September 26, 2024
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How to Use AI in the Classroom & 52 Tools to Get Started

Picture this: You're standing in front of a classroom full of students, and everyone is staring at you. Well, not everyone. Some students look at their textbooks, others doodle on their worksheets, and a few even make eye contact. But most are staring at their screens. And you’re pretty sure that more than one of those screens shows TikTok videos instead of the lesson you so painstakingly prepared. You can practically hear the collective sigh as you begin to teach your lesson. The students are not engaged, and you’re not excited, either. You want to teach these kids something valuable to help them with their next assignment or, even better, spark their interest and motivate them to learn. But how do you get them to stop staring at their screens and pay attention to you? This is a frustrating reality that many teachers face today in classrooms nationwide. The good news is that artificial intelligence can help. This article will discuss using AI in the classroom to improve student engagement in learning activities and help you return to what you love: teaching!  

EssayGrader is a grading software for teachers that can help you achieve these objectives. This AI-driven tool helps educators quickly and efficiently grade student essays to deliver personalized student feedback.

What is the Meaning of AI in Education?

ai bots - How to Use AI in the Classroom

Artificial intelligence (AI) is one of our most important emerging technologies. AI has entered education with rapid advancements in machine learning and deep learning. AI can improve educational efficiency, personalize learning, and even ease administrative burdens. 

For example, intelligent tutoring systems and AI-assisted apps can help students learn by personalizing and automating the process. Other systems can help teachers and administrators with:

  • Grading
  • Feedback
  • Classroom management

As more educational stakeholders adopt such tools, the future of education and learning will undoubtedly change. 

Intelligent Tutoring Systems: The New "Personal" Tutor

Intelligent tutoring systems (ITS) are one of the most common applications of AI in education and the most lucrative. These computer programs provide step-by-step tutorials through topics in well-defined structured subjects such as mathematics. An ITS delivers information, activities, and quizzes tailored to the individual student. As the student engages with a particular activity, the system captures thousands of data points, such as:

  • What is clicked
  • What is typed
  • Which tasks have been answered correctly
  • And any misconceptions that have been demonstrated

This data is analyzed to determine the next information, activity, and quiz to be delivered, thus generating a personalized pathway for the material to be learned. The process is then repeated. For example, from the French company Domoscio, Spark individualizes learning pathways and provides teachers with a learning analytics dashboard.

Another example is the Gooru Navigator, which aims to be the Google Maps for learning.  Gooru extensively uses data-driven AI technologies on its platform to analyze topics covered by open educational resources and map them with individual learner profiles and competence needs. Currently, Gooru claims to host about four million AI-curated learning resources

AI-Assisted Applications and Apps:  A Growing Trend

A fast-growing range of commercially available AI-assisted educational apps is available in the leading app stores. For example, there are the increasingly impressive AI-assisted language translation tools, such as SayHi, that some fear might further undermine the learning of foreign languages in schools, and the equally impressive AI-assisted mathematics apps, such as Photomath, that some fear will undermine the learning of mathematics. 

These fears mirror the concerns surrounding the introduction of calculators into schools around fifty years ago: if the tool can do it (automatically calculate a long division, automatically translate between languages, or automatically solve equations), perhaps there is no need for children to learn how to do it, thus undermining learning. It was this concern that the use of technology to help students might undermine learning, leading to the Chinese Ministry of Education banning AI-assisted homework apps that automatically provide online answers to homework questions photographed and uploaded by students. 

AI-Assisted Simulations: Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, and Game-Based Learning

Although perhaps not traditionally considered AI technologies, commercially available Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) simulations and digital games-based learning are frequently combined with AI machine learning, image recognition, and natural language processing and are increasingly used in educational settings. 

For example, AI-assisted VR has trained neurosurgical residents on various neurosurgical procedures. Meanwhile, AI-assisted AR has been used to enable students to explore and manipulate three-dimensional models of organic molecules to enhance their understanding of chemistry. Google has developed over a thousand VR and AR Expeditions suitable for educational contexts. Digital games-based learning (DGBL) also increasingly includes AI technologies to adapt gameplay to the individual student. 

AI for Students with Disabilities: Personalized Learning for All

Many commercially available student-focused AIEDs mentioned here (especially ITS) have been further developed to support students with a learning disability. Other AI approaches have been used for the diagnosis of learning disabilities, such as:

  • ADHD
  • Dyslexia
  • Dysgraphia

There has been extensive research into using robots in education, especially in supporting children on the autism spectrum. Meanwhile, there are several mainstream AI tools, such as text-to-speech apps and automatic image captioning, that have been repurposed for students who have learning difficulties, along with a limited number of targeted AI-assisted apps, for example, some that automatically sign for children who have difficulties with hearing. 

Automatic Essay Writing: The Rise of the Machines

Written essays remain an important component of educational assessment worldwide, yet passing off someone else's writing as your own has long been common. The Internet has made this increasingly easy, with online commercial essay mills offering bespoke essays on any topic. The recent AI developments known as large language models, such as the GPT-3 from Open AI, are poised to have an even greater impact. 

Automatic Essay Writing Tools

Several commercial organizations already offer automatic essay writing (AEW) tools for students that can automatically generate individual paragraphs or entire essays in response to a prompt such as an essay question. Although the writing generated by AEW can be superficial and sometimes nonsensical, sometimes it can be difficult to determine whether an algorithm or a human student wrote the generated text. 

