ChatGPT for Spanish Classrooms

February 14, 2023February 12, 2023Rachelle Dené Poth 2 Comments

¿Amigo o Enemigo?

Guest post By Nicole Biscotti, M. Ed. @BiscottiNicole

The short answer: Don’t fight progress – embrace it, learn how to better prepare kids for their future with AI, AND use it to save yourself time with a few important caveats.

ChatGPT is free, works in English and Spanish, and generates text on any topic in seconds. You can use it to generate readings, sample readings, explanations of grammatical concepts, lesson plans, songs, poems, narratives, and the list goes on. ChatGPT frees me up to focus more on the aspects of teaching that make a difference for my kids – building relationships, differentiation, formative assessment, instruction design, being present and less stressed out…you get the idea.

Integrating ChatGPT also benefits students in the long term because it prepares students for success in the job market that they will enter. ChatGPT will likely become increasingly relevant because its user base, accuracy, and capabilities are increasing exponentially and rapidly. Students’ competitiveness in their careers will depend partially on their ability to be productive with this tool. Unlike most AI, ChatGPT is expected to shake up the landscape for white-collar workers in industries as varied as healthcare and computer science (Lowrey, 2023).

Personalized Learning

Back to the classroom. ChatGPT is just what the busy Spanish teacher necesita – no wasted time searching for the perfect “lectura” (text). Effective language instruction is coupled with learning about culture and now I’m able to generate texts in seconds AND I can even center them around a Latin American country, cultural point of interest, holiday, grammatical structure, etc. Differentiation and personalized learning, those lofty teaching ideals that can feel a bit heavy when you mean well but have 35 kids in your room, have become that much easier to attain with ChatGPT. It’s possible to generate texts about diverse aspects of culture in seconds and make adjustments for interests, length, rigor, etc. (Kuo & Lai, 2006) (Salaberry, 1999; Rost, 2002).

Flexible Texts for Creating Lessons That Address ACTFL Standards

ChatGPT effortlessly generated texts about the pre-Columbian cultures of Peru, Mexico, and Puerto Rico respectively that used the subjunctive mood for my classes. Additionally, ChatGPT was kind enough to make comprehension questions for each reading as well. ¡Muy buen amigo indeed! All I had to do was type in “preguntas de comprensión sobre culturas pre colombinas de Perú” and I had seven great questions for each reading. Students learned about the products and practices of indigenous cultures of Latin America directly through these readings which could be used as an integral part of an endless list of interpretive, interpersonal, or presentational activities.

The possibilities for quickly generating texts about any aspect of culture using any grammatical structure with ChatGPT to address World-Readiness Standards for Learning Languages from the American Council of Foreign Language Teacher’s (ACTFL) are seemingly endless. As an example, students could use the texts below to form comparisons between pre-Columbian cultures and identify intercultural influences in an interpretive activity. In small groups they could engage in an interpersonal activity to support a subsequent presentational activity comparing and contrasting the indigenous cultures. Mi amigo ChatGPT kindly provided me with a list of prompts for students to use in guiding them with comparing and contrasting as well (ACTFL, 2022).

Engaging Grammar Instruction

With mi amigo ChatGPT I have access to texts and comprehension questions about almost any topic that highlights any grammatical structure in Spanish so my students have more frequent opportunities to use text to identify and explore the uses of grammar in context. Research shows that students are highly motivated to learn grammar through the tasks of reading, writing, speaking, and listening. While reading and learning about culture, students are exposed to the subtleties of the use of grammar and gain a better understanding of the nuances of the language (ACTFL, 2022).

ChatGPT’s Limitations

Interestingly, I was not able to ask ChatGPT to create an essay comparing and contrasting pre-Columbian cultures using the subjunctive tense because each time it wanted to compare and contrast the use of the subjunctive tense in the respective cultures. This is actually not even a valid discussion given that pre-Columbian cultures didn’t speak Spanish. The description of why the subjunctive would be used was accurate however the premise of the ChatGPT’s essay was that the Aztecs and the Mayan spoke Spanish.

“El subjuntivo es un tiempo verbal que se utiliza para expresar acciones inciertas o deseos. En las culturas precolombinas, el subjuntivo se utilizaba a menudo en los rituales religiosos para expresar deseos o peticiones a los dioses. Por ejemplo, en la cultura azteca, se utilizaba el subjuntivo en las oraciones de ofrenda a los dioses para pedirles prosperidad y buenas cosechas.”

“Otra cultura precolombina que utilizaba ampliamente el subjuntivo era la maya. En esta cultura, el subjuntivo se utilizaba en los textos jeroglíficos para describir eventos futuros o inciertos.”

