AI and Education: Ethics for a new teaching culture
Artificial Intelligence (AI) stands apart from other digital technologies due to its profound potential to reshape societies, economies, and educational landscapes. This alone has made many of us hesitant, even fearful, to integrate it into our teaching. Unlike traditional ICTs, AI introduces distinct ethical and social concerns. Its unique capacity to mimic human behaviors influences human agency and requires specialised competencies beyond conventional digital literacy. Yet, as highlighted in previous posts in our blog, research demonstrates that AI can also make teaching more engaging and effective, improving both our professional and personal lives.
Indeed, recent UNESCO frameworks emphasise that AI should enhance, not diminish or replace, human decision-making and intellectual growth, highlighting the importance of respecting human rights and cultural diversity when designing and implementing AI systems. In educational settings specifically, AI-assisted learning tools have shown up to a 20% improvement in student engagement and retention—underscoring how beneficial AI can be when used correctly. But what exactly does it mean to "use AI right"?
We'll try here to address AI's ethical challenges (you can explore practical steps to starting your AI journey in our previous post about EFL teaching) so we can start leveraging AI safely and enhance our teaching—just as professionals in other fields have been doing. Because considering the social importance of our role in shaping future citizens, ethical responsibility in using and teaching AI is critical. These challenges are multifaceted, including bias, social and economic inequality, regulatory complexities, transparency, accountability, and potential infringements on privacy and freedom. Within the EFL context, AI is particularly nuanced: it offers personalised learning experiences and task automation but also raises issues about data privacy, biases in language learning applications, and the importance of human interaction in language acquisition.
Addressing these challenges individually adds to a teacher's already demanding workload. We propose a holistic —a new teaching culture offering a practical framework for teachers and students alike:
- Own it: AI is here to support, not replace or undermine you. Transparency and clear communication with leadership, parents, and students are crucial and backed by ample research.
- Student transparency: Open communication also helps students ethically use AI, reducing plagiarism and enhancing academic integrity (Bretag et al., 2014).
- Critical assessment: Evaluate AI tools carefully to ensure they complement your teaching and actively engage students. AI is a valuable assistant worth embracing.
- Professional development: Regularly invest in your knowledge of AI integration through personal research, blogs, journals, and educational resources.
- Student empowerment: Provide students foundational AI knowledge and skills to ensure equal footing with more privileged peers.
- Collaboration: Work proactively and collaboratively with leadership, parents, and students to ensure AI deployment respects human dignity and rights, creating a safe, rich learning environment.
Integrating AI into education offers transformative potential but must be thoughtfully approached, balancing ethical, pedagogical, and practical implications. Collaboration among educators, policymakers, and AI developers is essential to harness AI's benefits and safeguard the well-being of all stakeholders. Indeed, AI can significantly reduce inequalities in knowledge access, research, and cultural expression while preventing technological divides —if used wisely.
Let AI assist, allowing us teachers to focus on innovative practices and meaningful interactions with our students.
We hope these tips support your journey ahead!
Reference:
- Bretag, T., Mahmud, S., Wallace, M., Walker, R., McGowan, U., East, J., … James, C. (2013). ‘Teach us how to do it properly!’ An Australian academic integrity student survey. Studies in Higher Education, 39(7), 1150–1169. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2013.777406
