ASCL comment on ChatGPT trial in schools

Responding to the news that the Education Endowment Foundation will be trialing the use of ChatGPT for lesson planning to explore if it can reduce overall working hours for staff, Rob Robson, ASCL’s lead on artificial intelligence, said:

“We are intrigued by the trial into the use of ChatGPT. However, the decision to focus on a single generative artificial intelligence system seems puzzling, given the array of powerful tools available on the market. We are aware of members who are already working with various tools, and we have had some interesting feedback about their effectiveness.

“Artificial intelligence is being integrated into the lives of teachers, leaders, and students, enhancing lesson planning and potentially extending its influence to assessments in the future, a development we welcome. However, it is important to acknowledge that AI, while valuable, will not be the remedy for the current workload crisis faced by the teaching profession. At the core of this crisis lie profound challenges related to recruitment and retention, issues that no amount of AI can address.”