I am pleased to share our latest article in our ongoing column series for TechTrends on the topics of technology creativity and education. Over the past few months we have focused on generative AI, through conversations with thought leaders such as Chris Dede (Harvard), Ethan Mollick (Wharton), Kyle Jensen and Andrew Maynard (ASU) along with some more empirical pieces, such as one on our research with school leaders and their responses to generative AI.

In this latest piece we step back from these conversations to look at the bigger picture. With ChatGPT and tools like it exploding in popularity, we believed it was crucial to examine, what I have elsewhere called, the “true nature” of these technologies. It is only then that we can leverage their potential while addressing their risks.

In this latest article we seek to offer a balanced perspective, focusing on teacher knowledge and educational resarch – stressing the need to consider both short and long-term impacts of AI. In the immediate term, it’s vital we empower teachers and students to use ChatGPT productively, creatively, and ethically. But we must also anticipate AI’s deeper cultural effects as it transforms relationships, trust, and social patterns.

Complete citation and link given below:

Mishra, P., Oster, N., & Henriksen, D. (2024). Generative AI, Teacher Knowledge and Educational Research: Bridging Short- and Long-Term Perspectives. TechTrends. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-024-00938-1

Abstract: This article reflects on the transformative nature of generative AI (GenAI) tools for teaching and teacher education, both reflecting on current innovation and consider future potentials and challenges. In that sense, we aim to position the field of education going forward with the implications of new technologies like GenAI for education and educational research. We argue the need for a dual-lens approach. First and foremost, practice and research should focus on the here-and-now, i.e. how to design powerful learning experiences for pre-service and in-service teachers for them to be productive, creative, critical, and ethical users. But there is also a need for a deeper, longer view—based on sociological and historical trends and pat- terns that will influence the socio-techno-cultural matrix within which education functions in the long term. We begin with a brief introduction to GenAI technologies. This is followed by an in-depth discussion of the fundamental nature of GenAI tools—their similarities and differences to prior technologies, and the implications for teacher education and research.