Ethical Implications of AEW Tools in Education

Whether AEW tools support or undermine student learning is still being determined. Given their increasing sophistication and what could be described as an arms race between AEWs and AEW detectors, they are likely to impact how we assess students. 

Chatbots: The New Classmates

AI-assisted chatbots are researched and commercially available and are increasingly being used in educational contexts for various purposes. For example, chatbots have been developed to provide ongoing student support and guidance in:

  • Academic services
  • Accommodation
  • Facilities
  • Examinations
  • IT
  • Health and more

A student might, for example, ask about their lessons that morning, where tomorrow's exam is happening, or what mark they achieved in a recent assignment. 

  • An education chatbot example is Ada, named after the computer pioneer Ada Lovelace. It was developed by a UK community college using IBM's Watson Conversation platform. 
  • A second infamous example is the AI-assisted virtual teaching assistant (TA) developed at Georgia Tech. The TA bot responded to student inquiries during a large computer science class as if it were a human teaching assistant, automatically answering questions it had answers in its database (such as when an assignment was due) and referring other questions to human TAs to answer. 

Such an approach might have great potential in large-scale online educational institutions, where it can be difficult for human staff to respond to all students' online questions. The fact that the virtual TA did not inform the students that they were communicating with an AI bot and that it sometimes used tricks to mislead the students into thinking it was a human raises ethical questions. 

Automatic Formative Assessment: A Work in Progress

Automatic formative assessment (AFA) applications are researched and commercially available applications that use natural language, semantic processing, and other AI-assisted techniques to provide actionable feedback on student writing or other student outputs. Despite their potential for supporting student learning and probably because of the difficulties of automatically providing accurate and helpful feedback, few commercial examples of AFA remain. One research example is Open Essayist. 

A key problem is that currently, AI systems need to be capable of the depth of interpretation or accuracy of analysis that a teacher can provide. It typically relies on the surface features of the writing or other output. Grammarly is an example of an AFA system that explicitly provides feedback on the surface features of writing. 

Learning Network Orchestrators: Connecting Students to Support

By learning network orchestrators, we mean AI systems that enable connections between people engaged in education. Few researched and commercially available examples exist. 

Human-Centered Approach to Learning

One example is the Open Tutor, developed by researchers at Beijing Normal University. If a student has not understood something in their classroom, they can open the OT app on their mobile phone, type in what they want to know, and the app connects them with a list of human tutors who can help, all rated by other students. 

AI-Assisted Tutoring

They then receive 20 minutes of one-on-one tuition, sharing screen and voice only. Inevitably, as this system involves human tutors, it is relatively expensive to scale. Nonetheless, it is particularly interesting that the learner decides what they want to learn, while the AI (unlike an ITS) plays a supporting role. 

Dialogue-Based Tutoring Systems: The AI that Talks Back

Dialogue-based tutoring systems simulate a tutorial dialogue between a human tutor and a student, usually typed but sometimes spoken. The aim is to encourage the student to develop an in-depth understanding of the topic in question, going beyond surface level knowledge that is the outcome of some ITS. 

Typically, as the student works step-by-step through an online task, DBTS use a Socratic tutoring principle involving probing with questions rather than providing instruction. The student, therefore, is guided towards discovering for themselves the pre-specified solution for the current problem. The most well-known DBTS is AutoTutor, which has been researched at the University of Memphis for over twenty years. 

Exploratory Learning Environments: A New Way to Learn

Exploratory learning environments provide an alternative to the step-by-step approach adopted by ITS and DBTS. Rather than following a sequence, albeit one that is adapted to the individual student, students are encouraged to actively construct their knowledge by exploring and manipulating elements of the learning environment. 

Exploratory or discovery learning is familiar, but it remains controversial. Critics argue that because there is no explicit instruction and students are expected to discover principles for themselves, it causes cognitive overload and leads to poor learning outcomes. However, this is where AI comes in, with many recent AI-driven ELEs providing automatic feedback, addressing misconceptions, and proposing alternative approaches during exploration. 

AI-Assisted Lifelong Learning Assistants: Personalized Learning for Life

AI-assisted Lifelong Learning Assistants, tools students might have on their mobile phones that can provide a wide range of support and guidance, have long been suggested as a potentially powerful application of AI in education. 

However, to date, such a tool has received very little research effort. As concepts such as digital twins and metaverses become increasingly popular, lifelong learning assistants are a potential area for AIED research. 

Teacher-Focused AIED: Helping the Helpers

Plagiarism detection Commercially available plagiarism detection services are widely used by educators, and machine learning methods have been increasingly adapted for these systems during the last decade. Turnitin now dominates the market with its various tools, such as iThenticate and Ouriginal. Detection software such as plagiarism checker X and Grammarly's plagiarism checker, which is more student-oriented, are also extensively used. 

Smart Curation of Learning Materials: Finding What Matters

As is well known, the Internet is awash with educational content in multiple formats and languages, with different access levels and varying quality. The challenge for teachers and students is not finding content but quickly finding high-quality, relevant content that can be used effectively. 

At least one research tool, X5GON, and two commercial tools, Teacher Advisor and Clever Owl, have been developed to automatically scrape the web to find teaching and learning resources in response to teacher queries. 

Classroom Monitoring: Tracking Attention

In a few contexts, researched and commercially available AI-assisted systems are increasingly used for classroom-based student monitoring. For example, AI-assisted video applications have been developed to monitor where a student is looking, from which the system infers whether or not they are focused on the teacher or the task at hand. And perhaps even more intrusively, students are asked to wear portable EEG (electroencephalography) headsets to record their brain activity and monitor their attention. 