This could be user error because I may not have known how to ask mi amigo ChatGPT the right way to elicit the correct response. However I think it’s safe to say that at a minimum it’s not easy to figure out how to create a cultural comparison with the subjunctive mood in Spanish – at least for now.

Cheating or Opportunity to Analyze Texts?

Only one kid so far tried to pass a paragraph written by ChatGPT by me and honestly I could tell even though I was not using any software to monitor his computer. I didn’t need Edward Tian’s GPTZero app either. I’ve been a teacher and a mom long enough to recognize vocabulary, verb conjugations, and style that is unusual for teenagers to use. Also he seemed to know a lot about the topic for someone who wrote the paragraph in about five minutes.

In the sample texts that ChatGPT generated for me about pre-Columbian cultures you’ll notice similarities in style and depth. First of all, the wording is very similar, as is the paragraph length, sentence structure, etc. Another noticeable attribute is how general the information is.

Since the likelihood of the student not using ChatGPT on another assignment again in any other class is pretty low, I decided to illustrate a point to him about the tool. I told him that the information lacked depth and sources. We looked over it and agreed on specific places where more information would be important to the reader and which insights it would provide in the overall cultural context of his topic.

When he finished finding sources and editing his work, he presented a much more robust discussion. We discussed the differences in the two writing pieces and he admitted to using ChatGPT for the first one. We then talked about the differences in his experience as a learner from writing the first to the second piece and also about how ChatGPT might change writing academically and professionally given its capabilities and limitations. As ChatGPT improves undoubtedly it will become harder to spot so easily but like everything about technology we’ll learn how to work with that as it comes.

Safety

Although there are benefits to the classroom, this tool can only be used in compliance with the law and its terms of use by teachers. There are legal issues with minors using ChatGPT so for at least the short term it’s best used by adults for the classroom. ChatGPT collects information such as users’ IP addresses, interactions, country, etc. that is prohibited under the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 for children under the age of 13. Although ChatGPT doesn’t allow minors to open accounts according to their terms of use; however it doesn’t verify the age of its users (Claybourn, 2023).

Spontaneous Classroom Connection & Fun

When one of my students wondered aloud what rap in Spanish sounded like I casually offered to write a rap about the subjunctive. That definitely got their attention and quickly became a challenge that I confidently accepted knowing that I had an amigo who could help. The rap was actually a really great explanation of the subjunctive and was pretty catchy. A comment from a student quickly turned into kids making beats and rapping about the subjunctive in Spanish. It was a great learning moment and maybe most poignantly, technology-facilitated spontaneous fun and connection in my classroom.

I’d love to hear how it’s going in your classroom with ChatGPT. Please comment below.

American Council of Teachers of Foreign Languages. (2022). Teach Grammar as a Concept in Context. ACTFL Language Connects. Retrieved January 20, 2023, from https://www.actfl.org/resources/guiding-principles-language-learning/grammar-concept-in-context

American Council of Teachers of Foreign Languages. (2022). World-readiness standards for learning languages – ACTFL. World Readiness Standards For Learning Languages. Retrieved January 20, 2023, from https://www.actfl.org/sites/default/files/publications/standards/World-ReadinessStandardsforLearningLanguages.pdf

Claybourn, C. (2023, January 18). CHATGPT in classrooms: What to know | high schools | U.S. news. ChatGPT in Classrooms: What to Know. Retrieved January 21, 2023, from https://www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/articles/chatgpt-in-classrooms-what-to-know 

Kuo, M.-M., & Lai, C.-C. (2006). Linguistics across Cultures: The Impact of Culture on Second Language Learning. Journal of Foreign Language Instruction, 1(1).

Lowrey, A. (2023). The Atlantic. How ChatGPT Will Destabilize White-Collar Work. Retrieved January 20, 2023, from https://apple.news/ArNwgCNfBRA6Y9xCCQp5G2g 

Rost, M. (2002). New Technologies in Language Education: Opportunities for Professional Growth. Retrieved October 12, 2006 from http://www.longman.com/ ae/multimedia/pdf/MikeRost_PDF.pdf

Salaberry, R. (1999). CALL in the year 2000: still developing the research agenda’. Language learning and technology 3/1: 104-107

Interested in writing a guest blog for my site? Would love to share your ideas! Submit your post here. Looking for a new book to read? Find these available at bit.ly/Pothbooks**

******** Also check out my THRIVEinEDU Podcast Here!

Join my weekly show on Fridays at 6pm ET THRIVEinEDU on Facebook. Join the group here

Artificial Intelligence in Education

January 17, 2019January 16, 2019Rachelle Dené Poth Leave a comment

Part Two of my posts on AI, recently published in Getting Smart. (image from CC)

Teaching Students About AI

One of my professional goals this year was to learn more about artificial intelligence (AI). Over the course of the past year, there have been a lot of stories coming out about how schools are adding the concept of artificial intelligence into their curriculum or trying to weave it into different courses offered. The purpose is to help students better understand its capabilities and how it might impact the future of learning and the future of work. When I did some research earlier this year, I was amazed at some of the different uses of artificial intelligence that we interact with each day, and may not realize.

