蓋茨說:“技術在教育領域的作用并不總是顯而易見的,但其潛力和前景卻十分鼓舞人心。”
不過,蓋茨最初對OpenAI的力量是存有疑慮的,直到他被薩姆·奧爾特曼和格雷格·布羅克曼“最令人驚嘆的演示”所吸引。雖然蓋茨承認人工智能無法做到人類能夠做的一切事情——它們表現得像“不太擅長理解上下文的人類”,而且聊天機器人可能會出錯,但他仍然對人工智能工具的進展感到震驚。他思考應該如何最好地運用這些創新成果,于是便想到了教育——考慮到蓋茨基金會(The Gates Foundation)在教育慈善事業上花費了數十億美元(盡管他們的努力并非總可以取得成效),這也許并不奇怪。
蓋茨解釋道,將新技術引入教育領域的失敗經歷往往會讓教師感到自己的創造力和獨立性受到侵害。他表示,“然而,我們都知道教師是英勇的,從事著世界上最重要也是最艱難的職業之一”,并稱人工智能實際上可以在教師忙得不可開交時提供幫助。
蓋茨稱,人工智能能夠彌補現有軟件在教授閱讀和寫作技能方面的不足。他說:“很少有學生可以得到自己文章的反饋,例如這里能夠寫得更明白一些,你遺漏了這一點和論證過程等。我確實認為人工智能會成為一個優秀的高中教師,它可以切實地給你的文章打分,讓你能夠回過頭來思考:‘好吧,我這點需要改進?!?/p>
可汗補充道,可汗學院新開發的人工智能驅動的助教Khanmigo可能會在不久的將來被用于幫助提取信息,并提醒老師哪些學生走神或需要提問。雖然Khanmigo還有一些問題尚未解決,而且有些教師認為它太快提供幫助以至于學生們都來不及自己先嘗試解決問題,但可汗認為它擁有巨大的潛力并且甚至有可能在某些時候通過圖靈測試。
研究也發現,將生成式人工智能引入教育領域實際上可能有助于提高教師的工作效率。領英(LinkedIn)最新發布的《人工智能未來工作報告》(A.I. Future of Work report)將教師列為技能可能因為人工智能而增強的程度第三高(45%)的常見職業。不過,該報告并沒有將這一點視為人工智能將取代教師職業的跡象,而是斷言人工智能可以協助備課和教學輔導,讓教師能夠專注于發揮管理班級和給予學生更多個人關注等軟技能。
蓋茨在播客里說:“我一直以來都低估了一件事情,那就是對大多數學生而言,擁有某種社會經驗是多么有價值的事情?!彼€指出,生成式人工智能能夠幫助“縮小教育差距并提升整體成績水平”,表示人工智能可以改善低收入和少數族裔學生的教育。他說,正因此,他在蓋茨基金會首次進入教育領域時才持有更為樂觀的態度。
總的來說,他認為生成式人工智能本質上與其說是教師,不如說更像助教。平心而論,蓋茨的專業背景是計算機而非教育,因此他對效率的定義或許更符合硅谷的處事態度,而不是教育思維。不過,幾十年來他一直在努力改善全球教育,這是值得稱贊的。
蓋茨表示,至于人工智能會如何影響教師就業市場,這是“最難回答的問題”,并補充稱,教師永遠不會過多,市場對教師的需求是“無限的”。但他承認,人工智能帶來的變化并非沒有潛在的未知后果:“很難預料人工智能將會如何改變一切。”(財富中文網)
譯者:中慧言-劉嘉歡
小學生可能喜歡把豌豆和胡蘿卜分開,但比爾·蓋茨準備幫助孩子們做出一些改變——至少在人工智能領域里是這樣。將這項新技術與教育融合,可能會像果凍混合肉類一樣不倫不類,也可能如餅干搭配奶油般相得益彰,不過后者更為契合蓋茨的樂觀看法。在蓋茨的播客節目《解惑》(Unconfuse Me)的最近一期中,他對嘉賓薩爾·可汗——非營利教育機構可汗學院(Khan Academy)的首席執行官——表示,人工智能可能有助于促進教育事業。
蓋茨說:“技術在教育領域的作用并不總是顯而易見的,但其潛力和前景卻十分鼓舞人心?!?/p>
不過,蓋茨最初對OpenAI的力量是存有疑慮的,直到他被薩姆·奧爾特曼和格雷格·布羅克曼“最令人驚嘆的演示”所吸引。雖然蓋茨承認人工智能無法做到人類能夠做的一切事情——它們表現得像“不太擅長理解上下文的人類”,而且聊天機器人可能會出錯,但他仍然對人工智能工具的進展感到震驚。他思考應該如何最好地運用這些創新成果,于是便想到了教育——考慮到蓋茨基金會(The Gates Foundation)在教育慈善事業上花費了數十億美元(盡管他們的努力并非總可以取得成效),這也許并不奇怪。
蓋茨解釋道,將新技術引入教育領域的失敗經歷往往會讓教師感到自己的創造力和獨立性受到侵害。他表示,“然而,我們都知道教師是英勇的,從事著世界上最重要也是最艱難的職業之一”,并稱人工智能實際上可以在教師忙得不可開交時提供幫助。
蓋茨稱,人工智能能夠彌補現有軟件在教授閱讀和寫作技能方面的不足。他說:“很少有學生可以得到自己文章的反饋,例如這里能夠寫得更明白一些,你遺漏了這一點和論證過程等。我確實認為人工智能會成為一個優秀的高中教師,它可以切實地給你的文章打分,讓你能夠回過頭來思考:‘好吧,我這點需要改進。’”
可汗補充道,可汗學院新開發的人工智能驅動的助教Khanmigo可能會在不久的將來被用于幫助提取信息,并提醒老師哪些學生走神或需要提問。雖然Khanmigo還有一些問題尚未解決,而且有些教師認為它太快提供幫助以至于學生們都來不及自己先嘗試解決問題,但可汗認為它擁有巨大的潛力并且甚至有可能在某些時候通過圖靈測試。
研究也發現,將生成式人工智能引入教育領域實際上可能有助于提高教師的工作效率。領英(LinkedIn)最新發布的《人工智能未來工作報告》(A.I. Future of Work report)將教師列為技能可能因為人工智能而增強的程度第三高(45%)的常見職業。不過,該報告并沒有將這一點視為人工智能將取代教師職業的跡象,而是斷言人工智能可以協助備課和教學輔導,讓教師能夠專注于發揮管理班級和給予學生更多個人關注等軟技能。
蓋茨在播客里說:“我一直以來都低估了一件事情,那就是對大多數學生而言,擁有某種社會經驗是多么有價值的事情?!彼€指出,生成式人工智能能夠幫助“縮小教育差距并提升整體成績水平”,表示人工智能可以改善低收入和少數族裔學生的教育。他說,正因此,他在蓋茨基金會首次進入教育領域時才持有更為樂觀的態度。
總的來說,他認為生成式人工智能本質上與其說是教師,不如說更像助教。平心而論,蓋茨的專業背景是計算機而非教育,因此他對效率的定義或許更符合硅谷的處事態度,而不是教育思維。不過,幾十年來他一直在努力改善全球教育,這是值得稱贊的。
蓋茨表示,至于人工智能會如何影響教師就業市場,這是“最難回答的問題”,并補充稱,教師永遠不會過多,市場對教師的需求是“無限的”。但他承認,人工智能帶來的變化并非沒有潛在的未知后果:“很難預料人工智能將會如何改變一切?!保ㄘ敻恢形木W)
譯者:中慧言-劉嘉歡
Elementary schoolers might like to keep their peas and carrots separate, but Bill Gates is ready to shake some stuff up for the kids—at least, when it comes to A.I. Mixing the new tech with education could go together as disastrously as jello and meat or as harmoniously as cookies and cream, though Gates’ optimistic viewpoint fits more with the tub of ice cream. In a recent episode of his podcast, “Unconfuse Me,” with guest Sal Khan, CEO of non-profit education company Khan Academy, he expressed that A.I. could help advance the classroom.
“The role of technology in education isn’t always obvious, but the potential and the possibilities are inspiring,” Gates said.
