Ch6: Integrating GenAI into Your Classroom

Yu-Chang Hsu, Ph.D.

6 Ch6: Integrating GenAI into Your Classroom

Guiding educators through the practical steps of implementing GenAI tools, along with strategies to overcome common challenges.

Integrating GenAI into educational settings offers transformative potential for enhancing teaching and learning experiences. This chapter provides guidance through the practical steps of implementing GenAI tools in the classrooms, focusing on literacy, coding, history, and art. By embracing these technologies, educators can overcome common challenges and unlock new opportunities for student engagement, personalized learning, and creative exploration.

Literacy: Enhancing Reading and Writing Skills with GenAI

Introduction: Utilizing GenAI in literacy education offers a transformative approach to enhancing reading and writing skills. GenAI tools provide unique, interactive experiences that can motivate students, personalize learning, and broaden their understanding and creative use of language.

Objectives: The main objective of applying GenAI in literacy education is to augment traditional reading and writing methods with innovative technology. This strategy aims to stimulate students’ interest in literacy, improve comprehension and writing proficiency through tailored content and feedback, and cultivate creative and critical thinking skills essential for effective communication.

Step 1: Using GenAI Tools

Text Generation: ChatGPT by OpenAI is a powerful tool for generating text based on prompts, making it ideal for creating engaging writing prompts, simulating conversations with historical figures, or even generating entire stories or essays for analysis. Other similar tools that educators can consider are Gemini by Google and Perplexity by Perplexity AI, Inc.

Step 2: GenAI Integration for Literacy Using ChatGPT

Weekly Creative Writing Prompts: Every week, students receive a unique, AI-generated writing prompt related to current lessons or themes. For instance, if the class is studying mythology, teachers can use GhatGTP to generate a prompt asking students to write a story where they encounter a lesser-known god or goddess. This exercise encourages creativity and reinforces the thematic content of the course. Here’s an example prompt generated by ChatGPT.

“Imagine you come across a lesser-known god or goddess from any mythological tradition, such as one who often goes unnoticed in the grand stories of the pantheon. Write a story where you encounter this deity in an unexpected place, perhaps during an ordinary day. Explore how their unique powers or characteristics influence the encounter, and how this meeting changes or challenges your understanding of the world. Be creative with how the god or goddess reveals their identity and consider how their obscurity might play a role in the story.”

Interactive Storytelling Projects: Students use ChatGPT to create interactive stories that branch based on reader choices, similar to “choose your own adventure” books. This project integrates technology, creative writing, and critical thinking, as students must consider multiple plot paths and outcomes.
Summarization and Analysis Activities: After reading a complex text, students use ChatGPT to generate summaries. Then, in groups, they discuss the accuracy and completeness of the summaries compared to their understanding. This fosters skills in critical reading, analysis, and discussion.

Step 3: Responsible Use of GenAI

Inspiration instead of Shortcut: Teaching students to use GenAI responsibly involves guiding them to understand the technology as a tool for enhancing creativity rather than a shortcut for completing tasks. Teachers can foster an environment where GenAI is seen as a collaborator for inspiration, while human judgment and ethical considerations remain central to the learning process.
Diverse Perspectives: By focusing on idea generation and brainstorming, students can harness GenAI to expand their thinking, explore diverse perspectives, and overcome creative blocks.
Ethical Use: It’s essential, however, to emphasize ethical use—encouraging students to critically evaluate the GenAI’s suggestions, refine outputs into their own voice, and ensure originality in their work.

Coding: Facilitating Coding with GenAI

Introduction: Incorporating GenAI into computer science education can revolutionize the way coding is taught and learned. By leveraging GenAI tools, educators can offer more dynamic, personalized programming lessons that enhance students’ coding skills and inspire creativity and problem-solving capabilities.

Objectives: The objective of integrating GenAI into coding education is to enrich the learning experience by providing students with real-time coding assistance and personalized feedback. This approach aims to foster a deeper understanding of programming concepts, encourage innovative problem-solving, and prepare students for future challenges in technology and computer science.

Step 1: Using GenAI Tools

Code Generation: GitHub Copilot, powered by OpenAI Codex, for example, assists in writing code by suggesting complete lines or blocks based on comments and prompts, making it an invaluable tool for teaching programming.

Step 2: GenAI Integration for Coding Using GitHub Copilot

Introduction to AI-assisted Coding: Begin with lessons on how AI can assist in coding, using GitHub Copilot as a tool. Students learn to write comments and prompts to generate code, starting with simple tasks like creating a calculator or a basic HTML page.
Collaborative Coding Projects: Students work in teams to design and develop an application, using GitHub Copilot for code suggestions. Each team could focus on a different aspect of the application, such as the user interface, database management, or functionality features. This teaches coding skills, teamwork, and project management.
Code Review and Refinement Sessions: Incorporate regular sessions where students review the AI-generated code. They learn to identify potential improvements, ensuring they understand the logic and can optimize the code for efficiency and effectiveness.

Step 3: Overcoming Challenges

Understanding vs. Copying: Foster an environment where students are encouraged to understand the logic behind the code. Incorporate peer reviews and discussions on how AI suggestions can be improved or modified for better performance.

History: Enriching Historical Understanding with GenAI

Introduction: Integrating GenAI into history education transforms traditional learning, offering immersive experiences that make the past come alive. This approach not only deepens understanding but also engages students with history through a modern, interactive lens.

Objectives: The goal of using GenAI in history education is to boost engagement and understanding by providing interactive, personalized learning experiences. It aims to develop critical thinking, empathy, and digital literacy, preparing students to critically navigate the intersection of technology and historical scholarship.

Step 1: Using GenAI Tools

Image and Text Generation: Use tools like DALL·E for creating visual representations of historical events or artifacts. ChatGPT can be utilized to generate textual descriptions or dialogues simulating historical figures.

