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Using AI in School: Creating a Code of Conduct
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Activity Description
Preparation
- Check the website to ensure it is not blocked at your site.
- Read through the lesson plan.
- Print and make copies of any handouts.
- Select tools for student project or allow students to select in groups how they will digitally create and share. Some possibilities are the following: Padlet wall created by teacher for groups to post to, Canva or Piktochart infographic or poster, Google slideshow, or Google Doc.
- Select the Large Language Model to demo and discuss in class. Examples are ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Anthropic Claude, Perplexity, among others.
- Become familiar with all the tools you plan to use so that you feel comfortable demonstrating them to students.
- Plan a short lesson on modal verbs and create a slideshow and/or note-taking form.
- Select or create a text. Some options are the following:
- ReadWorks (free) - see texts "The Robots are Here" and "Machines Get Smarter"
- Newsela (45-day free trial) - see texts "A curious person's guide to artificial intelligence," "Opinion: Now that AI can write students’ essays for them, will everyone become a cheat?," " AI bot ChatGPT shows academics essay-writing skills and usability, "Should AI help Georgia students write college admissions essays?," and "ChatGPT in the classroom: Here's what teachers and students are saying"
- Breaking News English (free) - numerous printable articles with vocabulary and discussion questions for different levels on ChatGPT and AI
- CommonLit (free) - Target Lesssons - Identifying Main Ideas and Central Idea with "AI: On Screen, and Within It" and Finding the Best Evidence with "Should Kids Use AI to Do Homework?"
- Diffit - use this free AI reading passage generator to create a reading passage with vocabulary and comprehension questions
- Ellii (subscription only) - several free texts and materials on chatbots, Artificial Intelligence, and ChatGPT
Program Areas
- ABE: Adult Basic Education
- ESL: English as a Second Language
Levels
- All Levels
- Intermediate High
- Advanced
Lesson Plan
Ask students: What do you know about AI tools like ChatGPT?
Have students do a Think-Pair-Share:
- Think about their answer
- Discuss with a partner
- Share out loud with the class
Show images/logos of AI tools (ChatGPT, Grammarly, Google Gemini, etc.) for recognition and discussion.
Introduce vocabulary related to the topic:
- Academic Integrity
- Artificial Intelligence (AI)
- Chatbot
- Cheating
- Code of Conduct
- Large Language Model
- Plagiarism
- Policy / Rule / Guideline
- Prompting
Elicit from students definitions and clarify, and for words that are unfamiliar, provide definitions, sample sentences, or examples.
Ask students what kinds of AI they currently use. For students who do use LLMs such as ChatGPT, ask them what they use them for. List positive uses on the board or a shared Google Doc under the heading "Pros."
For students who have never used a LLM, demonstrate with one (making sure it is not blocked at your agency) how to translate, write an email, give advice, or write a paragraph or essay.
Then ask students to do a "Think, Write, Share" in response to this question: "Why might schools need rules about using AI? What could go wrong?"
Ask students finish, ask for responses and list these on the board or on a shared Google Doc under the heading "Cons."
1. Include a short text for reading, comprehension questions, vocabulary building, and building background knowledge on the topic. (See the section "Preparation" for online sources of articles on this topic written at different levels of reading proficiency. You can also use Diffit AI to create a reading passage with accompanying vocabulary and comprehesion questions downloadable as a PDF or Word document). Add any more positives and/or negatives about AI/LLMs/chatbots from the reading to the class list.
2. Teach modals of ability (can, be able to), advice (should, ought to, had better), permission (can, may), and necessity (have to, must). Start with some sentences such as the following (add more and elict others from students). Ask which explain ability, advice, permission, and necessity.
Students should use AI for brainstorming.
You must not copy ChatGPT output.
AI tools can help with vocabulary practice.
Distribute the handout "AI in Education - Gapfill Worksheet."
Allow students time to work on the handout individually. Then give time for students to share their answers in pairs or small groups before a whole-group review of the answers.
For students who need more practice, assign online exercises.
Present students with scenarios:
Maria used ChatGPT to write her whole essay and turned it in without reading it.
Kevin asked ChatGPT to give him vocabulary for his science presentation.
In pairs or small groups, students discuss each scenario using modals to answer the following questions: Is this a responsible use of AI? Why or why not? What policy should the school have for this situation?
Provide sentence frames such as the following:
Students should / shouldn’t…
You must / must not…
AI can / can’t be used for…
Hear from all or select groups. Then have an open whole-class discussion:
- What is plagiarism?
- Can students use ChatGPT or other LLM to check their grammar?
- What is one way students should never use AI tools in education?
- Why is academic integrity important when using AI?
Tell students that they are now going to work in their groups to apply their learning and create a student "Code of Conduct" for using AI in school.
Group students and assign or allow students to select roles: Team Leader/Presenter, Writer/Editor, Tech Lead, and (as needed) Timekeeper. Distribute the assignment handout "AI Code of Conduct Assignment" and explain the task. Give students a time limit. After they have written their sentences, give feedback on mechanics (spelling, grammar, punctuation, word choices).
Students then work together to digitize their guidelines using a tech tool the teacher assigns or that they select.
The team leader presents the group's Code of Conduct. After all teams have presented, display the work, culminate the lesson with a whole-class discussion on which rules to adopt a whole class and the reasoning behind each rule.
Have students reflect on the lesson with a 3-2-1 exit ticket. (Note: Padlet AI Recipes includes a 3-2-1 wall that you can set up in a matter of seconds; share the URL or QR code, and students can post with their names or anonymously).
Three: Students write down three things they learned from the lesson.
Two: Two things they found interesting.
One: One question they still have about the topic or something they want to learn more about.
Students will have greater understanding of the positive possibilies as well as the ethical implications of using AI tools in their educational pursuits.
Documents
- AI Code of Conduct Assignment.docx - Assignment Description
- AI_in_Education_Gap_Fill_Worksheet.docx - Modals Gap-Fill Practice
Subjects
- Reading
- Critical Thinking/Decision Making
- Employability
- Learning to Learn
- Vocabulary
- Reasoning Through Language Arts
- Mechanics (Capitalization, Punctuation, Spelling)
- Writing
- Basic Sentences
- Mechanics (Capitalization, Punctuation, Spelling)
- Parts of Speech
- Report Writing
Standards
- Reading Foundational Skills
- RF.4 - Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension. (Fluency)
- Reading
- CCR Anchor 1 - Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text.
- CCR Anchor 2 - Determine central ideas or themes of a text and analyze their development; summarize the key supporting details and ideas.
- CCR Anchor 4 - Interpret words and phrases as they are used in a text, including determining technical, connotative, and figurative meanings, and analyze how specific word choices shape meaning or tone.
- CCR Anchor 8 - Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, including the validity of the reasoning as well as the relevance and sufficiency of the evidence.
- Writing
- CCR Anchor 1 - Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts, using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence.
- CCR Anchor 2 - Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas and information clearly and accurately through the effective selection, organization, and analysis of content.
- CCR Anchor 4 - Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.
- CCR Anchor 5 - Develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach.
- CCR Anchor 6 - Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing and to interact and collaborate with others.
- Language
- CCR Anchor 1 - Demonstrate command of the conventions of English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
- CCR Anchor 2 - Demonstrate command of the conventions of English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.
- CCR Anchor 3 - Apply knowledge of language to understand how language functions in different contexts, to make effective choices for meaning or style, and to comprehend more fully when reading or listening.