These guides are prepared for the community of Western Academy of Beijing, to support adaptation and innovation in the rapidly-developing world of GenerativeAI (GenAI). As our learners head into an ever-accelerating world, they should learn how to adapt to new technologies safely and ethically.
Culture is more powerful than technology. At WAB we are guided by our Mission, Core Values, Definition of Learning and IB Programme Standards & Practices. We have amazing educators, engaged students, a supportive community and approaches to teaching and learning that promote agency, inquiry, personalisation and meaningful learning. Our approaches are informed by and in alignment with UNESCO's guidance.
Human interaction and learner-mentor relationships are key to being adaptive in a rapidly-evolving tech landscape.
Cautious Curiosity
There is a lot to learn about, and to be inspired by. Open-minded inquiry with a focus on cautious pilots/testing will help explore how we can adapt and thrive, whilst staying true to who we are.
Safety & Ethical Considerations
GenAI carries many safety and ethical considerations, including privacy, data security, ethics, integrity and our local regulatory environment. Explore some of these on the tabs above.
Collaborative Exploration
Don't go it alone. If you are curious about GenAI use in your classes, please reach out to your library-edtech teams, Dir. Innovation or Head of EdTech & IT.
Reflective Innovation
Innovations can have unknown impacts. As we explore, we need to reflect on our experiences. In a rapidly-changing environment, tools and effects can change over time, so do check if what we think is true remains so.
Ongoing Research & Development
We have been researching GenAI in education since before ChatGPT, and are committed to continued R&D. Relevant resources and uses will be curated onto these guides, and we welcome contributions and ideas from colleagues.
AI = Artificial Intelligence, which includes Machine Learning (ML), Deep Learning (DL) and GenerativeAI (GenAI).
GenAI = GenerativeAI, including tools that use Natural Language Processing (NLP), to generate new outputs (text, image, sound etc) from prompts (instructions) given by the user.
LLM = Large Language Models. Examples such as ChatGPT are trained on massive amounts of text data, creating models that are able to predict and generate outputs.
GPT = Generative Pre-trained Transformer. These are models that transform inputs (prompts) into new outputs, using their training data.
AIEd = The interdisciplinary field of study into AI in Education & Research.
(If You) USEME-AI is a model developed at WAB in Dec'22, designed to guide conversations around adapting to GenAI in Education, in alignment with Cultures of Thinking and UNESCO Guidance. Find out more here.