A quick Google search of the term “artificial intelligence” turns up 518 million results in .17 seconds. Compare this with the methods for conducting research years ago, where we had to brainstorm topics as we searched the card catalog, and then had to understand the Dewey Decimal system, in order to find the books on the shelf. Advancements in technology led to the creation of online databases which made it easier to find articles and journals electronically, however it still required us to think of what terms to use in the search and may still have required you to locate the resource from a shelf or borrow it from another library. Today, the capability of technology for finding answers to the questions we have is tremendous. Now through tools like artificial intelligence and virtual assistants we have access to millions of resources in our hands instantly.

What are some everyday uses of AI?

Some common uses of artificial intelligence that many people likely use every day and may not know it are:

Smartphones: The use of artificial intelligence is used with the photo editor on smartphones. When you want to take a picture, artificial intelligence helps by selecting the appropriate settings and suggesting different modes to you.
Music and Media: Whether you use something like Spotify or enjoy watching Netflix or even YouTube, artificial intelligence is helping you find the music and media that you want. Over time, it learns based on your selections and then provides recommendations for you to add to your playlist.
Smart Home Devices: Artificial intelligence is used in smart home devices to adjust the temperature and even lighting based on our preferences.
Online services: From travel to banking, shopping, and entertainment, these industries rely heavily on artificial intelligence for using chatbots or through algorithms that enable it to track spending, suggest purchases, prevent fraud and complete other transactions much faster.

Because artificial intelligence is used so much in our everyday lives, we need to make sure that our students understand its impact and potential for the future of work and learning.

How can we teach students about artificial intelligence?

One of the best ways we could teach our students is by making sure we keep challenging ourselves. I recently enrolled in the course offered by ISTE U, Artificial Intelligence Explorations and Their Practical Use in the School Environment. The course was made available through a collaboration with ISTE and General Motors Corporate Giving and focused on K-12 STEM education. My interest in the course is to learn more so I am able to share with my 8th grade STEAM course and in my foreign language classes. Having taught about artificial intelligence last year, it is a high area of interest that I want to grow in professionally.

Throughout the course, participants work through ten different modules focused on topics related to artificial intelligence and machine learning. Each module contains activities that enable you to interact with different forms of artificial intelligence, engage in discussions, view videos and to even create things such as chatbots and virtual facilitators. Part of the course includes an IBM Developer course on “Chatbots for Good,” in which you work through activities and learn about design thinking and empathy, and other activities related to the IBM Watson program. The culmination of the course has participants design a Capstone project, which will ideally be used with students through PBL or as a student-directed exploration of AI.

There are many uses of AI for education and one school in Pittsburgh is offering the nation’s first AI course to prepare students. Pittsburgh is where AI began and developed starting back in the 1950s which makes this an exciting event. Students enrolled in the Montour School District, a district known for its innovation and “student-centered, future-focused” mission, are learning about AI through a program that launched this fall. Students will have access to resources from Carnegie Mellon University, which became the first university to offer an undergraduate degree in AI. The goal of the program is to help students learn about AI by exploring the uses of virtual assistants, engage in inquiry-based learning and build their skills in STEM-related fields.

How can we provide the opportunity for all students to learn more about AI?

Simply explaining the concept of artificial intelligence and identifying some examples of what it might look like, does not really enable you to understand it at a deeper level. The best way that I have found to understand it better myself has been by first learning how it functions by trying some of the different tools and interacting with the AI. By trying some the AI experiments and creating chatbots, you and your students can think about how the tasks are being completed, which leads to a better understanding of artificial intelligence.

While schools may not be able to offer a full course to students, there are enough resources available online that teachers can implement in the classroom.

