February 6, 2020
Future Trend in Education:
AI Impact on K-12 Teaching
McKinsey& Company published an article in January, "How artificial intelligence will impact K-12 teachers" based on research they conducted with Microsoft that surveyed more than 2,000 teachers from four countries with high rates of educational technology use (US, Canada, Singapore and the UK). They discovered that less than 50% of teachers time is spent in direct interaction with students and that technology could help reallocate 20 - 30% of teachers time so they can spend more time with students or have more personal time to prevent burnout. The areas that technology could save the most time for teachers is in the areas of preparation, administration, evaluation and feedback.
One of the most alarming statements in this report is this: "
The most recent Program for International Student Assessment scores suggest that, globally, students who use tablets, laptops, and e-readers in the classroom are performing worse than those who do not." The report clearly states that AI cannot substitute teachers for direct instruction, mentoring, coaching, social-emotional development. In fact, the report estimates that the number of school teachers will grow by 5 to 24 percent in the United States between 2016 and 2030.
The most significant, positive future impact AI can have on K -12 teaching that this report suggests is that AI can free up teachers time for more personalized learning, mentoring and direct coaching that will help improve student outcomes.
