Artificial Intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming many aspects of our lives, and homeschool education is no exception! However, there are incredible opportunities to leverage AI tools to enhance the homeschool experience. Let’s start with what AI is and how it works, and then dive into ways families can enhance the homeschool experience through smart, safe, and responsible use of AI.

What is AI?

Many people think of ChatGPT or Microsoft CoPilot when they think of AI. These examples are generative AI tools that can be used to generate text, images, or other content, but AI is really an umbrella term for any computer program that uses human intelligence to complete a complex task.

AI uses machine learning to continually improve. Essentially, the more it’s used, the more it learns and improves. Large data sets, vast amounts of data from books, websites, articles, and more, are used to train AI, which then learns to recognize patterns and mimic human intelligence. 

Some generative AI are often called chatbots or virtual assistants as well, since they provide assistance. Some examples include:

• ChatGPT
• Claude.ai
• Jasper.ai
• Midjourney

In addition to generative AI assistants, virtual assistants like Siri, Google Assistant, and Alexa are very popular. There are also many websites, learning platforms, and apps that have AI integrations. For the homeschool parents, AI-powered tools can help with grading tasks and ensuring your student is maintaining good academic integrity as well! 

Ways to Use AI to Enhance Homeschooling

There are many ways AI tools can benefit the homeschooling family. Let’s begin with some ways homeschool parents can use AI: 

• To find multimedia learning resources (e.g., videos and podcasts)
• To brainstorm field trip ideas
• To brainstorm project and experiment ideas
• To help with grading
• To ensure academic integrity

As a homeschool teacher, you can use AI to take your teaching to the next level without spending countless additional hours that would normally be required. Using AI assistants like ChatGPT, you can quickly compile lists of additional learning resources, extended learning activity ideas, locating nearby field trip locations, and more. 

You can also make use of AI-powered sites for help with grading, checking work for plagiarism, and other teaching tasks so you have more time to focus on what matters most—your student.

Consider this example. A parent using AOP’s LIFEPAC Science curriculum decides they want to extend a lesson on animal habitats that their child is really enjoying. They decide to get help from an AI assistant. Typing in prompts for each request, they are able to quickly:

• Gather links to several educational videos with suggested discussion prompts
• Compile a list of three nearby field trip locations with animal habitat experts
• Generate a list of three animal habitat projects to choose from that include step-by-step directions and required materials.

Parents can also use AI tools to help with grading, checking for plagiarized content, and even for providing feedback on student assignments. There are free and subscription-based tools made specifically for these tasks, or you can use an AI virtual assistant like ChatGPT. 

There are also many ways AI tools can benefit students. While it’s very important to teach your child how to responsibly use these tools, AI can ultimately be an amazing resource for learning. Some ways students can use AI include:

• To brainstorm writing topics
• To create writing and project outlines
• To summarize and identify key points in their notes
• To gather reliable research sources
• To get tutoring support

For students, AI should be used to build critical thinking and analysis tools as they use it to brainstorm ideas, organize their information, and find and evaluate research sources. AI should not be used as a shortcut, but instead to enhance and deepen the learning process.

Students may use generative AI for research just as they would use Google or Bing or any other search engine. However, generative AI can deliver more specific results, format the content in user-specified ways, and include source citations for all generated content. The more details students use when typing in their prompt, the better the results will be.

Consider this example. A 10th grade student is enrolled in AOP’s Monarch English II course. The student needs to write a research paper and using AI for help, they are able to:

• Brainstorm ideas and settle on their research topic
• Gather relevant published research from expert sources
• Correctly format all sources with live links for a works cited page
• Find the best way to organize information in the paper
• Correctly format all in-text citations for quoted and paraphrased sources
• Proof their final paper and ensure grammar and spelling is correct

Additionally, this student’s parent can then use AI to:

• Check for plagiarism from other web sources or AI generated copy
• Get help with grading and feedback suggestions 

Teaching Your Child Responsible AI Use

It’s important to remember that AI is a tool, and like any tool, it should be used with care. As a homeschool parent, you have the ability to guide your child’s instruction in digital literacy and responsible use of AI and other tools. 

Here are some tips to guide your instruction on responsible AI use:

• Start with the basics—Explain how AI works and how it can be used, including relevant real-life examples.
• Discuss ethical considerations—Talk about how AI can reflect or amplify societal topics that may not align with Christian morals. Also discuss how AI tracks online activities, and any web activity leaves a digital footprint.
• Discuss safety considerations—Discuss the importance of data privacy and how AI or any web-based technology can put people at risk. Explain your family’s rules for internet use that ensure your child knows how to manage their personal data and protect their online identity.
• Encourage critical thinking and evaluation—Teach your child to carefully evaluate all AI generated content and fact check the information, explaining that AI can make mistakes.
• Discuss responsible AI use in daily life—Discuss ways to responsibly use tools like chatbots and virtual assistants as well as ways to find a healthy balance that avoids over-reliance on technology.

AI provides incredible tools that can greatly enhance homeschool learning. These tools can significantly reduce the workload for homeschool parents, and provide personalized learning support for students. These benefits can help create a more engaging and effective educational experience for homeschool families.