As students and instructors adapt to artificial intelligence in the online classroom, reflecting on how AI impacts the learning process itself becomes increasingly important.
One crucial aspect of this process is metacognition, or “thinking about thinking,” which involves how we plan, evaluate, and monitor our own learning. Activities that encourage students to reflect on how they learn with AI can be an effective tool for your online classroom and a meaningful skill for students to develop as they reckon with this new technology. Consider structuring activities (that don’t require you to be an AI pro!) to encourage students to engage thoughtfully.
Use A "Think-aloud" Metacognitive Strategy
Show your process: Use a live Zoom session (or recorded video) to demonstrate yourself asking AI to describe a course concept. Model your own metacognitive processes by thinking out loud as you analyze the AI response:
“This initially looks correct, but did it address everything I asked? Let’s check.”
“Is this definition as complete as what’s in the text? Let’s compare them.”
Involve students in your “think-aloud” activity:
“While I’m looking up this definition, I want you all to reference the textbook and see what you think of the AI response to the next section. What is missing? What are you skeptical of? Cite page numbers from the text and we’ll talk about it shortly.”
Even if done occasionally, “think-aloud” activities serve to remind students that AI shouldn’t be trusted to do the work, and that we should always employ skepticism and verification when using it for important tasks.
AI "Thinking" Vs. Student Brainpower
Facilitate critical thinking: Students first complete a problem on their own, then use AI to complete that same problem, then perform a comparative analysis of the two solutions. This could be implemented via an ICON Discussion prompt in which students first post their own answer, then the AI response, then analyze both against a set of questions such as:
Where did the AI get it right?
Where did it fall short?
Did the AI include something of substance that you missed? Why does that matter?
Activities like this directly address the passive reliance on AI that’s at the heart of many concerns about artificial intelligence in higher education. By reflecting on how their own reasoning compares to AI-generated solutions, students develop confidence in their own reasoning skills and can ultimately learn to use AI effectively without sacrificing critical thinking.
Artificial intelligence poses unique challenges and opportunities in online learning. By embedding activities that prompt students to consciously reflect on both their thinking and AI-generated solutions, you encourage them to actively question, analyze, and critically evaluate information. In doing so, students gain a clearer perspective on the strengths and limitations of AI, foster deeper connection to your learning content and prepare to thoughtfully navigate a world increasingly influenced by artificial intelligence.