EDUC 5313 - Week 4 Blog
EDUC 5313 - Week 4 Blog
Link to Magic School AI Generated Lesson Plan: https://app.magicschool.ai/tools/lesson-plan-generator?share=dcb0b8c1-d44d-495b-bf7d-194bbcb3a8da
Part 1:
For this week’s assignment, we were tasked with creating a lesson plan using Magic School AI for the grade level and content area we teach, incorporating ISTE standards for students: 1.4 innovative designer and 1.7 global collaborator (2024, p. 4). I had never used an AI tool for creating lesson plans before, so I was impressed with how easy it was. While some people are skeptical of AI tools, I see their potential as valuable guides. With careful review and a few adjustments, they can be highly effective. Some may consider this as a form of plagiarism, but I view it as no different from collaborating with colleagues to gain new insight.
In my opinion, the lesson plan created using Magic School AI
was good quality. By allowing me to input specific topics I wanted to cover,
along with the ISTE Standards for Student, the generated lesson plan aligned
well with the content. As a professional radiographer and instructor, I believe
the Magic School AI tool can create an appropriate and rigorous lesson plan.
However, its effectiveness depends on the quality and specificity of the
content provided by the user.
As an expert in the field, you must provide the AI tool with
appropriate content, evaluate the generated material for accuracy, and
effectively present the lesson to the intended audience. While the AI program
can suggest additional tools to engage enhance and extend learning, it is
ultimately up to the professional to determine what works best for the content
and students.
The AI-generated lesson plan aligned well with our recent
reading assignments. It recommended various methods for presenting material,
including PowerPoint slides, video presentations, and group discussions to help
students build a strong foundational understanding. In alignment with Kolb's Triple
E framework, the lesson plan incorporated strategies to engage, enhance, and
extend learning (2022, p. 35). For example, it suggested small group activities
to engage students, lab experiments to investigate X-ray interactions with
various materials, and extended research tasks to explore real-world
applications.
The lesson plan itself did not specify digital tools but did
recommend guided and independent practice, aligning with our reading of How
People Learn II, which emphasizes various forms of structured practice to
increase knowledge retention (2018, p. 98). As an instructor, I recognize the
importance of engaging students in this digital age through creative learning, as
suggested by Gura (2020). Our radiology program has access to a variety of
tools that effectively engage and enhance student learning. These tools help
extend learning beyond the classroom and lab, bridging the gap between academic
instruction and real-world clinical and professional settings.
Part 2:
The tools I chose to interact with from the Magic School
website were Standards Unpacker and the Multiple-Choice Quiz Assessment tools. Once
again, I was impressed by how quickly these AI tools can generate useful resources
– something that would have taken me much longer to create manually. The
Standards Unpacker generated a breakdown of each of the ISTE Standards for Students
that I entered, along with expectations, learning targets, and instruction and
assessment strategies.
The Quiz-Assessment tool offered various applications, and
when I prompted it to create a 10-question multiple choice quiz based on my lesson
plan material, it generated one within seconds. Although the output from these
tools must be fact-checked, I see them as valuable resources and will
definitely find ways to incorporate them into my work.
Part 3:
Reflecting on my experience with magic school AI, I found it
to be a valuable tool for generating lesson plans, breaking down standards, and
creating assessments quickly and efficiently. While the AI generated content
requires fact checking and adjustments, it can serve as a strong foundation for
lesson planning. I would consider sharing it with colleagues, especially those
looking for ways to streamline their workload.
Challenges I see are the need for careful review to ensure
accuracy and potential concerns about originality. This would deter me from
relying on it entirely. Despite these challenges, the tool saves time, provides
structured guidance, and aligns well with instructional frameworks, making it a
useful resource for educators.
Crompton, H., Burke, D. The Nexus
of ISTE Standards and Academic Progress: A Mapping Analysis of Empirical
Studies. TechTrends. (2024). http://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-024-00973-y
Gura, M. (2020). Fostering Student
Creativity. EdTech Digest the State of the Arts, Creativity, and Technology
2020: A Guide for Educators and Parents. p.7. Gura (2020).pdf
MagicSchool – AI Built for Schools. (Date accessed February 6, 2025). https://www.magicschool.ai/
National Academies of Sciences,
Engineering, and Medicine. (2018). How people learn
II: Learners, contexts, and cultures. Washington, D.C.: The National Academies Press. http://doi.org/10.17226/24783.
I like your perspective on this topic and agree that specificity and quality are utterly essential if an AI tool is to be of any use. This comes up when asking an AI to assist in evaluating AP essays which have quite specific rubrics. The language used to instruct the AI must be precise and nuanced if the AI is to be effective. Of course, we work as partners; I don't relinquish total control to AI on grading, but use it to provide a first glance and evaluation, which I then critique with my own judgment based on training and experience. Now I'll have to try the Standards Unpacker you reviewed.
ReplyDeleteAI can save teachers a ton of time. It can take the heavy lifting out of some parts of planning, like generating ideas, creating outlines, or adapting materials for different learning levels while still following state standards. What AI can also do is give teachers a strong starting point while still tailoring it to fit students’ needs.
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