Category

Resources

Featured
in Academic, Brain Basics, Critical, Resources

5 Thinking Skills to Help Your Child Thrive in the Era of ChatGPTFeatured

by
May 1, 2023
1 Comment
998

This post expands on part 1 chatGPT: A Practical Guide for Curious Parents, and explores 5 specific thinking skills needed to navigate ChatGPT with wisdom.

Are you a parent of young children? Have you been thinking “ChatGPT isn’t even on my radar. I don’t need to worry about that yet.“

  • Even if you have preschoolers or elementary aged children, this is a valuable post for you. There are simple, low cost, high impact ideas to build teachable thinking skills now that could improve their ability to navigate generative AI, later. 
  • Check out the infographic for specific ways to teach these crucial thinking skills and adjust them to match your specific child’s age and capability.

Or…

Are you a parent of tweens or teens?

Contents:

  1. In light of ChatGPT and its capabilities, do our kids still need thinking skills apart from AI?
  2. What thinking skills are essential now, more than ever? 
    1. Executive functioning
    2. Information literacy
    3. Asking the right questions
    4. Communication
    5. Ethical thinking
  3. How do we teach those skills? 
    1. Infographic
  4. Takeaways
  5. References

1. In light of ChatGPT and its capabilities, do our kids still need thinking skills apart from AI?

Are thinking skills obsolete? 

I’ve heard an argument that our children won’t need to learn to do basic cognitive tasks, such as remembering, classifying, summarizing, interpreting, or even comparing or contrasting,  because generative AI is capable. ChatGPT can tell you the right answers and formulate responses for you… so why teach our children those things? 

I think this argument assumes 1) that the AI is capable of quality output every single time (which is already suspect1) and 2) that the AI will always be readily accessible (high user volumes sometimes render the service unavailable, and paywalls may limit inclusion of varying socioeconomic groups).

But, for the sake of argument, even if generative AI can perform a function accurately and is easily accessible—does omitting the training of thinking skills benefit your child in any way? 

Products vs. processes

Now more than ever, our children absolutely need thinking skills and the ability to communicate, apart from AI. They need the skills to navigate the digital world well. 

Generative AI generates a product or outcome. Teaching our children to think means we are developing their thinking processes. 

A reliance on generative AI can potentially lead to a decrease in thinking skills because it provides quick solutions and generates ideas without the user needing to engage in the cognitive processes that are involved in creating those solutions or ideas. 

We aren’t training child robots capable of spitting out answers. We are cultivating minds with the ability to thoughtfully consider ideas and articulately respond.

The allure of a shortcut is certainly present, given the sheer number of ways we can access generative AI. But I don’t want my children to always choose the easy route with a chatbot. The reason and voice of chatGPT could potentially be helpful, but I don’t want it to replace their own. 

2. What thinking skills are essential now, more than ever?

  1. Executive functioning
  2. Information literacy
  3. Asking the right questions
  4. Communication
  5. Ethical thinking

Some overlap, but all are important for navigating digital experiences.

1. Executive Functioning

Executive functioning is a foundation for effective thinking skills–a set of underlying cognitive processes. Executive function involves regulating and controlling the other cognitive functions of the brain like attention, memory, self-control, or problem solving. Executive function is like an air traffic controller who is managing the coming and going of planes in multiple lanes at the same time.2

By regulating  thoughts, emotions, and actions, students can focus on what they are learning. Generative AI like ChatGPT can provide a wealth of information and entertainment, making distraction almost effortless. Therefore, students need to develop the ability to stay focused on the task at hand and avoid getting sidetracked.

2.  Information literacy

Information literacy is the ability to find, evaluate, and use information effectively. Information literacy isn’t just a thinking skill–it’s a life skill crucial for navigating the age of digital information as it becomes more and more difficult to differentiate between credible and non-credible sources. 

Lack of information literacy skills can contribute to the spread of false information and can lead to poor decision making when there is inaccurate or incomplete information. Using low quality AI responses could lead to academic, professional, or personal consequences. 

To practice this skill right away, download the free workbook Smart Kids Chat Smarter.

