Tagged for OEG Connect: The Unresolved Tension Between AI and Learning (Dan Cohen, Humane Ingenuity)

What’s of interest? The Unresolved Tension Between AI and Learning (Dan Cohen, Humane Ingenuity)

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If education is accelerated using AI, will we lose some crucial aspects of learning that will prove to be problematic?

So it seems likely that those who will benefit from AI the most are those who have already done the hard labor of traditional, non-AI learning, who already have the bedrock foundation of knowledge and intuition. Toner-Rogers’s study thus reinforces the point I made last year in “Is Science Becoming Conceptual Art?” The combination of the AI autocompletion of scientific processes and lab automation holds the potential to greatly shorten the distance between a scientific hypothesis and experimental confirmation. In this wonderful world of accelerated science, however, the middle steps formerly tackled by early stage scientists — tomorrow’s future conjurers of breakthroughs — are erased. This, paradoxically, leads to a chasm in the profession in which there is no experiential on-ramp to the fast lane of the principal investigator, no training that gives you the rich base of knowledge and intuition needed to develop your field further.

Where is it?: The Unresolved Tension Between AI and Learning


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This is a crucial discussion that needs more exploration. While AI accelerates education, the concern about losing foundational learning experiences and intuitive knowledge-building is real. The idea of an “experiential on-ramp” disappearing raises important questions about the future of expertise development.

To dive deeper into this, I propose that we, along with the OE Global community, organize an Open Research Conference where we can discuss the intersection of AI and learning. This event would bring together researchers, educators, and technologists to explore AI’s impact, ethical concerns, and ways to ensure that innovation doesn’t come at the cost of deep, experiential learning.

Would love to hear everyone’s thoughts on this let’s make this a collaborative effort!

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Thank you Hardik, we are certainly interested in collective action. I will say that this is a hot topic and theme for many conferences, but certainly needed. But at the same time, is the presentation-focused format of a conference truly what is needed? What aboutsomething more activity-based?

I make a recommendation here for efforts such as the Middlebury College Digital Detox on Demystifying AI - its going on now as a series of emailed activities hosted on a web site, but it can be done anytime.