For example, the US-based BrainCo says its headsets can help teachers identify pupils who need extra help. Data on a dashboard shows average brain activity for the whole class. The headsets show a blue light for pupils whose brain activity is lower than average, yellow for those at average, and red for those with above-average brain activity. Similar headsets are also widely used in Chinese schools, where teachers and parents can review student brain activity over the internet. 

Controversies Surrounding AI Surveillance in Education

In China, teachers say that using headbands has forced students to become more disciplined, and the students now pay more attention and work harder in the classroom. Leaving aside the self-evident ethical issues, to which we return later, it is important to note that these systems are already controversial because there is very little evidence that they can do what they claim to do. 

At many universities, AI-assisted systems are also being used to monitor a student's movements through the campus (sometimes through a mobile phone app), what they download from the online learning management system, what they buy from the cafeterias, and much more. 

Automatic Summative Assessment: The Future of Grading?

There have long been hopes that AI could save teachers time and effort by automating the labor-intensive and costly marking of students:

  • Assignments
  • Homework
  • Assessments

For this reason, automatic summative assessment (sometimes also known as autograders) is a well-funded area of research, second only to ITS, and extensively commercialized. Autograders have been used to assess written tasks (e.g., the US SATs) and in computer science and mathematics courses. 

Challenges and Risks of Automated Scoring in High-Stakes Testing

Some state-of-the-art auto graders also claim to diagnose the type of error and suggest how to correct it, while others, depending on the domain, claim to score student answers correctly with about 90 percent accuracy. 

Automatic scoring remains controversial, especially when the assessment is high-stakes. High-stakes testing is one of the two high-risk use cases in the proposed EU AI Act and would be regulated by its provisions. A commercial example of automatic summative assessment is e-Rater. 

AI Teaching and Assessment Assistant: Support, not Replace

Many AIED technologies are designed to save teachers time. They effectively take over teaching tasks, potentially reducing teachers to a functional role. An alternative approach is for the AI to support teachers in their teaching by augmenting teachers' expertise and skills with an AI teaching assistant. What such an AI teaching assistant might do still needs to be determined. This remains a speculative application because we are unaware of any relevant research or commercial products.

A recently launched commercial tool points in an interesting direction. Instead of automatic assessment, as with auto graders, Graide supports the teacher in their assessment practices (e.g., by offering phrases that the teacher has previously written and used, which they can re-use for the script currently being marked). In other words, the teacher does the assessment, not the AI. 

Classroom Orchestration: Managing the Chaos

Classroom orchestration refers to how a teacher manages activities for effective teaching practices within the available constraints, such as:

  • Curriculum
  • Assessment
  • Time
  • Space
  • Energy
  • Safety

This is at an early stage of development. Nonetheless, there is a growing body of research into how AI might assist classroom orchestration. One example is the FACT system, which, while students solve mathematical problems in small groups, makes recommendations to the teacher about which groups to visit and what to say. 

Institution-Focused AIED: Getting Administrative Help 

Institution-focused AIED includes technologies that support:

  • Financial aid allocation
  • Course-planning
  • Scheduling
  • Timetabling
  • Identifying dropouts and students at risk

Such tools have a clear administrative function and share much with business-orientated Artificial Intelligence. We will elaborate only on two critical and controversial institution-focused AIEDs: 

  • Admissions (one of the high-risk use cases defined in the proposed EU AI Act) 
  • E-proctoring 

Admissions: The Controversial Decision Maker

Many higher education institutions, mainly in the US, use commercially available AI-assisted admissions software to support their admission processes; however, this is still controversial. The idea is to reduce costs while making the admissions system more equitable by helping to remove unseen human biases that can impact decisions. 

For example, the University of Texas at Austin developed a GRADE system to recommend whether applicants should be admitted based on their test scores, prior academic background, and recommendation letters, claiming at least 74 percent time savings on reviews. By 2020, GRADE had been dropped because it was quietly replicating the very problems that it aimed to address. AI is increasingly being used to support admissions, often using tools provided by commercial companies. 

E-Proctoring: The Rise of the Machines

Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, much education and examinations moved online, leading to many exam-monitoring or e-proctoring companies seeing their businesses grow massively. 

E-proctoring aims to assure academic integrity by using AI-assisted cameras and microphones to monitor students while they complete an online examination automatically. These tools are hugely controversial. They have been accused of intrusion, failing to work properly, discrimination, preventing students from taking their exams, and exacerbating mental health problems. E-proctoring is one of the clearest examples of using AI to automate poor educational practices rather than develop innovative approaches.

Friend or Foe? Teacher Attitudes to AI

woman on a laptop - How to Use AI in the Classroom

Teachers Embrace AI but Worry About Job Security

Teachers express mixed reactions to AI in the classroom. They are excited about AI's potential to relieve administrative burdens, but they worry that technology might replace certain teaching roles. 

A recent study from Trinity College London reveals that a third of teachers have already incorporated AI into their instruction, signaling a readiness for change, provided the tools are precise and reliable. While less than 20% of teachers believe AI will lead to government replacement of teachers, this sentiment speaks to a broader concern about job security. 

