Summary of Zoom Chat: “AI and the Future of Education: Disruptions, Dilemmas and Directions”
Webinar Date: June 5, 2025
Opening and Framing
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Participants joined from diverse locations and shared local context (weather, communities).
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Shared links to relevant resources and articles.
The Role of AI in Education
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Debate over AI as a support tool vs. interference in student-teacher relationships.
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Seen as a potential cognitive assistant or a means to plug institutional gaps.
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Some warned against AI dominance in education; others saw potential to refocus on individual learning paths.
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Discussion on whether AI should mediate educational relationships at all.
Human Relationships, Identity, and Cognitive Development
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Emphasis on human connection and student voice development.
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Concerns over early AI use stunting identity formation.
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Lack of guidelines for age-appropriate AI use.
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Risk of losing deep thinking skills; importance of reading and writing.
Professional Development and Institutional Readiness
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Professional development is lagging behind AI advancement.
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Teachers need more support and clear plans.
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Examples of educator-created resources were shared.
Assessment, Academic Integrity, and Systemic Change
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Difficulty designing AI-resistant assessments.
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Some opt for synoptic/programmatic assessment models.
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Criticism of tools like Turnitin; concern over marketing AI to students as cheat tools.
Equity, Access, and Open Source
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AI tool costs raise equity concerns.
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Suggestions: open source LLMs, local AI deployments.
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Potential for AI to assist students with learning needs noted, but fears of commodification persist.
Ethics, Shame, and Systemic Critique
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Shame around AI use is widespread.
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Ethical critiques of AI's foundations and industry motivations.
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Questioning whether tools or socio-technical systems are the ethical root.
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Emphasis on systemic, not just individual, responsibility.
Resistance, Agency, and Alternative Approaches
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Some identify as conscientious objectors to edtech.
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Embracing open source/local models as critical alternatives.
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Calls for collective, community-based educational innovation.
Indigenous Knowledge and Alternative Perspectives
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Interest in how Indigenous epistemologies might inform AI futures.
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Desire to continue exploring these perspectives.
AI Literacy and Critical Thinking
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AI literacy defined as understanding, evaluating, and using AI with societal awareness.
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Tension: is AI literacy distinct from general literacy?
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Teaching tasks requiring critique and context emphasized.
Policy, Governance, and the Future
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No clear guidelines for AI use in schools.
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Interest in ethical statement repositories.
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Predictions of AI market instability; implications for academia.
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Strong desire for ongoing collaboration and resource-sharing.
Additional Reflections
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“Doers” and “doubters” are both essential.
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Tech's narrative (e.g., “angel on your shoulder” AI) criticized.
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Survey accuracy challenged by shame and bias.
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Debate on tool/system entanglement and whether AI models are sustainable.
Related Media
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📺 AI and the Future of Education Disruptions, Dilemmas and Directions (video and main note)