Step 2: GenAI Integration for History Using DALL·E and ChatGPT

Historical Figure Dialogues: Students can be guided to use ChatGPT to create dialogues with historical figures, integrating facts learned in class. These dialogues can then be used as a basis for presentations or essays, encouraging deep engagement with the material. For example, teachers can use GenAI to develop immersive, dynamic simulations of key historical events in ancient Rome or in medieval Europe. By leveraging the scenarios, teachers can help students engage in role-playing activities where they take on historical roles—e.g., as advisors to famous leaders—exploring different outcomes based on their decisions.
AI-generated Artifacts and Documents: Use DALL·E to create images of historical artifacts, documents, or scenes related to the current period of study. Students analyze these images in the context of their historical significance, engaging with the material in a visually interactive way.
Interactive Timelines and Narratives: Students create interactive timelines using AI-generated texts and images, incorporating key events, figures, and artifacts. This project can be collaborative, with each student contributing to different parts of the timeline, fostering a comprehensive understanding of historical periods.

Step 3: Overcoming Challenges

Accuracy and Bias: Teach students to critically assess AI-generated historical content. Encourage the use of primary sources and scholarly research to validate the AI-generated materials, fostering a nuanced understanding of history.

Art: Cultivating Creativity and Expression with GenAI

Introduction: Integraging GenAI tools into art education presents a unique opportunity to blend traditional artistic techniques with the cutting-edge capabilities of AI, fostering creativity, innovation, and a deeper understanding of the digital landscape. Here’s a example of GenAI integration plan tailored for art education:

Objective: To utilize GenAI tools to enhance creativity, provide new mediums for expression, and explore the intersection of technology and art, allowing students to experiment with digital art creation, critique AI-generated art, and understand the ethical implications of using AI in art.

Step 1: Using GenAI Tools

AI Art Generators: Tools like DALL·E, Artbreeder, or similar platforms that generate images based on textual descriptions or modify existing images through user input. These tools can be used to explore concepts of creativity, composition, and the impact of AI on traditional art forms.
Interactive Design Software: Incorporate software that uses AI to assist in the design process, such as Adobe Photoshop’s neural filters or AI-driven design aids on platforms like Canva, which can suggest layouts, color schemes, and compositions.

Step 2: GenAI Integration for Art Using DALL·E and Artbreeder

AI-Assisted Art Projects: Assign projects where students use GenAI tools to create artwork based on specific themes, historical art movements, or personal expression. Encourage students to experiment with different prompts and explore how subtle changes in wording can dramatically alter the generated results.
- Tool Suggestion: DALL·E by OpenAI. Students can use DALL·E to generate images based on textual prompts. For example, they might explore themes like “futuristic landscapes” or “reimagining Van Gogh’s Starry Night with modern elements.” This activity encourages exploration of how language influences visual output and the potential of AI in creative expression.
- Tool Suggestion: Artbreeder. This platform specializes in combining and modifying existing images. It also provides fine-tuned control over image attributes, enabling users to adjust specific aspects of an image. Students can experiment with combining features from different art styles or periods to create unique pieces, such as merging Renaissance portraiture with abstract expressionism.
Critiquing AI Art: Organize critique sessions where students analyze and discuss AI-generated art. Focus on elements like creativity, emotional impact, and how well the AI interpreted the input prompts. This encourages critical thinking and a deeper understanding of artistic principles.
- Tool Suggestion: Phosus or a similar style transfer tool. Phosus specializes in enhancing existing images rather than generating new ones from scratch. After generating artwork that transforms photographs into the style of famous painters, students can critique these pieces, focusing on how well the AI captures the essence of the original style and the emotional impact of the transformed image.
Collaborative Art Exhibitions: Create a collaborative project where students combine traditional art techniques with AI-generated elements to produce hybrid artworks. This could culminate in an exhibition that showcases the fusion of human and AI creativity, offering a platform for discussion about the future of art.
- Tool Suggestion: Runway ML. This tool offers various AI models for creative projects, including style transfer, text-to-image, and more. In the same workspace, students can collaborate on a project that uses Runway ML to incorporate AI-generated elements into traditional media, culminating in an exhibition that showcases the integration of technology and manual art techniques.

Step 3: Overcoming Challenges

Ethical Considerations and Authorship: Engage students in discussions about the ethical implications of using AI in art, including questions of authorship, originality, and the value of AI-generated art compared to human-created art. This can be integrated into the curriculum through debates, essays, or presentation projects.
Understanding AI’s Limitations and Biases: Educate students about the inherent limitations and biases of AI, discussing how these factors can influence the art it produces. This can lead to a broader conversation about the role of bias in art and how technology reflects societal values.

Integrating Evaluation and Reflection

For each of the GenAI integration ideas discussed above, evaluation and reflection can be an integrated part of the curriculum. For example,

Reflective Journals: Encourage students to keep a journal documenting their process of working with GenAI tools, including their successes, challenges, and thoughts on how GenAI influences their learning, creativity, collaboration, or artistic expression.
Group Discussions and Presentations: Facilitate group discussions where students share their experiences and insights from working with GenAI. Encourage presentations on specific projects that highlight the integration of GenAI, reflecting on the learning process and the potential of GenAI in shaping future learning practices.

The thoughtful integration of GenAI tools into educational practices can offer a dynamic approach to learning, catering to the diverse needs and interests of students. By selecting appropriate tools, integrating them meaningfully into the curriculum, and navigating potential pitfalls with critical awareness, educators can enhance their students’ educational experience. This journey can equip students with the skills to thrive in an AI-influenced future. It can also instill a lifelong appreciation for learning, creativity, and critical thinking.