Teachers are Skeptical but Eager to Learn

Despite the excitement surrounding AI tools for education, many teachers still need to be convinced about their reliability. A recent study from Trinity College London reports that 63% of teachers believe AI tools are too generic, inaccurate, and unreliable for effective classroom use. Still, the same report found that teachers are eager to learn about AI tools and how to incorporate them into their classrooms effectively. 

For instance, 61% of teachers said they would feel more confident using AI if they received training and support. Additionally, nearly half (46%) of teachers believe that leveraging AI could improve educational outcomes by allowing them to dedicate more time to direct student interaction. 

Teachers Want to Teach AI Ethics

As with any new technology, there are ethical concerns surrounding the use of AI in education. Unsurprisingly, teachers are interested in teaching students about these issues. The recent Trinity College London study revealed that over half (54%) of teachers advocate for teaching students the ethical implications of AI usage. A substantial portion (38%) emphasizes imparting foundational knowledge about AI workings. 

Some Teachers are Using AI Already

Although only 23% of teachers admit to using AI tools during the past term, there’s a growing interest in generic tools like ChatGPT and Google Gemini. AI has real potential to assist teachers in their jobs. 

AI can help course creators with lesson planning and automate grading. David Weller, Digital Lead at the University of Exeter, recently stated that AI will induce change in education, but it won’t upend it. Previous innovations gave teachers more options. Whether they used those options and how enthusiastic and creative they were was up to them. It’s the same with AI, but perhaps slightly more so. 

Related Reading

9 Ways to Use AI in the Classroom

man working on a laptop - How to Use AI in the Classroom

1. Bring Student Drawings to Life

Young kids love to sketch, and AI can animate their sketches and introduce them to the power of the technology in the process. During a presentation at the 2023 International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) conference, learning coach Doug Sanders encouraged teachers to check out the Animated Drawings tool from Meta AI Research. Simply take a photo of a student’s latest sketch and upload it to the site, and the AI can quickly have it perform dozens of different actions, such as:

  • Walking
  • Dancing
  • Throwing out some boxing jabs and more

Encourage students to craft a story around the animations. Why, for example, is their drawing running wildly across the room? What is it running from? The drawing must be vaguely humanoid for the tool to work, so guide students toward drawing humanlike figures. 

2. Use AI-generated Images as Writing Prompts

Teacher Lori Brenneise recommends using images as prompts to help students develop their creative writing skills. Today, finding the perfect image is as easy as using one of many free high-quality image generators, like:

  • Stable Diffusion
  • Craiyon
  • Microsoft Bing’s image creator
  • Canvas's new AI image-generating tool

Simply type in a prompt that could elicit good storytelling, like a goat eating cake on a surfboard, and project the resulting image during class. Brenneise asks students to write about what the image makes them:

  • See
  • Hear
  • Touch
  • Smell
  • Taste

From there, students can dig deeper and spend some time writing the image’s backstory. (How did a goat get to the beach in the first place?) To better connect this activity to content learning, ask students to include recent vocabulary words in their writing or prompt the AI to include relevant concepts in the image itself, like fossils, crystals, or migration.

3. Use AI Responses to Spur Scientific Thinking

AI language models typically do a decent job of answering basic science questions. But, their accuracy rate is far from 100 percent, which can be a good way to engage elementary students in critical thinking. In a full-class session, teachers can pull up ChatGPT and ask students what questions they have related to the current unit. 

For example, if a student still needs clarification about cloud formation, the teacher could prompt: 

ChatGPT: Please explain how clouds form to a third-grade audience. The class can dissect ChatGPT’s response as a group with questions like:

  • What did it leave out?
  • What are people still confused about?
  • What parts of the answer might not be accurate?

To investigate further, encourage students to search through class resources or reputable online sources to confirm or deny ChatGPT’s scientific claims. By allowing students the opportunity to assess the products that AI generates, we can prompt their learning and development of critical thinking skills, writes educator Sunaina Sharma.

4. Find the Faults in AI-Generated Historical Images

AI image generators can help students envision what historic scenes, like the signing of the Constitution or Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, might have looked like, suggested educational technologist and history educator James Beeghley at this year’s ISTE conference. But Beeghley noted that these images are likely to be full of inaccuracies. 

Unreliable AI images can be a great jumping-off point for a fun history class activity. On the class screen, pull up an AI image generator like:

  • Bing’s image creator
  • Craiyon
  • Canva

Type in a prompt related to the period you cover in class, like Sacagawea guiding Lewis and Clark, then switch the style setting to photograph for maximum realism. Ask students to analyze the output using what they’ve already learned or have them do additional research to identify elements of the image that have no basis in reality, like anachronistic clothing or technology or a biased presentation of particular groups.

5. Use AI Math Tools to See All Sides of a Problem

Many math teachers know, and curse, the name Photomath, a powerful AI-based app that can scan and solve a math problem from a photograph. But there are ways to use Photomath to engage students in deeper learning, according to Valerie Bennett, an assistant professor of STEM education curriculum and instruction at Clark Atlanta University. One option is to have students compare their problem-solving approach with an AI approach, Bennett told EdWeek. 

Teachers can give students a set of problems and ask them to solve them using pen and paper before feeding the problems into Photomath. Because Photomath runs through the steps to reaching a solution, Bennett said, students can contrast the tool’s process and results with their own. 

  • Did the platforms come up with different answers? 
  • Different methods? 
  • Which is most efficient? 

Answering these questions will help students think more deeply about different approaches to solving problems and help them refine their methods.  

