Restricting AI in education is a missed opportunity for deeper learning engagement

Artificial intelligence has burst onto the educational scene, leaving educators scrambling to understand where and how AI should be used. 

It’s become a divisive issue across all levels of education, particularly higher education. Many have opted to go down the restrictive route and ban AI usage altogether, threatening students with a penalty if they’re found to have turned to the tech for support (BBC). 

For further education (FE) institutions, higher education’s ongoing battle with AI should serve as a cautionary tale – a perfect example of what not to do when it comes to AI in the classroom. 

AI isn’t going away. And with AI usage among students on the rise, they’re still going to use it in their work – whether colleges like it or not (HEPI). Educators must find a way to carefully integrate AI into current and future curriculums in a way that benefits students and encourages them to engage with their learning on a deeper level. 

To do this, educators must build essential digital and AI skills teaching into the curriculum; use AI tools to provide students with real-time, personalised feedback; and ensure students are tested on foundational teachings and AI skills separately.

First, and most importantly, FE institutions need to ensure students are given the chance to develop their AI skills in a learning environment. AI’s a top priority for businesses today, and restricting students’ use of it only risks jeopardising their chances of career success. 

Educators are understandably wary of an overreliance on AI (Times Higher Education). But a balance must be struck, and they must work to find the optimal way to introduce AI into their courses. 

As teachers sketch out AI’s place in the classroom, they should enlist the support and insight of local employers and industry professionals – all of whom can shed a light on where and how AI is being used in industry. 

This will ensure that any digital skills training and AI-based assessment tasks are rooted in reality and real-life work, sending students into the working world with a solid foundation of knowledge.

Soon, AI integration skills will be seen as just as important in the workplace as project management, coding, and communication. And it’s time FE educators ensured their students were equipped with these critical digital capabilities. 

Teachers must also consider how AI tools can be used to encourage a deeper engagement with the course content. One of AI’s most stand-out qualities is its ability to offer fast personalised feedback – which has the potential to transform the student experience. 

The benefits of comprehensive, personalised feedback are well-evidenced. From prompting a deeper analysis of their work to boosting morale, feedback is one of the strongest tools in the teacher’s arsenal.

LLMs today can be used to generate curated feedback for each student, a mutually beneficial solution that protects teachers’ time whilst ensuring students get the support they need. And it can provide instantaneous feedback to students – which is proven in some cases to supersede the impact of feedback that’s received later (Harvard Business School). 

Auto-generated feedback is priceless for students tackling coding or mathematical tasks – situations where there’s a clear-cut right or wrong answer. With instantaneous prompts from AI, students can quickly jump any hurdles in the learning journey, arriving at the correct answer sooner.

While teaching students how to deploy AI to support their work and learning is vital, it’s equally important that key foundational skills don’t fall by the wayside. Teachers must continue to assess students on their subject knowledge and abilities, without the influence of AI. 

AI is a supplement, not a replacement. Students still need to know the fundamentals of their subject, and must be tested on their knowledge, understanding, and critical thinking skills. Separating AI assessments from regular subject tests is the perfect way to achieve that. 

One way to think about it is like a maths exam where you have a calculator and non-calculator paper. Even though you’re allowed to use a calculator in one exam, you still have to know the fundamentals: what to do to get the right answer, and what makes that answer correct. 

With a solid foundation of knowledge beneath their feet, they’ll ultimately be able to get more out of AI. They’ll know what to ask to get the answer they need and, crucially, they’ll have the knowledge and understanding to fact-check any AI-generated responses – preventing the risk of an error-ridden overreliance on AI.

AI has a place in education, and as this technology develops and becomes increasingly commonplace, demand for AI skills will only become more significant. Banning or heavily restricting AI could cost educators a golden opportunity to engage students with their learning on a deeper level, and in a way that is reflective of real-world trends.

And for FE institutions, where the core focus is on vocational skills and setting students up for success in the world of work, that’s an opportunity they just can’t afford to lose. 

AI is not a replacement for the vital work of teachers. But it is a tool to encourage deeper, more thoughtful engagement with subject matter, securing better results for students across the board.

By Dr. Raoul-Gabriel Urma, Founder and Group CEO of Cambridge Spark