How Artificial Intelligence Will Reshape Education: Conversations with the Educational Technology Community

Artificial intelligence (AI) has existed in various forms for decades. However, with the recent innovation of OpenAI’s ChatGPT, its impact has become more far-reaching than ever, particularly in fields like education research and technology. Researchers anticipate this innovation will dramatically reshape the relationship between education stakeholders and AI. However, the shape and extent of this change remains unknown. To explore this, we, AI in Education researchers, came together for an interactive panel discussion at a flagship educational technology conference, 2024 Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT) Convention, held in Kansas City, Missouri. The goal was to initiate conversations about the scope of these changes and offer insights on both mitigating challenges and leveraging anticipated benefits. Four themes emerged from this discussion: GenAI’s impact on educational assessment and learning strategies, transformations in teachers’ pedagogy and practice, the recommendation that teachers adopt cautious optimism as a disposition, and the growing importance of critical AI literacy as part of educators’ knowledge. Building on these themes, we offer suggestions for establishing a healthy relationship with AI for instructors, designers, etc., and balancing the use of AI tools while maintaining agency.