To learn more about AI and Virtual Assistants, have students explore these:

Google AI Experiments: Through Google experiments, there are hundreds of different experiments available to explore based on AI, Augmented and Virtual Reality. Students can select experiments to try and decide what makes it “artificial intelligence.” The favorites are Quick Draw and Semantris.
Botsify: Teachers can teach students online by using artificial intelligence through Botsify. By creating chatbots, teachers provide an innovative learning experience for students, where they can interact with the chatbot, ask and answer questions and even submit quizzes through the chatbot.
Avatars: It can be fun to have students create their own talking avatars, and use them even as evidence of learning or to create a lesson or instruct on a topic to share with peers or even younger students. Some tools to check out are Voki, Tellagami and My talking avatar.
Akinator: A “web genius” that tries to guess the famous real or fictional character you are thinking about. It is fun to see the questions that it asks based on your responses and see how many tries it takes for it to guess. It is also available on Google Play and iOS
Learning tools: There are different apps available that through artificial intelligence, provide students with opportunities to have additional practice and amplify their learning potential. Elementary students can learn about geography through Oddizzi, or math through Splashmath. All students can practice vocabulary by trying Knowji, which uses characters to “bring vocabulary to life” in flashcards. If students have questions, they can try Brainly, which is a tool for students to ask and answer homework questions in a collaborative, community type platform.

Looking to the future with AI

The use of artificial intelligence in the world and specifically in education will continue to grow as more people explore the topic and develop new ways to incorporate it into daily life. The potential for learning through artificial intelligence means that students have access to virtual tutors, can enroll in an online course taught by AI, and have access to the resources they need at the exact moment they need them.

Artificial Intelligence: What do we need to know?

January 3, 2019January 4, 2019Rachelle Dené Poth Leave a comment

Part one of a series I will be writing about Artificial Intelligence.

About a year ago I started to notice more news coming out about artificial intelligence and machine learning and their uses for education. I understood the concepts of AI and ML, I could provide pretty decent definitions but beyond that, I really had to invest some time in learning more and being able to identify what it looks like in the world and what it could look like in today’s classrooms. Years ago while working on my Spanish translation coursework, we looked at machine learning for translation and that goes back well over 20 years, so it’s not something new, although it may seem like it because it has been coming more into light recently.

What I think of when I hear “Artificial Intelligence”

When first hearing the words “Artificial Intelligence,” is there an image that pops into your mind? Is AI something that you find easy to define or give examples of? For some, the understanding or a reference point might be something seen in the movies. For me, being an 80s child, my first thought goes to Star Wars, and I picture R2D2 or C3PO. Beyond those two references, my mind wanders to the movie “I, Robot” which starred Will Smith, where the robots developed the capacity to think like humans, to feel and were able to take action on their own. Today, one of the most common thoughts goes to Alexa, Echo, Siri and the other virtual assistants that have continued to gain popularity. All good examples to think of in order to get a better idea of AI, but what is the true meaning of AI and where might we see it in action in daily life?

What is AI

It is a complex concept to understand at first because it is an amazing technological advancement. When I wanted to find out more, I started to look at some of the research done by Getting Smart started in December of 2015. The team at Getting Smart launched a research study referred to as #AskAboutAI and over a two year period, they identified over 100 applications of AI to life in areas such as education, healthcare, recreation, transportation, military uses and gaming to name a few. There were three objectives in the campaign: education, employment, and ethics. The research centered on finding how AI can be beneficial for different industries, some of the main uses, whether there are any risks associated with it, the benefits and of great personal interest, the possibilities for using AI in education.

According to their report following the research, the notion behind AI is that machines become capable of exhibiting human intelligence. “Machine learning” a concept started in 1956, refers to when algorithms are used to interpret data and take an action or complete a task. At its base, artificial intelligence is a computer code that displays some form of intelligence, learning, and problem solving in what has been referred to as a kind of “super intelligence.” It is basically the development of computers that are capable of completing tasks that normally require “human intelligence” however the AI learns on its own and continues to improve upon its past iterations. AI becomes smarter, its knowledge base grows, and it creates new possibilities for society. Machine learning is a subset of artificial intelligence, and it can be said that all Machine Learning is AI, but not all AI is Machine Learning.

Common uses of Machine Learning and AI: Did you know?

In my exploration to learn more about AI and what its potential is for the future of learning, I researched how we might already be using AI in our daily lives without even realizing it perhaps. Here are 5 common uses that I was kind of surprised at finding out work by AI.

