Episode: 822

Episode Title: AI: Tool and Teacher

If technology can do something for you, why do you need to learn how to do it? The rise of AI is making this an important question—next on The Perna Syndicate.

Ep 822 show:

Welcome back to The Perna Syndicate and thanks for being here! I think we would all agree that while calculators have a role in higher-level math, they do not teach that math. Calculators cannot tell us how or why an answer is correct; they simply provide it. Does that mean we stop using them in higher-level math courses? No.

The same argument could be made for the spreadsheet. If you really consider what it can do, it’s an amazing piece of software and a valuable tool. But it’s how it’s deployed that makes it useful. 

Both the calculator and spreadsheet are tools that increase efficiency, but we must first understand what we need them to do before we can use them effectively. We still have to problem-solve.

Are AI content generators all that different? To use AI to write an effective essay, the student must know the point they want to make and why it matters. Then, once the initial content is generated, they must verify the sources, correct any errors, and produce a human-checked piece of work to hand in. 

I don’t know about you, but to me that still sounds like significant work on the student’s part—with a lot of learning happening along the way.

Similarly, students who use AI to solve a math problem won’t just get the answer. They will be shown every bit of the work, with reasons and explanations at every step. In essence, it teaches you HOW to get the answer—and isn’t that what we want students to learn?  

Thank you for tuning in today! Tomorrow on The Perna Syndicate, join me for a discussion on how AI is essential for the careers of future generations. Until then, take care!