My ChatGPT for Change Course

End-of-term report

I just finished teaching a week-long, Monday through Friday, 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM online course designed for high school students and entitled ‘ChatGPT for Change.’

I created this course in collaboration with a team of talented educators at Education Unlimited, with me first having put the idea before this organization's leadership team in February of 2023, two months after the launch of ChatGPT.

The course, as described for months on the Education Unlimited website, offers high school students the chance to work with ChatGPT as they engage in a Civic Action Project (CAP) with the goal of initiating positive change in their communities and around the world.

The first day of class started off with me sharing with the students a long list of possible Civic Action Projects (CAPs) to choose from, with some of the better CAPs found on this list including initiatives like advocating for a policy at the students’ school that would prohibit teachers from assigning homework prior to a national holiday that’s due after the holiday, lobbying for the establishment of a dress code policy for teachers, and/or pushing for the introduction of new Advanced Placement (AP) Psychology course at their schools.

But the students weren’t swayed by any of the CAP suggestions that I provided. Instead, they ended up choosing a civic action project of their own, one that sought to persuade their respective school principals to adopt the new AP African American Studies class into their school’s curriculum starting in the fall of 2024.

In less than three days, the students (in collaboration with ChatGPT) crafted a detailed 15-page Civic Action Project Plan of Attack, with this plan covering all the bases typically associated with a robust Civic Action Project Plan of Attack:

• An Introduction: Here, the students succinctly stated that they were advocating for a new AP African American Studies class in their school.
• The Background: In this section, the students compiled a detailed history of the AP African American Studies course. They began with its inception, discussed its field testing in different schools, talked about the schools planning to implement it in 2024, and discussed any controversies that have arisen concerning the course.
• A Proposal: In this part of the plan, the students outlined their vision for the course, beginning with an Executive Summary, which was a snapshot of the entire proposal. The Introduction went into further depth about the project and its motivations. The Rationale clarified the reasons for proposing this new course, while the Objectives section specified the goals they aimed to achieve with the new class.
• The Course Details: Here, the students delved into the content of the proposed course, drawing heavily from the College Board’s AP African American Studies Course and Exam Description. They examined the course’s particulars, explaining what topics it would cover and how it would benefit their peers.
• An Implementation Plan: In this section, the students charted out a comprehensive step-by-step process for introducing and integrating the course into their school’s current curriculum.
• The Potential Challenges and Solutions: Here, the students demonstrated their foresight by identifying potential obstacles and suggesting proactive solutions. Each potential roadblock came with a proposed strategy to circumvent it.
• A Conclusion: In this concluding section, the students tied together their entire plan, summarizing the proposal, emphasizing its importance, and restating the potential benefits that the proposed course would bring to their school and students.
• An Appendices: In the Appendices, the students included additional materials like a persuasive letter to their school principal requesting a chance to present their initiative, a carefully scripted four-minute presentation with well-considered responses to possible questions, a letter to the editor of their local newspaper to involve the larger community, and a survey to distribute among their peers at the start of the upcoming school year.

A highlight of the course was the panel discussion held on the final day, which lasted an hour. As the host, I presented the students with a variety of challenging questions, both about their specific CAP Plan of Attack and some broader considerations related to ChatGPT usage. Here are a few examples:

• Do you view ChatGPT as a plagiarism tool?
• Do you believe that if students use ChatGPT for educational purposes more than twice a week, they might become lazy thinkers?
• Why did you decide to exclude certain strategies from your plan?
• Do you think that ChatGPT should be banned on all middle school and elementary school-purchased devices and platforms?
• What percentage of students at your high school do you think will be using ChatGPT for educational purposes more than twice a week this coming April, a month before the annual AP Exams?
• How do you respond to those who claim that ChatGPT is not factually reliable?
• How did you ensure that everything you wrote, from the Plan of Attack to the letters and presentation script, genuinely reflected your own voice and ideas?

Despite the complexity of these questions, the students were able to provide articulate, thoughtful responses, showcasing an impressive understanding of their chosen issue and their critical thinking about the role of AI tools like ChatGPT in education. In my opinion, they could only do this because they had internalized the course content to great depth.

I was especially impressed with how one of the students responded to the question: ‘How did you make sure everything you wrote, like your project plan, the letter to your principal, and the script for your presentation, really sounded like you and reflected your own thoughts?”

Here’s the student’s response:

The first thing we did was drop the prompt into ChatGPT, and what came back usually consisted of many three, four, and five-syllable words. In other words, it sounded like some college professor. So, we asked ChatGPT to rephrase it to sound more like a 9th or 10th grader. We then copied that more chill version into a Google Doc and worked to make it sound even more like us. That meant deleting some stuff, adding in our own words and thoughts, and so on. We then took this remixed version back to ChatGPT and told it to proofread. Once that was done, back to Google Docs it went for another look. Sometimes, we’d realize we wanted to add another idea or two, so it was back to ChatGPT again. Then back to Google Docs. It was a back-and-forth process, usually taking about five rounds before we finally felt like we had nailed it. Yeah, it was work, but it was fun, and by the end, it sounded like us, and we totally got it. Only then did we paste it into the Plan of Attack and call it done. So for those wondering if we ever just prompted and pasted, nope, that’s not what we did.’”

Wrapping things up, there are two key points I want to highlight.

First and foremost, I want to mention how impressed I was with the students. They didn’t just meet my expectations; they surpassed them, applying what they learned in ways that astounded me. This was an educator’s dream, watching them navigate, adapt, and thoughtfully utilize ChatGPT.

Secondly, I want to share the immense satisfaction and accomplishment I felt teaching this course. Usually, after I’ve tried to implement something new in the classroom, my mind runs with thoughts of what I should have done differently or things I want to change for the next time. But not this time. With this course, there was an absence of the usual ‘should haves’ and ‘next time I’ll’s. Instead, there was a profound sense of satisfaction and accomplishment. This course was different, it felt right, and I couldn’t have asked for a better outcome.

In this regard, I am deeply thankful to the folks at Education Unlimited for not only believing in my vision but also wholeheartedly supporting me in its implementation. Their trust in me and the resources they provided was instrumental in creating an environment where I could explore this innovative teaching method confidently. The success and the sense of fulfillment I experienced while teaching this course were made possible by their dedication and encouragement. I am truly grateful for their collaboration, which allowed me to witness the positive impact it had on the students and the overall learning experience. The support and openness they displayed throughout the journey were truly commendable.

So, thank you, Education Unlimited, for making a difference not only in my professional life but also in the lives of the students who benefitted from this extraordinary learning opportunity. Your unwavering commitment to education has left a lasting impression, and I am sincerely grateful for all that you’ve done.

Sidenote #1:

For those wondering, yes, this post was produced in collaboration with ChatGPT.

Sidenote #2:

Despite the immense satisfaction and accomplishment that I currently feel, I imagine that in the days to come, and certainly after receiving feedback from the trusted folks at Education Unlimited, some changes to the course will be in order. After 30-plus years in education, if there’s only one thing I’ve learned, it’s that no one ever gets a perfect score the first time out of the shoot. Teaching is an ever-evolving journey of growth and adaptation.