Zak's Weekly Musings (March 3, 2023)

Who is Scared of Chat GPT? Not Us! (Part VI)

In my second year teaching in Joburg, I conducted action research to better understand the types of questions my students were asking me. Over a period of three months, I carefully documented and coded every question I received. 

Upon analyzing the data, I found that questions could be broadly classified into three categories: questions that could have been answered using class resources, questions that could have been answered by classmates, and questions that only I, as the teacher, could have answered. Shockingly, but unsurprisingly, I found that about ~60% of questions fell under the first category, ~30% under the second, and only ~10% under the third. This meant that I was receiving and answering 100% of questions, when in reality, I should have only been receiving and answering about 10%. 

This finding led me to question two things: first, I began to question whether I was actually making the most of my time with my students. I mean, if I’m answering all of these questions that I really shouldn’t be, I was taking, in theory, considerable time away from other, more important matters pertaining to learning and relationship-building. Second, I began to question the message I was sending to my students. I prided myself on teaching “21st Century Skills” but was I actually? When I reflected on it, I realized that really I was just teaching students to rely on someone else to solve their problems. Not exactly a “21st Century Skill.” 

I knew I needed to make a change. This is when I instituted the Ask 3 B4 Me strategy. 

Ask 3 B4 Me is a strategy that requires students to try to solve a problem in three different ways before asking the teacher for assistance. This approach empowers students to be more self-sufficient, collaborative, and resourceful. It’s a simple and easily implementable way to truly empower students to cultivate in them the capacity, willingness, ability, and tendency to become more self-efficacious. The best part is that this strategy is flexible, thus allowing teachers to adapt it to the needs of their classroom. 

In my classroom, for instance, students were first required to check our OneNote. If their question couldn’t be answered there, they would then meet with a trusted classmate or self-identified peer expert. If they still didn’t get the answer they needed, they would search Google or YouTube. If after all of this, they still didn’t have an answer, they could come and ask me. Again, only about 1 in every 10 questions that students had made it this far without them receiving an answer. 

When it comes to empowering students to be self-sufficient problem-solvers, Ask3 B4 Me is really unparalleled in terms of its ease and impact. But what if we took it a step further and gave students access to a tool that could generate personalized responses to their questions? What if we replaced Google and YouTube with ChatGPT?

Let's say a student is struggling with a math problem. Instead of immediately going to the teacher for help, they could try the Ask3 B4 Me approach by seeking assistance from classmates and existing classroom resources first. But what if they're still stuck? They can turn to ChatGPT and type in a prompt such as "how do I solve for X in this equation?" ChatGPT could generate a personalized response based on their specific question. This can give students the opportunity to solve the problem on their own with a little guidance from an AI-powered tutor.

In a Chinese class, a student might be struggling with understanding a particular grammar rule. Instead of going straight to the teacher, they can first try asking a classmate or searching for resources online. If they're still struggling, they can turn to ChatGPT and type in a prompt such as "what is the difference between 了 and 过?" ChatGPT can then generate a personalized response explaining the differences and providing examples of how to use each particle correctly.

Suppose a student is having trouble with Spanish grammar and they have a question like "What's the difference between ser and estar?" Perhaps the resources provided aren’t helping and classmates don’t have the language to explain it in a more helpful way. As part of Ask 3 B4 Me procedures, this student could use ChatGPT to clarify their doubts. The prompt they might type into ChatGPT could be "Can you explain the difference between ser and estar in Spanish?" ChatGPT would then generate a response, explaining the differences between the two verbs, providing examples and usage scenarios to help the student understand better.

Ask3 B4 Me is a great way to empower students to be self-sufficient, self-efficacious, and develop a growth mindset towards problem-solving, but ChatGPT can really take it to the next level by providing personalized assistance and guidance. 

Over the next few days, consider the kinds of questions you’re being asked. Would your students benefit from an Ask 3 B4 Me strategy? If so, what role can ChatGPT play to provide personalized assistance to your students and free up your time to focus on what matters most?