Before You Begin
You are about to spend two weeks studying artificial intelligence — what it is, how it works, and what it means for your classroom. Before you do, we want to know where you are starting from.
The prompts below are not a quiz. There are no right answers, and your responses will not be graded on accuracy. What matters is that your answers are honest and reflect what you genuinely believe right now, before the readings have had a chance to change your mind.
At the end of Week 8, you will return to what you wrote here. The goal is not to see whether you were right — it is to see how two weeks of study changed, deepened, or complicated your thinking. That contrast is the point.
Reflection Prompts
Write a response to each prompt below. A few sentences to a short paragraph per prompt is plenty — this is not an essay assignment. Copy the prompts and your responses into the Blackboard submission box for this activity.
1. What is artificial intelligence?
In your own words, how would you define artificial intelligence? Do not look anything up — just write what you would say if a student asked you right now.
2. Name your examples.
List three things you would consider examples of artificial intelligence. For each one, write a sentence or two explaining why you included it. What makes it "AI" in your mind?
3. What is AI not good at?
Every tool has limits. What do you think artificial intelligence genuinely cannot do well — or perhaps should not be trusted to do? What tasks or situations do you think still require a human?
4. What concerns you?
What concerns, worries, or reservations do you have about artificial intelligence — in general, or specifically in the context of education? These can be practical, ethical, or philosophical. There are no wrong answers here.
5. What do your students think?
Based on what you have observed in your school or classroom, what do you think your students currently believe about AI? What do you wish they understood that you think they currently don't?
6. One question you want answered.
What is one question about artificial intelligence that you genuinely hope these two weeks will answer for you?
Submitting Your Responses
Copy your responses into the Blackboard submission box for the AI Pre-Reflection assignment and submit before moving on to Topic 6a.
You will not receive detailed feedback on this submission right away — that is intentional. Your responses are being saved so you can revisit them in Week 8. At that point, you will read what you wrote today and reflect on how your thinking has shifted.
Once you have submitted, return to the Week 6 Overview and begin Topic 6a.