Should artificially intelligent machines replace classroom teachers?
This article is based on the ACER Conference 2019 pertaining to teaching, schools and the role of school teachers in the 21st Century.
Rapid advances in digital technologies and their use in educational contexts has created opportunities for innovative pedagogies to re-shape traditional constructs of school-based education, including the role of the teacher within these educational constructs. Increasingly intuitive machines are capable of adapting to learner responses, raising the potential for artificially intelligent teaching assistants to take on a greater level of involvement in the learning process. Accompanying increased digital learning opportunities is an emerging discourse on the future of schools and school teachers, where existing school-based models of learning and the role of school teachers is brought into question. How educational leaders respond to these identified opportunities and threats will play a critical role in defining the probable and the preferred future for learning in the 21st Century.
Remaining future-focused, yet still operate effectively in the present, remains a key driving factor for successful school leadership. This report details how a specialised, future-focused model of instruction integrating best practice teaching pedagogies with an effective digital learning platform has achieved improved student learning outcomes in the context of Mathematics.
The ACER 2019 conference theme, “Preparing students for life in the 21st century: Identifying, developing and assessing what matters”, is reflected in the AI assisted model of instruction and assessment.
“In a rapidly changing world, there is widespread agreement that students require new levels of skill in collaborating, communicating, thinking critically, innovating, solving problems and applying what is learnt in new contexts, underpinned by values and dispositions that include a commitment to social inclusion, responsible citizenship and respect for human rights. So how do we best prepare young people and equip them to survive and thrive in the unpredictable world of the future? Research Conference 2019 will profile research around innovative ways of conceptualising, developing and assessing this broader range of priorities for student learning and development in the 21st century. It will bring together teachers, policymakers, researchers and academics to share a wide range of perspectives about how to approach this ongoing and multi-faceted challenge.” (Conference Abstract)
Developing a deeper understanding of the range of opportunities that advances in digital technologies offers to the future of mathematics instruction at both the Secondary and Primary level enables educational leaders to refine existing processes and structures that have been dominant over the past 40 years. Innovations that are currently in operation require continual and consistent review in order to deliver the most effective instruction for all students, whilst simultaneously ensuring selected methods of assessment best support the ongoing learning needs of students across all ability levels.
Designing an integrated program of Artificially Intelligent (AI) assisted continuous assessment that focuses on student success-achievement benefits gained through formative assessment practices, remains the focus over the next 2 to 3 year period. Rapid advances in AI and machine learning capabilities are providing unprecedented opportunities for educators willing to include digitally powered assistants in their instructional and assessment programs and we are currently well placed in terms of the provision of a highly integrated system of instruction that, by design, incorporate a very high frequency of effective feedback, based on on-going formative assessment structures in Stages Four and Five. Significant progress has been achieved during the initial stage and this is expected to continue to advance the increasing level of academic achievement, driven largely by an innovative method of delivering high quality explicit instruction which values ongoing, rigorous engagement with course content, where student success is assessed based on value-adding via a highly effective formative assessment structure.
The ACER conference 2019 provided a deeper context within which we are functioning, a context educational leaders need to remain cognisant of as the prevalence of digital technologies continues to rise. Current projections for the role of artificial intelligence as an integral element in designing effective teaching and learning programs for mathematics and other disciplines over the next decade see traditional structures of instruction evolving in to hybrid systems of machine-assisted learning structures. Combined with the possibilities that data analytics will offer, in terms of reporting on student Learning Progressions and the improved identification of highest needs areas, will provide clear insights into what our next strategic priority and focus should be; to actively integrate AI enabled teaching assistants whilst vigorously maintaining the humanity of our inter-personal relationships as the core of our profession.
A Strategic Priority: To actively integrate AI enabled teaching assistants whilst vigorously maintaining the humanity of our inter-personal relationships as the core of our profession.