6. Learn About Voice From ChatGPT’s Imitations of Famous Authors

Help students better understand the concept of voice in writing and how well-known writers cultivate one by asking ChatGPT to attempt to imitate authors’ styles. For example, ask ChatGPT to write two poems about your school’s mascot in the style of Shakespeare and Maya Angelou or two speeches about the impact of climate change by Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King Jr. Ask students to contrast ChatGPT’s imitations of various authors and dissect the ways that specific writers use word choice, narrative techniques, or literary devices like alliteration to help craft a distinct voice. 

You can also challenge students to find stylistic choices in the original output that the original author probably wouldn’t have made. You can have students contrast a ChatGPT-generated rousing, 272-word speech in the style of Abraham Lincoln about the lives lost on the battlefield with the genuine Gettysburg Address. The AI’s imitation, in most cases, will be much less impactful than the real author or speaker, and you can ask students to identify the literary techniques that made the original piece so masterful (and ChatGPT’s version so “meh”).

7. Chat With Historical Figures

To resurrect dead historical figures and attempt to approximate what they might have said in conversation, educational technology professor Maureen Yoder encouraged teachers to check out Hello History during a presentation at 2023’s ISTE conference. The ChatGPT-powered app lets you chat with dozens of historical figures, from Cleopatra to Einstein. Hello, History is free but has a 20-message daily limit, so try using ChatGPT for longer conversations. Have students prompt it: 

  • For the rest of this conversation, role-play as [historical figure] and ask a variety of questions. 

You can expect the outputs to be full of inaccuracies, either outright biographical mistakes or misrepresentations of the historical figure's beliefs. Challenge students to take what the chatbot says and analyze it carefully. What did the AI get right and wrong about the figure’s life and beliefs? They can answer this based on what they’ve learned in the class or perform independent research to verify ChatGPT’s claims. 

8. Speak With AI in a Foreign Language

When learning a new language, students might feel self-conscious about making mistakes and avoid practicing as much as they should. But many language learners are turning to AI chatbots for help, the BBC reports, since a chatbot won’t judge you and you can speak about interesting things. According to the BBC, research suggests these chatbots can also be useful for:

  • Vocabulary development
  • Grammar
  • Other language skills

Language teachers can have students carry out a conversation with ChatGPT. Start with a prompt like I want to practice my Spanish. Can you speak to me in Spanish at a ninth-grade level, with short sentences? There are also AI chatbots specifically for language learning, like LearnLingo and Tutor Lily, which both have free versions; these can be adjusted to various levels of fluency and offer text and audio conversation options. Teachers can ask students to interact with these language platforms at home and print out the results as homework or try chatting with them during an in-class session.

9. Ask Students to Grade ChatGPT’s Writing

Many students’ biggest temptation is letting ChatGPT write their essays. One fun and engaging way for teachers to work around that desire is sometimes to let students do that. Instead of assigning students an essay analyzing Of Mice and Men, have students type that essay’s prompt into ChatGPT instead. Have students take on the role of the teacher: 

  • In groups, students should collaboratively read the ChatGPT response and assess it using a rubric the teacher provided for them, as suggested by Sharma. 
  • Have students mark up ChatGPT’s response and come up with constructive feedback that they can deliver in their next prompt. 
  • (For example, “Your paragraphs lack topic sentences. Try again.”) By taking on the role of an editor, students can actively develop a better understanding of what makes an essay successful.

Related Reading

How is Artificial Intelligence Impacting Higher Education?

students working on a laptop - How to Use AI in the Classroom

AI is redefining higher education, including how universities assess student performance. As new AI tools emerge, educators are rethinking assessment strategies to reflect better how learning occurs in the AI age. 

Shifting Towards Authentic Assessment to Enhance Higher-Order Thinking Skills

The rapid emergence of recent AI tools has highlighted the need to rethink how we assess students. Assignments and activities that AI can complete quickly, such as responding to questions on standardized tests, might not encourage students to activate higher-order thinking skills. These forms of assessment may have privileged memorization, recall, and rote learning rather than the application of knowledge in practical ways. 

Instructors are attempting to move toward authentic assessment where students apply their knowledge to address:

  • Real-world problems
  • Scenarios
  • Situations

These applications can be powerful for students. The skills and strategies obtained through these activities can be used beyond the classroom. This approach can discourage misuse of AI and promote learning and engagement. 

Leveraging AI to Scale Authentic Assessments

Students learn in different ways. Instructors provide multiple options for students to demonstrate learning to address diverse needs. Examples include:

  • Presentations
  • Simulations
  • Other creative projects 

These representations put ownership of the learning in the hands of the students, allowing them to adopt an approach that capitalizes on their strengths and/or builds on their weaknesses. Authentic and personalized assessments can provide a more accurate picture of their progress and identify areas for support.

While authentic assessments have many benefits, they are difficult to scale. They require considerable effort to scaffold, and providing feedback on these types of assessments can be very time-consuming for instructors. AI may encourage more instructors to adopt this assessment strategy, as the technology can assist them in creating these learning opportunities, along with any necessary scaffolding. 

AI-Driven Continuous Assessment and Personalized Feedback

Another challenge is grading authentic assessments in a timely manner. With AI, students may be able to obtain immediate feedback on their work, identify gaps in their knowledge, and have access to additional resources. AI might also open up the possibility of continuous and formative assessment throughout the learning process. The final exam, often a high-stakes assessment, would no longer be needed or relevant. 