That’s despite initially doubting the power of OpenAI until he was gripped by “the most stunning demo” from Sam Altman and Greg Brockman. While he acknowledges that A.I. can’t do everything humans do—they act like “a human that’s not very good with context”—and that chatbots can get buggy, he was in shock at the tool’s state. Thinking of how these innovations could best be applied, his mind went to education, perhaps not surprising considering that The Gates Foundation has spent billions on education philanthropy (although their efforts haven’t always succeeded).
Gates explained that oftentimes, bringing new tech into a classroom unsuccessfully often feels to teachers like an infringement on their creativity and independence. “And yet we all know teachers are heroic, one of the most important, hardest jobs in the world,” he said, suggesting that A.I. could actually help them when they have too much on their plates.
A.I. could compensate for where current software lacks in teaching reading and writing skills, he said. “Very few students get feedback on an essay, that this could be clearer, you really skipped this piece and the reasoning,” he says. “I do think the A.I. will be like a great high school teacher who really marks your essay and you go back and think, ‘okay, I need to step up there.’”
Khan added that Khanmigo, a new A.I. powered tutor created by Khan Academy, might be used in the near future to help distill information and alert teachers about which students are disengaged or have questions. While it’s still working out some issues and some teachers say it’s too quick to help students before they try a problem themselves, Khan thinks it’s potential is powerful and that it might even pass the Turing test at times.
Even research finds that bringing generative A.I. to the classroom might actually help teachers become more productive. LinkedIn’s new A.I. Future of Work report lists teaching as the common occupation with the third highest share of skills potentially augmented by A.I.: 45%. But rather than seeing this as a sign that the tech would replace teachers’ jobs, he report asserts that A.I. could help with lesson planning and tutoring, enabling teachers to focus on soft skills like managing classrooms and giving students more individual attention.
“One thing I always underestimated is how valuable it is for most students to have kind of a social experience,” Gates said in the podcast. He also noted that generative A.I. can help “close the [education] gap and raise up the overall level of achievement,” suggesting it could bolster lower-income and minority students. It’s increased the optimism he had when the Gates Foundation first entered the education space, he said.
Overall, he ultimately sees generative A.I. as more of an assistant teacher than a teacher. To be fair, Gates has a background in computers, not education, which might make his definition of productivity more aligned with a Silicon Valley approach than a classroom mentality. But there’s something to be said for the decades he’s spent trying to improve global education.
As for the teacher job market, that’s “the hardest question to answer,” he said, adding that there will never be too many teachers and demand is “infinite.” The change doesn’t come without potential unknown consequences though, he admits: “It’s very hard to predict how it’ll shift things.”