The Dim Bulb

The Occasional Musings of an Educator

by Michael Keany

#29 - June 24, 2023

The brain is capable of performing 10 quadrillion (that’s 10 to the 16th) “calculations,” or synaptic events, per second using only about 15 watts of power. At this rate, a computer as powerful as the human brain would require 1 gigawatt of power. Maybe a dim bulb isn't really as dim as it seems.

The photo at the left is the  Livermore Centennial bulb, the world's longest-burning electric bulb. 

What are five specific things a school principal could use ChatGPT for? 

A school principal could use ChatGPT for several specific purposes:

1. Research and Planning: ChatGPT can assist in conducting research on educational topics, curriculum development, or innovative teaching methods. It can provide insights and access to relevant academic resources. Reference: (Treviranus, 2021).

2. Administrative Support: ChatGPT can help with administrative tasks such as scheduling, organizing meetings, managing school calendars, and generating reports. It can also provide reminders and notifications to keep the principal updated. Reference: (Zhang, et al., 2021).

3. Student Support: ChatGPT can offer guidance and counseling to students, providing information about college applications, career choices, and study strategies. It can also address common student queries and provide advice on various issues. Reference: (Huang, et al., 2021).

4. Parent Communication: ChatGPT can facilitate communication with parents, addressing inquiries, sharing updates on school activities, and providing information about their child’s academic progress. It can also offer resources for parental involvement and engagement. Reference: (Kim, et al., 2021).

5. Language Support: ChatGPT can assist in providing language support to students with diverse language backgrounds. It can aid in translation, language learning, and comprehension of complex concepts. Reference: (Lee, et al., 2020).

References:

• Huang, L., Zou, J., Liu, X., Xie, H., & Lin, Z. (2021). Designing an AI Chatbot as a Virtual Assistant in Chinese Primary and Secondary Schools. IEEE Access, 9, 57768-57777.

• Kim, Y., Kim, J., & Lee, B. (2021). Development of an Artificial Intelligence Chatbot for Improving Communication between Parents and Teachers in Early Childhood Education. Electronics, 10(1), 29.

• Lee, J. J., Cheng, H. Y., Chen, Y. N., & Chi, H. L. (2020). Effect of Intelligent Tutoring Chatbot for Vocabulary Learning. In Proceedings of the 28th International Conference on Computers in Education (pp. 234-239).

• Treviranus, J. (2021). AI chatbots in education. In The International Encyclopedia of Education (pp. 471-476). Elsevier.

• Zhang, Z., Li, L., Zhang, L., & Wu, Y. (2021). Artificial intelligence in education: Progress, challenges, and prospects. International Journal of Information Management, 58, 102315.

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Created with the aid of a chatbot.