The focus could be on continuous learning, which could encourage students to identify and develop their strategies for learning. AI tools could assist in all of these activities and more. It might even enable instructors to view assessment as a pedagogical act that can enhance the relationship they have developed with their students. 

Ethical Considerations and Limitations of AI in Education

There are strong arguments for using AI with caution. Despite output that can seem magical at times, AI does struggle with certain tasks. AI tools can perpetuate biases based on those present in the training data. 

Using student data for AI-based assessments raises ethical concerns about privacy and transparency. These tools can also hallucinate, promote misinformation, and violate the rights of content creators. In other words, they can do real harm. 

The Role of Human Oversight in AI-Enhanced Education

These tools involve many unknowns, so human judgment is critical and must be part of any use of AI in our pedagogical practices. Critically evaluating AI tools and their output is key.

Further, this technology should complement, not replace, people and their activities. We must be intentional about our use of this technology. This requires careful planning among educators and technologists to ensure that AI-informed assessments are fair, effective, and ethically sound. 

What Does AI Mean For STEM Careers?  

The knowledge economy has emphasized the importance of technology, and we have seen this unfold at our institutions through the demand for STEM subjects. Our students have viewed these subjects as the ticket to lucrative and stable jobs. But recently, many tech companies have announced layoffs involving thousands of employees. 

We have seen AI advance rapidly. Students are taking notice of what appear at first blush to be two opposing forces and have been questioning what this means for them and their future careers. 

Balancing Human Skills and AI Collaboration in the Future Workforce

AI will certainly impact the work they thought they might do during their STEM career, but the vision for the types of knowledge and skills they will need to weather the tech-induced changes needs to be clarified. Some have suggested that we are moving into a relationship economy where a greater emphasis will be placed on people skills and the humanities alongside STEM subjects. 

Regardless of the label placed on this era, we need to tap into the value we, as humans, bring to our work, our creations, those things that cannot be generated by an AI tool in seconds. It is often the human aspects that are missing from technology discussions. At the same time, we need to learn how to work effectively with AI, and these collaboration skills will be highly valued. 

Embracing Lifelong Learning in an AI-Driven World

AI is on the verge of transforming society's lives. As AI evolves, so too will our need to adapt to those changes to survive and thrive. Educators often talk about lifelong learning, and this is going to be a crucial mindset to embrace in a world shaped by AI. 

Many good things could happen, and many bad things could happen. Some of these things could happen tomorrow. Ultimately, we need to imagine AI as a human-centered practice that includes conversations about professional ethics. 

The Shift to AI in Higher Education Curriculums  

It is important to remember that AI is not new. It got its start at the university before anyone made or attempted to make money with it. Our students are savvy and have been using AI-powered tools for years. Many educators have been using these older instances of AI as well. 

Commercial tools like Grammarly and Turnitin are a couple of examples. When ChatGPT was launched in November 2022, the adoption rate exploded. It was easy to use, and the output was seductive. By December of that year, student-occupied computers at the library often displayed ChatGPT windows on the screens. We knew our students were actively using or tempted to experiment with AI. The question about what to do about it became a burning one. 

Implementing AI Guidelines for Instructors and Students

Some states, such as Ohio, have launched an AI toolkit to encourage instructors to use AI in the classroom. We are having conversations with our campus community at many levels: one-on-one conversations with instructors, workshops and presentations, meetings with partners across the institution, and discussions with our national and international colleagues to determine the next steps. 

At the individual instructor level, we have provided statements that they can add to their syllabi and course materials to communicate appropriate uses of AI in their courses. Uses range from no AI to selected forms of AI to full AI. This varies from instructor to instructor, from course to course. This can be confusing for students as the policies about appropriate AI use may vary. We strongly encourage instructors to talk with their students about AI use. 

The Integration of AI in Everyday Educational Tools and Its Ethical Implications

AI is being incorporated into many tools we use daily. Many of the software tools we use to write papers, present content, and analyze data are or will soon be AI-powered. We are gaining access to AI-powered search engines, like Perplexity, which could transform how we Google information. Learning management systems in use on many campuses are also leveraging AI to provide a personalized learning experience for students.

AI tools can perpetuate biases based on those present in the training data. Using student data for AI-based assessments raises ethical concerns about privacy and transparency. These tools can also hallucinate, promote misinformation, and violate the rights of content creators. In other words, they can do real harm. 

Innovative Campus Partnerships and Programs in AI Education

Instead of taking a wait-and-see approach, campuses are experimenting with AI technologies innovatively; some have even formed partnerships with AI companies. The University of Michigan has joined forces with Microsoft to develop Maizey, its generative AI. Arizona State University is collaborating with OpenAI, the company that launched ChatGPT, which will be used, in part, to augment teaching and learning. 

Ferris State University has been working on two virtual students enrolled in selected hybrid courses this spring. The virtual students will complete assignments and activities in this experiment and interact with their classmates. In the fall, undergraduates at the University of Pennsylvania can major in a new degree program, the Bachelor of Science in Engineering in Artificial Intelligence. This is the first AI undergraduate degree for a school in the Ivy League, and it will likely not be the last. 

The Evolution of AI as an Educational Tool: Lessons from the Internet Era

Many of these conversations surrounding AI are similar to the ones educators had with the emergence of the Internet or Wikipedia. 

