As a new student after many years away from a formal school setting it is quite the experience. Starting right off the bat into class were the symposiums. Which I think was the ideal way to start back into the learning environment. I’ve truly enjoyed working my way through a select number of symposiums and seeing others’ work and discussions of a wide variety of topics. One symposium that truly stuck my interest was “AI and Learning Design by Keith Webster, Alisha Hadley, Darren Wilson, Clint Lalonde & Dr. Elizabeth Childs”.
My career in IT has allowed me to see and understand that there is such a wide scope of technical paths and more that are upcoming. We keep advancing and a hot topic this year is AI technology and how it’s affecting our lives personally, professionally and as learners. I enjoyed listening to the discussion on how AI can be beneficial in the education world and how we should embrace it as we move forward rather than banning it as there was “a silver lining” (Hadley, 2023) by incorporating it into the classroom there is a more open discussion on how one should use such a resource to enhance everyone’s learning experience but also keep open discussions to maintain integrity and knowledge. Clint Lalonde used the example of a saw, “going to carpentry school and banning the use of a saw, but when you get into the workplace, you’re going to be using saws”. Using the tools in an educational setting is an advantage to everyone as you are allowed to learn and make mistakes, using the example of carpentry “you build your tool kit”. Having many resources and tools under your belt is always a strength to ensure your future growth in both professional and personal life.
I found Gwen Nguyen’s topic “Supporting students’ digital well-being when learning with AI” also a great watch after viewing “AI and Learning”. Since we have already opened the box on AI and on creating the balance of its use in our lives, I think the questions she posed are really helpful to be considering whenever we use these AI tools or even any type of virtual tools or social media. One such question “When you think about your own relationship as it were with AI are they positive or negative?
Are you experiencing stress and anxiety because of AI? If so what can you do to reduce the negative emotions?” (Nguyen, 2023)
I think we need to understand that while technology keeps advancing with the goal of always improving something we should always maintain a mindset on how such technology affects our mental balance too. Especially for us in such a robust online program with so much at our fingertips. We should always try to take care of ourselves first, as with so much available it can become overwhelming.
Many of these symposiums have brought forward a lot of interesting topics to keep in mind and as we progress in this journey, I hope we can find a good balance between embracing these advancements and maintaining a happy balance. I look forward to all the new things I will learn and add to my “tool belt”.
Childs, E. et al. (2023, March 7). AI and Learning Design in Education [Webinar]. Royal Roads University. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IFrAs59sDHI.
Nguyen, G. (2023,April 14). Supporting students’ digital well-being when learning with Ai. [Webinar] Royal Road University.