3. Asking the Right Questions  

Asking the right questions is both an art and a foundational thinking skill.  Asking the right questions involves identifying gaps in knowledge or understanding, and exploring different perspectives. The way a question is asked will determine what information ChatGPT provides.

You will get completely different answers from ChatGPT if you ask “What is a thinking skill?” vs. “What are the most important thinking skills that parents can teach their children and how can they do this in a low cost way?” 

Which of those questions would provide you with the most useful information?

4. Communication

Communication, the way we share ideas with others,  is both a thinking skill and a social skill.  Our brains think of what we want to say and how to say it in ways that other people can understand. 

It is easier than ever to replace communication with AI generated responses. ChatGPT is excellent when crafting an email, but will your teen be able to respond face to face in a verbal exchange with their supervisor at work? Communication is essential for success in all relationships, whether at home, school, play, or in the workforce. 

If students are over reliant on AI to communicate for them, they may not develop and hone the skills needed to speak clearly and effectively on their own. 

5. Ethical thinking 

Ethical thinking is examination of values and beliefs and making decisions in line with those values and beliefs. Using AI with integrity will require consideration of complex ethical issues. 

Students (and teachers) must recognize that their own values may not be reflected in ChatGPT or in the way other people utilize it. Without ethical thinking skills, students may not appreciate the responsibility for the content they generate with the help of chatGPT. They will also need to identify biases and stereotypes, and even respond to inappropriate or harmful information. 

3. How do we teach these skills? 

Use these tips as a starting point for building up cognitive elements like executive function and honing skills in information literacy, communication, asking the right questions, and thinking ethically.

You’ll notice that modeling, reflection, and exploration are key components of teaching any key thinking skills. For more on modeling, check out the post Modeling: How to Shape Brains & Behavior For Better.

4. Takeaways

There are ethical, moral, and philosophical implications for using generative AI and as it changes and its application spreads, our children need to be able to use it with integrity and skill.

ChatGPT should not be used to replace thinking skills, it should be used to enhance them. 

In the era of ChatGPT, thinking skills are more important than ever. There is currently no research stating that chatGPT can reduce thinking skills in young students, because good research takes time, and there hasn’t been enough time since its release to conduct high quality research. However, like any technological tool, it’s the way in which it is used that has the greatest impact.

I’m hopeful that in the coming months and years, we will see research specifically exploring the benefits and risks of using generative AI, particularly in education. I’m hopeful that we will see research based “best practices” for using ChatGPT with young learners. I’m hopeful that we will see studies of ChatGPT’s impact on brain function that are longitudinal (observing the same participants and variables over a long period of time, sometimes for years). 

I’m cautiously optimistic. 

The way we interact with generative AI like ChatGPT is evolving and will be different a year from now.

But today, with the information available to me, I’m focusing on teaching thinking skills that can prepare my children for whatever ChatGPT has in store for us. 

Looking for more?

Put these skills into practice right away with your middle or high school student by grabbing the free student workbook Smart Kids Chat Smarter that walks you the C.R.A.A.P. test for evaluating ChatGPT output.

References

  1. Hsu & Thompson (2023). Disinformation researchers raise alarms about A.I. chatbots https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/08/technology/ai-chatbots-disinformation.html 
  2. InBrief: Executive Function (2012) https://developingchild.harvard.edu/resources/inbrief-executive-function/#:~:text=Executive%20function%20skills%20are%20important%20throughout%20life.&text=Positive%20Behaviors%E2%80%94Executive%20functions%20help,well%20as%20those%20of%20others. 
  3. Spiegel, et al. (2021) Relations between executive functions and academic outcomes in elementary school children: A meta-analysis. https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2021-59065-001 
Featured
in Academic, Brain Basics, Critical, Resources

5 Excellent Books for Raising ThinkersFeatured

by
November 9, 2022
Leave a comment
320

Did you know that one of the best ways to improve your child’s thought life is to improve your own?

When you demonstrate your own love of learning, you model for them what it could look like to love learning themselves. When you show them how to unwind with a great book at the end of the day, they learn to to value the written word and enjoy the process of reading and learning from good books.

