What is Chat GPT? What Educators Should Know
Chat GPT, also known as Generative Pretrained Transformer, is a type of artificial intelligence that is able to generate text based on a given prompt. It is based on a neural network model that has been trained on a large amount of data and is able to generate human-like responses to various types of prompts.
One of the key benefits of Chat GPT is that it can help teachers to save time by automatically generating responses to common questions or tasks. For example, a teacher could use Chat GPT to create personalized feedback for each student, or to quickly generate responses to frequently asked questions.
In addition to saving time, Chat GPT can also help to improve the quality of education by providing students with more personalized and engaging learning experiences. For example, a teacher could use Chat GPT to create customized lesson plans and activities based on each student’s individual needs and learning style.
However, there are also some potential drawbacks to using Chat GPT in education. For example, some people have raised concerns about the potential for bias in the algorithms that power Chat GPT, and the potential for the technology to reinforce existing biases in the education system.
Additionally, there is a risk that students could become overly reliant on Chat GPT, which could hinder their ability to think critically and solve problems on their own. It is important for teachers to carefully consider these potential drawbacks and to use Chat GPT in a way that promotes critical thinking and independent learning.
Overall, Chat GPT has the potential to be a valuable tool for teachers, but it is important for educators to carefully consider its benefits and drawbacks, and to use it in a way that enhances rather than detracts from the learning experience.
In fact, this entire blog post thus far was wrote by Chat GPT! (see video below)
My Thoughts on Chat GPT
Developed by the same group that gave us Dall E 2, Chat GPT has been occupying A LOT of my time these past few days. I have used it to write up a variety of posts about social media in education which I felt was a comfortable topic for me to analyze. I then moved into drafting essays on the importance of volunteer firefighters in rural communities which I asked my husband (and local fire chief) to review. Some fun examples also included asking Chat GPT to write a ghost story for a 7-year old boy named Jaxson (for my son’s bedtime story choice) and to put together a 5-day itinerary to Churchill in August (guess what my summer plans are).
As we continue to learn more about Chat GPT some things we should be mindful of include:
- Chat GPT provides the following content disclaimers in regard to limitations:
- may occasionally generate incorrect information
- may occasionally produce harmful instructions or biased content
- limited knowledge of world and events after 2021
- Chat GPT boasts the following capabilities:
- remembers what user said earlier in the conversation
- allows user to provide follow-up corrections
- trained to decline inappropriate requests
- content is AI generated and unique, meaning it would not be able to be detected for plagiarism
- when I put in the same prompt multiple times I received the same answer
- this may be related to the fact that it remembers past conversations, I don’t know if this would be the case across multiple users
- Chat GPT provides a search engine option that is not currently tied to ad monetization
- Chat GPT could be harmful to student critical thinking and accurate assessments in situations where educators are asking for “googable” answers and don’t allow for performance assessments
- Chat GPT could be beneficial for users who are looking for an information scaffold to begin their writing/project/etc
- content is currently free but information is required to gain an account
Further Resources
I recommend checking out this recent critique from Jennifer Casa-Todd, Learning More About Chat GPT in Education.
A comprehensive tutorial on Chat GPT is available on YouTube by Adrian Twarog:
I want to conclude with this Instagram summary from Dr. John Spencer (click the white arrows to scroll through the slides).
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