Realising the Vision: Two Conference keynotes, the first by Dr Michelle Bruniges and the second by Professor Neil Selwyn, speak to the central theme of the Conference and establish a clearly distinguishable point of departure for educators to be mindful of as the landscape for their work transforms over coming decade. This point is the place and/or time where human expertise is relegated to a secondary level of influence and importance, in comparison to the role of an artificially intelligent machine. Dr Bruniges urges that an emphasis on emotionally connected inter-personal relationships remain permanently at the core of educational systems, stating, “Our innate humanity should always be our True North.”
Dr Bruniges presents a compelling case for the continuation of a person-to-person exchange as the essence of human learning; a truly connected and intimate relationship between the knower of knowledge and the learner, where wisdom is nurtured through deeply relational contexts and is not reduced to, metaphorically, the simple uploading of pre-existing instructions. Dr Bruniges makes clear the distinction between human learning needs and machine learning requirements in the following statement;
“We seek to develop first class human-beings, not second class robots.”
Our truly human traits that define positive relationships: empathy, compassion, companionship and emotion-based connectedness are the foundations for truly effective teaching. The teaching profession will not prosper if these are replaced or diminished through the misplaced reliance on machine-based programs and the exclusive use of empirical data to advance future learning.
"Teachers across Australia inspire students to love learning. Our best teachers are constantly evaluating their impact on learning outcomes and adapting their practice – balancing the art and science of teaching. As we move rapidly towards the third decade of the 21st century, there is more pressure than ever for all teachers to deliver both deep discipline knowledge and the skills students need to survive and thrive in the workplace of the future. We need to use technology and data to support teachers to maximise learning outcomes for their students. This has to be done in a way that helps teachers, rather than placing an additional burden on them. Being able to more accurately identify where each student is at in their learning, and delivering the next challenging but achievable step, will maximise student engagement and inspire a love of learning." (Dr Michele Bruniges AM, Secretary of the Australian Department of Education and Training)
Professor Neil Selwyn presents further insights into the possible, probable and preferable futures that educational leaders and policy makers will be determining over the next ten years. Selwyn’s persuasive case for retaining traditional models of ‘school’ and ‘teacher’ is made in response to strengthening and often compelling calls for alternative models of ‘schooling’ to become more widely adopted across the globe. Professor Selwyn calls for contemporary educational leaders to become increasingly proactive advocates for the beneficial elements associated with many of ‘bricks-and-mortar’ style models of schooling. Selwyn’s presentation explored “… a series of substantial challenges that are likely to come to the fore during the 2020s. the presentation [considers] a variety of ways in which the Australian educational community might move forward in a realistic manner – allowing us to play a proactive part in how the 21st century continues to unfold." (Prof. Neil Selwyn, Faculty of Education, Monash University)
Professor Selwyn’s work is focused on digital education, for which he is internationally recognised as a leading critical researcher and commentator. His latest book, “Should Robots Replace Teachers? AI and the Future of Education”, is due to be published in late 2019 and is set to be of critical importance as calls for alternative to school-based models gather momentum and popular support amongst policy makers. He identifies several key challenges for school leadership to be prepared for in the near future, including:
- Making a persuasive case for retaining traditional models of ‘school’ and ‘teacher’ in the face of compelling alternatives.
“Advances in student-centred personalised learning systems are prompting calls for teaching to be automated, learner-driven and ‘teacher-proof’. While these technologies still require classroom facilitators and technicians, the need for highly trained expert teachers is being seriously questioned.
Put bluntly, the entire premise of ‘schooling’ and the ‘teaching profession’ faces an impending challenge to convincingly justify its existence.” (ACER, 2019, p.13)
- Develop broader notions of ‘skills’, ‘competencies’ and ‘aptitudes’ that help students to flourish in an age of precarious employment, misinformation and an increasingly fragmented society.
“There will be little sense in continuing to set schools up to cater for a ‘knowledge economy’ that will require masses of highly-skilled information workers.” (ACER, 2019, p.14)
- Engaging with digital technology in ways that strengthen the character and values of public education.