Teachers, professors, instructors, and coaches typically receive ongoing training in their areas of expertise to help them be the best possible influence on their students and athletes.

The idea here is similar…you can improve your child’s mental game by improving your own.

Reading and learning for yourself, as a parent, increases your own thinking skills and is a low cost and high impact way for you to improve your child’s thinking skills. It’s a win-win.

Here is the list of 5 books I highly recommend for raising thriving little thinkers:

1. The Whole Brain Child by Daniel J. Siegel and Tina Payne Bryson

  • A great book about brain basics with specific strategies for promoting cognitive integration (using your whole brain). This book is written by the same authors as The Yes Brain. It is research based, well written, easy to understand, and clearly organized.
  • One favorite quote: “As parents become more aware and emotionally healthy, their children reap the rewards and move toward health as well. That means that integrating and cultivating your own brain is one of the most loving and generous gifts you can give your children.”

2. The Yes Brain by Daniel J. Siegel and Tina Payne Bryson

  • Another great book about brain basics. This book is helpful for providing specific strategies in building resilience and curiosity in kids. I don’t want my children to fear failure, or avoid mistakes. This book explains how to cultivate the right environment as the parent to promote the mindset we want our children to master. This book is written by the same authors as The Whole Brain Child and similarly research based, well written, easy to understand, and clearly organized.
  • One favorite quote: “What you do and don’t value, and what you do and don’t give attention to, will impact who your child becomes.”

3. The Read Aloud Family by Sarah Mackenzie

  • A great book about academic thinking and family culture, this one is helpful no matter what age your children are. Sarah Mackenzie crafts compelling arguments for cultivating a read-aloud environment in your home. She explains the academic benefits and the deepened relationships resulting from reading books together as a family.
  • One favorite quote: “When we read aloud, we give our kids practice living as heroes. Practice dealing with life-and-death situations, practice living with virtue, practice failing at virtue. As the characters in our favorite books struggle through hardship, we struggle with them. We consider whether we would be as brave, as bold, as fully human as our favorite heroes. And then we grasp—on a deeper, more meaningful level—the story we are living ourselves as well as the kind of character we will become as that story unfolds.”

4. Teaching from Rest: A Homeschooler’s Guide to Unshakable Peace by Sarah Mackenzie

  • Don’t let the word “homeschooler” lead you away from this book–replace the word “teaching” with “mothering” and you can quickly summarize the contents and apply it to your home. Sarah Mackenzie, the same author as The Read Aloud Family, writes beautiful words of encouragement for a mother who feels too much rests on your shoulders. While it is written from a homeschooling perspective, the concept of parenting and teaching from rest is applicable to any parent wanting to raise thriving little thinkers.
  • A favorite quote: “It’s easy to forget that teaching is holy work. We forget that building up the intellect- teaching our children to really think- does not happen by the might of human reason, but rather by the grace of God. On an ordinary day, you and I likely have a set of tasks we’ve scheduled for our kids. But it’s more than math. It’s more than history. It’s the building up of our children’s minds and hearts, and we can only do that if we realize that this is how we thank Him for the graces He so lavishly pours out on us.”

5. Awakening Wonder: Opening Your Child’s Heart to the Beauty of Learning by Sally Clarkson

  • I found this book to be more inspirational and beautifully written than practical. But the vivid picture of a child who loves learning has stuck with me and encourages me as I teach and train my children. Sally Clarkson describes her experiences teaching her own four children and how she created a culture of “wonder” and tried to create a “wonder-filled life.” It’s an excellent source of inspiration for those seeking to instill a love of learning in their families.
  • One favorite quote: “Education is not about enacting a prescriptive, boxed sort of curriculum-based classroom, but instead is about passing on a legacy of a love for learning, an independent joy in discovery, a motivation to bring light, beauty, and goodness back into the world of our children.”

A Note on Cost: While I’ve personally read all of the books listed, I borrowed them before I purchased them. My local library has excellent apps like Libby or Hoopla that allow me to listen to the audiobook for free or I can request hardcopies from within our local library system. I encourage you to utilize resources near you and get creative! If you prefer to purchase your own hardcopies to take notes or keep as reference, great! Just know that it isn’t required.

Close