AI: the risks, opportunities and what it can’t replace

With each passing day, new tools emerge that use artificial intelligence (AI) to supposedly make life easier or choices simpler. AI can help us generate lists or plans, write reports or organize our lives in some way. While AI creates some efficiencies, more and more dangers and cautions are surfacing. As professionals, we need to be mindful of how and when to use AI in our work, taking care that it does not lead us astray.

Recently, staff in the ATA’s Teacher Employment Membership Support (TEMS) program area have noticed increased use of AI from the membership. Specifically, some members are using AI to interpret documents related to their employment. AI is also being used to help craft responses to concerns raised by a parent or colleague. The list goes on.

In some instances, members have been asking AI to review their collective agreement, legislation such as the Education Act, or employer policies on a variety of issues and then presenting the AI-produced information or arguments to their employer, often finding themselves in a more difficult situation as a result.

Can AI summarize information? Certainly. Can it rewrite a draft argument you have provided? Sure. What it cannot do is effectively interpret the information you share for your specific context or consider how your context intersects with other obligations or responsibilities. Your context includes your contract status, your teaching assignment, any interpersonal issues that may exist or the daily reality of your classroom. Staff in TEMS have noticed an increase in calls where the member used AI to respond to a workplace situation that subsequently escalated because AI did not “read the room”—it did not understand the context and made the situation considerably worse.

Years ago, when I worked in what was then Member Services, we borrowed the phrase, “call before you dig,” and that advice still holds true today. Call TEMS before you proceed. They not only understand the context within which you are working, but also the nuances and interplay of legislation, collective agreements and employment law. They can provide advice specific to your concern. AI cannot do this. This is the power of conversation and relationships. It is the power of professional wisdom.

Teachers must also ensure we keep our professional judgment and skills sharp, which will serve to maintain trust in the profession. For teachers, the risk is moral passivity, allowing AI to make important decisions for us (or on behalf of our students) instead of exercising our own human agency. For students, the risk is that they may lose skills through a lack of use, or never fully develop them because AI has removed the effort that deeper learning requires. Teachers’ judgment and expertise cannot be replaced with AI.

David Edwards, general secretary of Education International, shared a clear message to delegates at Summer Conference: what makes education successful is the relationship that teachers create with their students, their colleagues and the school community. While there is a push by some to replace professional teachers with technology and run education like a business, the reality is that this type of education would not be successful, and those students would be disadvantaged.

AI does not have the human empathy required to nurture these relationships so that students can grow and flourish. Again, it is about the power of relationships, which AI cannot—and should not— replace.

This leads to another caution with AI: anthropomorphic artificial intelligence tools. At the Annual Representative Assembly in May, delegates passed a resolution stating that AI tools including AI companions and other AI systems designed specifically to simulate friendship, counselling or intimate relationships should not be deployed or introduced into any Alberta K–12 learning environments or support settings. The Canadian Teachers’ Federation also adopted the resolutions the ATA advanced regarding anthropomorphic AI tools, calling for the federal government to develop model policies, strategies and legislation regarding these tools.

Anthropomorphic AI companions adopt humanlike personas, perform empathy and present themselves as always-available friends or counsellors. Young minds may not understand that their computer friend is not a real person, which could lead to a variety of social problems. As teachers, we need to ensure that our students can understand and use these emerging technologies and AI systems wisely, just as we continue to be informed and mindful in our use of these systems.

The Association is here to support members as we all navigate the shifts, risks and opportunities of AI. Aside from personalized advice from TEMS, the ATA offers a variety of workshops and presentations on AI and effective use of these tools in today’s classrooms. If you want to learn about how AI can support your professional practice, reach out to the Professional Development area for assistance. As always, we’re here to help.

I welcome your comments and questions. You may reach me at robert.mazzotta@ata.ab.ca.