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AI Takes Center Stage at Bissell Grogan Symposium

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Edward Flint, Managing Editor
January 22, 2024
Dr. Raja-Elie Abdulnour's P '29 keynote, "Beyond the Classroom: The Future of AI-Augmented Learning and Work," addresses biases in how AI depicts him.
Dr. Raja-Elie Abdulnour’s P ’29 keynote, “Beyond the Classroom: The Future of AI-Augmented Learning and Work,” addresses biases in how AI depicts him.

At the 19th annual Bissell Grogan Humanities Symposium on Tuesday, students and teachers engaged in discussions about AI’s growing influence in education and society, led by experts and educators exploring its ethical and effective classroom use.

“I think that’s the focus this year because AI is becoming a larger and larger part of humans society,” Event Co-Chair Bradley Starr said. “There are workshops about how AI can be used in a school setting in a way that is productive and helpful, and also doesn’t cross the line into academic honesty.” 

The event kicked off with a keynote address by Dr. Raja-Elie Abdulnour P ’29, titled, Beyond the Classroom: The Future of AI-Augmented Learning and Work.

  • A student participates in Middle School English Teacher Will Arnt’s workshop Breaking Through Writer’s Block: How to Use AI Ethically, Effectively, and Creatively.

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  • Julian Park ’24 and Oliver Baggett ’24 attend the workshop How to Make AI Your Personal Tutor.

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  • Students and teacher attend the workshop Beyond the ChatGPT Essay: How to Use AI to Improve Critical Writing Skills.

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  • Dr. Raja-Elie E. Abdulnour gives a presentation in his workshop Call of Doctor Duty: Diagnose and Treat Your AI Patient.

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  • Upper School Head Joshua Neudel teaches a breakout about how to work with AI as a personal tutor.

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  • Dr. Raja-Elie Abdulnour P ’29 delivered the keynore address, “Beyond the Classroom: The Future of AI-Augmented Learning and Work.”

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  • Andrew Flint ’26 works with ChatGPT in a breakout workshop, “How to Make AI Your Personal Tutor,” after the keynote address for the Bissell Grogan Humanities Symposium

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“One reason I’m super excited about [AI] is because I think we’re at an inflection point,” Abdulnour said. “There are two opposing forces. There’s a lot of hope on the right with things like AI and knowledge. But at the same time, there are sort of these opposing forces, climate change, war, and a rise of a sort of multipolar national world.”

According to Director of Technology Infrastructure Jason Bock, the School has not banned AI due to its potential for effective use.

“In terms of the AI stuff, we have not taken a hard stance on blocking all of those on campus because the trouble with that is that teachers and students can use AI appropriately,” Bock said.  

Following the keynote address, Upper School Head Joshua Neudel offered a breakout workshop focusing on the appropriate use of AI, including its potential as a personal tutor.

“I’m hoping to teach people a little more about how you are engaging with a generative AI tool,” Neudel said. “If you sit down with a tutor, you’re not going to learn anything if the tutor just tells you the answer, so the idea is, how can you use it in that way?”

Other teachers also think that AI can be used effectively in a classroom.

“I do think there’s a place [for AI] in the classroom, and I think the place for it is teaching students what it’s good for and what it’s not good for,” Upper School English teacher Kenley Smith said.

Upper School History teacher and advisor of The Gator, David Cutler, encourages students to critically assess responses from ChatGPT and other large language models.

“I’ve previously had students analyze AI responses for writing quality and historical accuracy. However, I’m now shifting focus to more nuanced ethical guidelines, like using AI for specific queries rather than generating extensive content,” Cutler said. “This approach aligns more with ethical tutoring, where students actively engage with AI to enhance their understanding, rather than relying on it to do the work.”

Cutler, who led a breakout workshop on the use and potential misuse of AI in journalism, expressed concern about the influence of financial interests on the integrity of journalism.

“I am concerned that the escalating race to generate content will result in more layoffs in the media industry, as AI-produced content is increasingly favored,” Cutler said.

Upper School Engligh teahcer Kenley Smith organized an activity in her Modern World Literature class, where students used AI to identify literary devices such as puns and similes in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Despite being permitted to use AI for this exercise, the students often received quotes from different plays or misattributed to incorrect characters.

“When we did that worksheet exercise for our class, people came in and were like ‘It [ChatGPT] gave me the wrong information,’” Smith said. “It’s not infallible.” 

With the rise in AI, new improvements in coding have prompted technology teacher Darol Ware to worry about students abusing AI to complete assignments.  

“I do have the concern that students look towards AI in regards to computer science to answer some question because that’s one of the things it does best,” Ware said. “My worry is that students are letting it take care of that for them, without having a good understanding of what’s being produced.” 

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About the Contributor
Edward Flint
Edward Flint, Managing Editor
Edward is an 11th-grader at Brimmer and in his free time enjoys hiking and playing soccer. He enjoys Journalism because it can help other people learn more about the world.