These technologies are simply tools in our teaching and learning toolkits. In a few years, educators may view AI in the same light, or perhaps we are on a completely different journey. Educators and their students must be part of the trajectory and prepared for whatever the future of AI brings.

50+ AI Tools for the Classroom

man working on a laptop - How to Use AI in the Classroom

Personalized Learning

1. EssayGrader 

essay grader - How to Use AI in the Classroom

EssayGrader is the most accurate AI grading platform trusted by 60,000+ educators worldwide. 

On average, it takes a teacher 10 minutes to grade a single essay, but with EssayGrader, that time is cut down to 30 seconds. That's a 95% reduction in the time it takes to grade an essay, with the same results. With EssayGrader, teachers can:

  • Replicate their grading rubrics
  • Set up fully custom rubrics
  • Grade essays by a class
  • Bulk upload essays
  • Use the AI detector to catch essays written by AI
  • Summarize essays with the essay summarizer 

Over half a million essays were graded by 60,000+ teachers on our platform. 

Save 95% of your time grading school work with our tool to get high-quality, specific, and accurate writing feedback for essays in seconds with EssayGrader's grading software for teachers. Get started for free today!

2. Microsoft Copilot 

microsoft copilot - How to Use AI in the Classroom

Microsoft Copilot is a ChatGPT-4 powered chatbot that can help you browse the web, answer questions, and more. It can be accessed through the Copilot website or Microsoft Edge browser and can be used to ask both simple and complex questions and request summaries of:

  • Articles
  • Books
  • Events
  • News
  • Sports results
  • And more

Microsoft Copilot can also be used as a creative tool, helping you write poems and stories, or even share ideas for a project. 

How it works

  • Just go to copilot.microsoft.com. (You’ll need to be logged in to a Microsoft account.) 
  • When you do, you can Ask Copilot questions or prompts and receive detailed responses powered by generative AI. 
  • Choose whether you want a balanced response or something more creative or precise. 
  • Upload images that you want the AI assistant to analyze for your search. 
  • Ask questions with your voice by clicking the microphone button. 
  • Get AI-generated responses on the go with the Copilot mobile app. 

3. ChatGPT 

chat gpt - How to Use AI in the Classroom

ChatGPT is a generative AI chatbot that interacts with you conversationally, the way a human would. It's been trained using information from the Internet and other sources, and it's been trained by humans to interact with you authentically. 

How it works

  • Ask ChatGPT a question or give it a request. It will respond. 
  • You can use it in the classroom in many ways, as this post details ChatGPT, chatbots, and artificial intelligence in the classroom.

4. Claude 

claude - How to Use AI in the Classroom

Claude (claude.ai) is an AI assistant created by Anthropic. Claude can process large amounts of information, brainstorm ideas, generate text and code, help you understand subjects, coach you through difficult situations, help simplify your busy work so you can focus on what matters most, and more. It uses Constitutional AI to be safe, accurate, and secure. 

How it works

  • Log in to Claude and ask it a question. 
  • It can also extract text from images, convert designs to computer code, and transcribe handwritten notes.

5. Perplexity 

perplexity ai - how to use ai in the classroom

Perplexity is another generative AI chatbot that lets users ask questions and get responses conversationally. What seems to set Perplexity apart is that it cites easily clickable sources for more context and information. 

How it works

  • Go to Perplexity and ask it a question about 7Bit Casino or request something. 
  • Initially, you'll see the concise version, but you can click for a detailed response. 
  • It will also list the sources from which it drew its information and other related topics. 
  • You can ask follow-up questions in a conversational manner like ChatGPT.

6. Google Gemini 

google gemini - How to Use AI in the Classroom

Google Gemini is an experimental conversational AI chat service developed by Google. Google Gemini is designed to engage in text-based conversations with users, offering responses and generating human-like dialogue. It uses advanced natural language processing techniques to understand and generate text in response to user prompts, making it a useful tool for natural language understanding and generation.

7. Pi 

pi ai - how to use ai in the classroom

Pi is your AI companion, ready to assist you with various tasks and answer your queries. It's designed to be supportive, smart, and available whenever needed. 

How it works

  • You can interact with Pi through text or voice commands. 
  • You can ask questions, seek advice, or simply engage in conversation with the AI. 
  • It's intended to be a helpful companion for various tasks and interactions.

Content Creation

8. Adobe Express with Firefly 

adobe express - how to use ai in the class room

Adobe Express incorporates Adobe's Firefly generative AI model, which gives users new ways to bring their ideas to life. With generative AI, you can create custom images and text effects using text prompts. As an educator, you can use this feature to generate unique and engaging visuals for your lessons and activities. 

How it works: You can access Adobe's generative AI tools, powered by Firefly, directly from the Adobe Express all-in-one editor.

9. Ideogram 

ideogram - how to use ai in the classroom

Ideogram (ideogram.ai) is an AI image generator. Type a description of the image you'd like to generate or choose features of the image from selectable options below the prompt. Ideogram generates your image and can even improve your description/prompt with AI. 

How it works: Go to the Ideogram website to log in with a Google or Apple account.

10. Microsoft Designer 

microsoft designer - how to use ai in the classroom

Microsoft Designer (designer.microsoft.com) is a graphic design app that uses AI to help users create professional-quality designs quickly. Users can start with their ideas or images, and the Designer will generate unique designs and offer personalized recommendations. My favorite feature is creating fill-in-the-blank prompts that you can share for others to use. 

