment to check for appropriateness and accuracy.
• These tools return results based on the dataset they have been trained on, which may not be comparable to human-designed resources.
• The quality and content of the final document remain the professional responsibility of the person who produced it and the organization they belong to.

Protecting Data, Pupils, and Staff

• Generative AI stores and learns from the data it is given, which should not be identifiable.
• These tools can create believable content, including scam emails, and interact with users in a way that may seem more authoritative and credible.
• Schools and colleges should protect personal and special category data, review and strengthen their cybersecurity, and ensure children and young people are not accessing or creating harmful content online.### Intellectual Property Rights
• Pupils own the IP rights to original content they create, including work that shows effort or is beyond multiple-choice questions.
• IP rights can only be used to train AI with consent from the rights holder or an exemption to copyright.

Consent and Exemptions

• Education institutions need consent from pupils over 18 or their parents/guardians if under 18 to use original work to train AI models.
• Exemptions to copyright are limited, and institutions may need legal advice to ensure they are acting within the law.

Preventing Malpractice

• Schools, colleges, universities, and awarding organizations must take reasonable steps to prevent malpractice involving generative AI.
• The Joint Council for Qualifications has published guidance on AI use in assessments to support teachers and exam centers.

Knowledge and Skills for the Future

• A knowledge-rich curriculum is essential to help students become well-informed users of technology and understand its impact on society.
• Foundational knowledge ensures students develop the right skills to make the best use of generative AI.

Teaching Emerging Technologies

• The education sector needs to teach students how to use emerging technologies, such as generative AI, safely and appropriately.
• This teaching may include:
  • The limitations, reliability, and potential bias of generative AI
  • Online safety to protect against harmful or misleading content
  • Understanding and protecting IP rights
  • Creating and using digital content safely and responsibly
  • The impact of technology, including disruptive and enabling technologies
  • Foundational knowledge about how computers work, connect with each other, follow rules, and process data.

Office for AI Research

• The Office for AI is conducting research into the skills needed for future workforce training.

Supporting Students

• The education system should support students, particularly young pupils, to identify and use appropriate resources to support their ongoing education.
• It should encourage effective use of age-appropriate resources, which may include generative AI, and prevent over-reliance on limited tools or resources.

Explore the role of generative AI in education, its potential benefits, and challenges. This quiz is based on the UK government's policy paper on AI in education.