Gary’s Blog

I recently observed (but did not participate in) a conversation of higher education faculty and (to no one’s surprise) AI came up when they were asked about challenges they face. Although the research seems somewhat ambiguous, and the recommendations are even mor ambiguous, I think we can confidently assume that most of our students are using AI to complete their work.  Because I did not participate in the conversations, Read More

Curriculum leaders have focused intently in recent years on outcomes. Education, they claim, must be directed by outcomes that are specific and measurable. While there is evidence such outcomes can contribute to learning in some settings, most educators counter there are other aspects of becoming educated that are equally or even more valuable, but that Read More

A synopsis of a paper I developed at a conference earlier this spring: Generative artificial intelligence (GAI) arrived in schools in a serious way in the final months of 2022 when ChatGPT became widely available (Emmert-Streib, 2024). Since then, GAI has followed a pattern familiar to those who study technology. Commonly called the Gartner hype cycle (Dedehayir & Read More

Students are typically encouraged to perform well in school to “get a good job.” This suggests that each individual is the primary benefactor of his or her education. This is a rather recent, and limited, view of the benefits of becoming educated. If we assume that those who are educated are more efficient and more Read More

Defining the purpose of school is as a problem as wicked as any that we encounter in education. Many of the political discussions and debates are focused (either implicitly or explicitly) on negotiating the purpose of school, thus the structures and organizations that will accomplish that purpose. Ostensibly, all participants in these debates are focused Read More

Goals seem a natural part of human organizations and design; we define what we want, then take steps to achieve what we want. Those who have been involved with defining or achieving goals are likely familiar with the phenomenon of “moving goals.” We observe this when a goal is defined and when we are getting Read More