Communication: So much email, fortunately there are spam filters. Spam filters are powered by AI and help to streamline the amount of spam that appears in your inbox. We know that computers can generate email, and so as email senders, whether real or automated, become more careful with choosing words that were not previously flagged, the filters must learn to adapt and do so by learning based on words that the email user flags. Google takes it even further by continuously learning the types of email messages which are marked as “important”.
Travel: Whether you have taken a ride using Uber or Lyft, you have experienced ML (Machine Learning), which is used to predict rider demand and to calculate ETA ( Estimated Time of Arrival). Even the airline industry uses AI, which fascinated me in finding out this fact. Autopilot qualifies as AI, and it has been estimated that actual “human steered” flight time is approximately only seven minutes of the actual flight length. That is amazing!
Social networks: Ever notice how quickly faces are detected in images and names are suggested for tagging friends in photos on Facebook? The artificial intelligence can detect faces and suggest a name to tag the person. Facebook has added new features as part of its own AI Initiative, because the goal is to offer a more personalized and interactive experience for Facebook users. Other social media sites like Twitter, generate lists of accounts to follow, recommend chats to join based on an analysis of user input and data.
Online Shopping: Have you started searching on Amazon, and it quickly suggests other items you “may be interested in,” as a result of prior searches and order history. There are systems are in place to help protect consumers against fraud, with alerts capable of being sent almost simultaneously in response to a transaction that does not seem to be “typical” purchase or is located in a non-home base location. All done through AI.
Education: There are a wide range of tools available for educators and students whether in the form of Google Searches, where alternate search terms are instantly suggested, the use of citation, plagiarism checkers(a favorite) and even Siri is a popular tool for searches. Simply ask Siri a question, have a conversation.

What does AI mean for our classrooms?

Artificial Intelligence can transform classrooms, there are so many possibilities, and of course, we want it to be something with purpose that enhances the learning experience. I think that it is important to think about your classroom and consider: What are some of the tasks that are typically done? How is class time being spent? How could you save some time by using AI? What would you want for your classroom? Dream big!

There are some time-consuming tasks that take away valuable time for providing the best learning experiences for students. It takes time to locate appropriate supplemental activities to differentiate and to find more engaging and immersive learning experiences.

How could AI help?

Communication: Students and teachers would communicate instantly with one another as well as to connect with other forms of AI around the world. Students could be paired with peers instantly, which would help each student to expand their own personal learning networks, with personalized and more authentic connections that will meet the students’ interests and needs at any given moment. Think of the benefits of being able to converse with AI or a virtual peer, which has been located based on an assessment of student needs and error analyses.
Differentiation: With the use of AI, students and teachers could connect with the resources they need right when they need them. An entire internet of resources accessible and deliverable to each student within seconds. Through AI, students could have access to one to one tutors or a virtual peer to learn with.
Personalization: Offer more personalized learning opportunities for students with AI that can analyze student responses, determine areas of need and interest, and access resources to help students better understand the content.
Exploration: Augmented and virtual reality are being used even more in classrooms, and through AI, resources could be found instantly based on student responses, or for the entire classroom to experience. We would not be limited by the time and place of the classroom setting. AI could find ways to bring the content to life instantly.
Assessments: AI could help teachers to assess students and streamline the grading process, with the added benefit of being able to quickly take the data, provide an analysis for teachers, so that time can be saved for more classroom interactions. It can help with student achievement, making sure that each student has the opportunity to learn and grow, benefitting from the faster responses through AI.

Considerations for the future.

There is always a concern when it comes to the use of technology. Especially with AI, we need to determine the true purpose, value and impact on student learning. We don’t want to use it just because it is the newest thing or the latest trend. When it comes to AI, the biggest concern has been whether AI would lead to the replacement of teachers? Would the use of AI in the classroom have negative impacts on student learning? As for replacing teachers, AI cannot help students to build SEL skills and learn from human interactions, all vital components of relationships in the classroom.

So in the end, what could AI do? Here are 10 roles for AI that can be used in education.

A few:

AI can quickly interpret a student’s needs and design an appropriate assessment.

It can show students mastery, repeat lessons as needed and quickly design a personalized learning plan for each student.

AI could provide teachers with a virtual teaching assistant, (something that was done in 2015 without students even knowing), which then frees time for the teacher to move around the room and facilitate learning.

But more than just teachers and students, it can be a way to support parents by involving them in the learning environment of students and providing them with the information they need to help their students be successful when they’re not in the classroom. The future likely holds a lot of possibilities for AI and teachers can take the opportunity to be informed of the possibilities and being open to discussions with students.

Stay tuned for part two of the AI series coming up next week! Check out the ISTE U course on Artificial Intelligence. And look at Montour School District in Pittsburgh, I will be sharing more about that school after I visit it to see the AI Space and Showcase event on January 22nd.

Image from Thinkstock