Teaching History/Social Studies in the Era of AI Writing Tools | Learning as I go: Experiences, reflections, lessons learned
n every case, students give their ideas and perspectives a sense of permanence and importance as they commit words to paper or screens.
To do this, students need opportunities to interrogate what it means to be a historian and a writer.
They need opportunities to break free from the 5-paragraph essay to uncover the purpose and intellectual benefits of writing. And, they need open-ended learning experiences that allow them to construct their own thinking and learning.
It is important to note that AI writing tools should not be seen as a replacement for human interaction and critical thinking. While these tools can certainly be useful in certain contexts, they cannot replace the value of human analysis and interpretation.
Students must learn how to become HISTORIANS and WRITERS, not simply how to research information and summarize it in writing.
They need opportunities to break free from the 5-paragraph essay to uncover the purpose and intellectual benefits of writing. And, they need open-ended learning experiences that allow them to construct their own thinking and learning.
The AI writing tool can free students from spending time trying to find basic, textbook-style information online (and potentially getting lost in the process) so they can spend more time thinking like historians and acting like writers.