Being human

The teacher’s role, as we all have been used to, is all set to do a somersault. It has been changing all along, actually – just not so radically. When I was a kid, we had to depend on books for information. And since we neither had access to all books, nor the patience to wade through reams of yellowing print, we depended on our teachers to do the reading and feed us the necessary titbits of information. We had no arsenal to test the credibility of the said titbits; we just learned it all up with gusto.

Then came the internet and teachers had to up the ante. Information could now be doublechecked by students. By the time I walked into class as a teacher, students had all the information at their fingertips, on their smartphones. At this point education no longer gloried in providing information. Teaching turned into providing ways for students to use all the information intelligently; teaching was about turning flat information into multidimensional ways of thinking and connecting with life.

Now, AI can give students information, show them how to use it intelligently, even creatively, and give them guidance on real-life connections.

So, what can teachers today offer that AI cannot? 

I was wondering why we should all not be sacked, when I received a personal note from a past student who had found me through social media. After reintroducing themselves, the student wrote one of the reasons for connecting with me. 

I am producing a part of the note that made me rethink the role of the (human) teacher today:

“…I was a below average academic student — I loved and excelled in sports, wasn’t very motivated to study, and hadn’t developed much academic curiosity. Most teachers in middle school had written me off academically. I assume that there’s generally some communication between past and current teachers about students — which ones were promising, which ones weren’t. And yet in Grade 8 you started treating me like one of the smart students. You asked for my thoughts in literature discussions. You engaged with me like I had something valuable to say. That experience gave me a new kind of confidence — one I had never really felt before. For the first time, I felt like I belonged among the “bright kids”. It made me try harder. I topped the next English test. Looking back, those few weeks remain one of the happiest academic experiences of my life, and I thank you for that…”

Connecting with students on a human – or even humane – level, motivating them simply by believing in them, is better done by humans than a machine, I guess.  

This student was talking about their experience in Grade 8, almost 18 years ago! I admit that back then, I had not really put much thought into it. I tend to ask questions to everyone in class, especially to those who are quieter or lack confidence – so I had no idea about individual students’ back stories or baggage left with them by previous teachers. Yet, a simple human gesture had touched his life. And all this was 18 years ago! I am repeating the time frame only because it made me think that humans, perhaps, touch student lives a tad more deeply that AI does.

While machines are good with IQ, they struggle with emotional intelligence. AI can identify student limitations and provide the extra academic help needed, but it cannot genuinely empathise or provide inspiration. AI can simulate EQ by recognising, analysing, and responding to human emotions with high precision. But it cannot offer heartfelt sympathy. Perhaps machines will be taught to inspire and motivate and empathise in the future, but not yet.

I have heard the address of the head boy of a school where he has thanked his Geography teacher for instilling enough confidence in him to make him lose his stutter. I have been told by a student that she was at odds with Maths until she came upon a certain teacher who inspired her so much that now she wants to pursue higher studies in Maths. I have seen a teacher go all out to stop a student disintegrating in the face of cyber bullying, and reinstate her in school armed with courage and confidence. 

P.S: I have not yet heard anyone thanking AI for all this. But let’s wait and see.

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