Leveraging AI for Curriculum Design: Strategies for Pre-Service Teachers in Primary Science Education
Context: Master of Teaching
Unit: EDF5857 Primary Science
Purpose of the task: This task provided pre-service teachers (PSTs) with an opportunity to productively utilise Artificial intelligence (AI) to support their planning for learning in the primary science classroom.
For this task, pre-service teachers (PSTs) needed to create a learning sequence that would support student learning of science. To do this, PSTs needed to breakdown the science curriculum descriptions and create an age appropriate explanation of the science concepts they were going to teach. PSTs needed to plan for all three aspects of the science curriculum: Science Understanding; Science as a Human Endeavour; and Science Inquiry skills, at a particular primary school level of their choosing.
Use of Generative AI in assessment tasks for this unit.
In this assessment, PSTs were encouraged to use generative artificial intelligence (AI) to learn how to break down the science curriculum descriptions and chunk and sequence student learning of science concepts and skills. Breaking down the curriculum statements is a challenging task for many beginning teachers, particularly if they are not confident in the subject area, like science.
PSTs could use AI in the planning stages to help them breakdown the curriculum statements, to explain scientific concepts, to help them identify alternate conceptions (ACs) related to the science ideas (for a specific age group) and to help them think about a sequence for learning.
PSTs had to edit and highlight the AI generated materials in their submissions by colour coding the AI generated text in a different font colour to their original edits. They were required to check the accuracy of the AI generated information and make connections to the unit readings and beyond. They also needed to include unedited AI generated text in a suitably labelled appendix along with the question/s used to generate the material/s. For the section related to alternate conceptions, they could use AI to help them find ACs but they had to explain the ACs in their own words, and they needed to locate the AC in peer-reviewed literature.
We emphasised caution when asking AI to find citations. They had to verify the references were authentic and we required that they must include valid DOI’s with every reference not from the reading list.
PSTs were not allowed to use AI to write paragraphs or sentences and that any use of generative AI must be appropriately acknowledged (see Learn HQ). They were to include which AI tools were used and a list of prompts and/or a summary of how they used AI.
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Using AI and literature support, break down the curriculum descriptions to identify the key ideas and/or concepts related to your chosen curriculum descriptions.
For each curriculum description (i.e. SU and SHE) explain what you want students to know. That is, what is a key concept at the heart of the learning outcome?
Provide a clear, concise and age appropriate explanation of the scientific concept that would be useful for the teacher as they plan to support student learning. You can use figures in your explanation if relevant.
Cross check the AI output by comparing with the literature. Edit the AI generated materials** (see note below). Use authentic and non-AI generated references to support your explanations. Include complete AI generated excerpts in a suitably labelled appendix.
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For this section, you need to identify commonly held ideas about the concepts which students may hold. We refer to these as ‘alternate conceptions’ (AC).
Use AI to help you initially identify some ACs but you then need to cross check and validate with peer-reviewed literature. Identify at least 1 AC for the SU concept and 1 for SHE.
Briefly explain why may students hold these particular ideas and what aspects of the concepts might create confusion for students.
**$Explain the ACs in your own words.
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Using AI (if you choose), breakdown the skill into constituent parts. What are the key terms/ideas?
Compare the AI generated ideas to the research literature from the reading list and beyond.
**Edit the AI generated text to align with the research literature. Include supporting references to legitimise the AI information and show how you have made connections to the unit readings and beyond.
Briefly explain why the skill might be challenging or confusing for students to learn about and/or develop. Support claims with academic literature.
Below is an example of the guidance we offered PSTs in the assessment task outline:
** Using AI generated materials in your submission:
You can edit and use the AI generated materials in your submission ONLY if you colour code the AI generated text in a different font colour to your original edits. For example, when you cut and paste the AI generated text into Word, change the font colour (e.g. to red or blue). As you edit the text, ensure your original text is black, so the AI original material and your edits are obvious and distinct.
Include unedited AI generated text in a suitably labelled appendix along with the question you used to generate the material.
$ Where specified in the text above, you can use AI to help you find AC’s, but you must explain them in your own words and find where the ACs are referenced in the literature. You need to include valid DOI’s with every reference not in the reading list.
In the learning sequence section include the original AI generated sequence in an appendix. Colour code the AI materials and show your edits in a different coloured font.