“Digital technologies will become entwined across all aspects of education to the extent that they largely stop being noticeable. This will be a decade marked by the increased ‘datafication’ of educational institutions and the adoption of AI-driven systems that make decisions autonomously.” (ACER, 2019, p.15)
Professor Dragan Gašević of Monash University, Melbourne, is an expert in data analytics and machine learning and Adjunct Professor in the Faculty of Information Technology at Monash University who sees the benefits of big data in assisting educators become more empowered in making professional judgements about student progress.
“Trust in teacher judgement is enhanced when reliable data is known to be accessed as the basis in formulating these judgements. Advances in Artificial Intelligence assist teachers gather, interpret and apply data on Student Learning Progressions.”
This statement is the basis of necessary pre-conditions which propel educational reform towards the point of departure for distinguishing between ‘machine assisted’, ‘machine guided’ and ultimately ‘machine controlled’ degrees of co-existence within education. Gašević outlines the ways in which learning analytics can be used to track learning progression and how the validity of the findings with data analytics is assured, adding further to the premise of each of the Conference keynotes: that machines will play an increasingly influential role in education over the next ten years.
Other challenges touched upon by Prof. Selwyn are:
- Renegotiating relationships between educational institutions and the corporate actors that are shaping education agendas around the world.
- Engaging with public opinion, and fostering a genuine public understanding of (and support for) education.
- Re-imagining educational provision and practices that are appropriate for an age of climate change.
Each of Professor Selwyn’s challenges are presented with his own, admittedly, preferred future in mind. We can be assured that many variations of a preferred future will be proposed, each competing to dominate the policy space within Australia in the coming decade. We at NBCS must be aware of the bigger picture within which we operate, remaining ahead of the curve in terms of digitally enabled teaching and learning opportunities and setting the standard for which other traditional school-based models of teaching aspire to be.
Opportunities for future-focused schools.
Forward looking school leaders can make themselves well placed as a leading voice and director of critically important innovations in schooling, being driven by advances in digital technologies. Without the need to reinvent traditional schooling, we can be open to the opportunities non-campus based lessons and programs could offer to students and their families seeking to complete courses of study, but may not have the capability to physically attend the school campus. A range of alternatives to the traditional structure of schooling already exist, including Home Schooling, Distance Education, School of the Air, Massively Open Online Courses (MOOC’s) and multiple tertiary level institutions offer 100% online courses for their students. It is increasingly possible for Primary and Secondary schools to attract future enrolments through a well-developed AI assisted program of learning that retains the essential core element of human interaction and inter-personal connectedness with caring expert teachers, even if students are unable to be physically present in their school of choice. An example of post-secondary school possibilities is provided by TAFE NSW, with their introduction of online learning, promoted as:
“WELCOME TO THE FUTURE OF ONLINE EDUCATION!
In your own time, in your own space, at your own pace, be whatever you want to be with TAFE Digital.”
ACER Conference 2019 supports the current focus of mathematics, and other learning areas, in the integrated system of teacher empowered, digitally assisted, data rich learning environments. As we enter the next stage of schooling for the 21st Century, previously accepted norms for what constitutes a ‘school’ will come under closer scrutiny, with a range of technologically-enabled options becoming more accessible for students, parents and governments to take advantage of. As we recognise the challenges this changing landscape will present, we are also able to recognise the opportunities such innovations can offer. Traditional models that rely solely on a “bricks-and-mortar” structure to deliver excellent instruction will continue to be supported, however, the rise of non-traditional alternatives will pose an increasing risk to those types of schools as policy makers look to diversify into a range of possible options. Our preferred future will take vision and determination to secure, as we remain committed to delivering world class innovations in the field of digitally assisted learning, whilst maintaining the intrinsically human emotive elements that bind people together, contextualising the real purpose of education: to share the joy of learning with others and to extend our collective understanding of the wonders that surround us.
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