How it works

  • Go to designer.microsoft.com and log in. 
  • Create images or use other tools, such as remove background, album creator, and design creator.

11. AutoDraw 

autodraw - how to use ai in the classroom

AutoDraw is a free, web-based drawing tool created by Google that uses artificial intelligence to help users create professional-looking drawings and illustrations quickly and easily. It has been around for a long time, and its simplicity means anyone of any age can use it to try AI. 

How it works

  • AutoDraw's AI recognizes what you're trying to draw and suggests relevant clip art images or icons as you start sketching on the canvas. 
  • Select the suggested image to replace your rough sketch with a clean, polished version. 
  • The AI continuously learns from your selections and rejections to improve its suggestions.

12. Pictory 

pictory - how to use ai in the classroom

Pictory AI is a cool platform that makes it super easy to create engaging videos. It uses advanced AI technology to help you turn your written scripts or articles into captivating videos. You can even add your voice or use an AI voiceover to bring your video to life. 

How it works

  • Copy and paste your video script or type it directly into the editor after signing up for an account. 
  • Choose your template and aspect ratio, and Pictory AI will do the rest. 
  • Pictory's AI software will storyboard your final video and script, automatically generate visuals, and apply captions. 
  • You can edit it as you want or use it as is.

13. Canva Magic Classroom 

canva - How to Use AI in the Classroom

Canva Magic Classroom is a suite of AI tools designed for educators. It includes features such as Magic Design, a free AI design tool for creating visual content, and Magic Write, an AI text generator and writer that assists in generating written content. 

How it works

  • Canva Magic Design tools are built into Canva. 
  • Once logged in, you can explore the Magic Classroom tools, including Magic Design, a free AI design tool, and Magic Write, an AI text generator and writer, by navigating the relevant sections inside Canva.

14. Curipod 

curipod - How to Use AI in the Classroom

Give Curipod (curipod.com/ai) a topic, and it will generate an interactive slide deck for you in 

seconds, including: 

  • Polls Word clouds
  • Open-ended questions 
  • A drawing tool 

How it works

  • Once you have a slide deck (which generates 9-12 slides on your topic)
  • You can edit and adjust it to suit your needs and add more slides.

15. Diffit 

driffit - how to use ai in the classroom

Diffit allows you to get leveled resources for literally anything. You can adapt existing materials for any reader, generate just the right resources for any topic, and then edit and share resources with students. 

How it works

  • Go to web.diffit.me and enter a search for a topic, term, or question, enter a URL, or paste copied text. 
  • From there, choose a reading level and language and click Generate Resources. 
  • Diffit will automatically generate tons of resources based on the content you provide. 
  • They have an ever-growing library of templates, giving teachers a few options for sharing content with students.

16. MagicSchool.ai 

magic school - How to Use AI in the Classroom

MagicSchool.ai is an AI-powered educational platform designed to help teachers save time by automating lesson planning, grading, and generating educational content. It offers over 40 AI tools that are searchable by keyword and categorized for planning, student support, community, productivity, and community tools. Magic School is trained on best practices for educators, compliant with FERPA, and declines non-education-related requests. 

How it works

  • Visit Magic School and choose a tool. 
  • From there, you will enter whatever information you need to generate the resource. For example, if you choose the YouTube Question Generator, you'll enter the grade level, number of questions, question type, and video URL. 

Pricing and terms: Magic School has a free version for teachers that includes: 

  • 60+ AI tools for educators Raina, 
  • The AI chatbot is built specifically for education
  • 40+ educator-monitored tools for students

17. SchoolAI 

school ai - How to Use AI in the Classroom

SchoolAI is an all-in-one AI platform for the classroom that's designed for K12 teachers and students. It offers teacher tools to complete tasks and student-facing custom AI chatbots. It includes built-in student monitoring and controls for teachers. 

How it works

  • Teachers sign up for a free account on SchoolAI.com and can choose from pre-made AI experiences or create custom experiences tailored to their curriculum and students' needs. 
  • They share an invite link with their students, who can interact with the AI experience without creating accounts themselves. 
  • Teachers can monitor and control the AI interactions in real time, and the platform generates insights and summaries based on the student's engagement. 

Pricing and terms

The free version includes:

  • Basic AI teacher tools
  • Basic Coteacher
  • Basic Spaces
  • Fifty student sessions per day

18. Brisk Teaching 

brisk teaching - how to use ai in the classroom

Brisk Teaching (briskteaching.com) is a free Chrome extension that uses AI to help teachers save time and improve their teaching methods. Brisk integrates with:

  • Google Classroom
  • Docs
  • Slides
  • YouTube
  • Canvas
  • Schoology

Teachers can create instructional materials, provide feedback, evaluate student writing, adjust reading levels, generate personalized curricula, and analyze class progress. 

How it works

  • Install the Brisk Teaching Chrome extension and log in. 
  • Click the Brisk Teaching icon at the bottom right of Docs, Slides, Google Classroom, and more.

Lesson Planning 

19. Antimatter Sorcerer 

anitmatter sorcerer - how to use ai in the classroom

Antimatter (antimatter.systems) has added to its fun meme and text messaging classroom tools with Sorcerer. Create a sorcerer, an AI chatbot, and choose topics to discuss with your students. 

As students interact with the Sorcerer, the score indicates their mastery of the topic, increasing as they show greater proficiency. 

How it works

  • Create an account at antimatter.systems and click the Sorcerer button. 
  • Create a sorcerer and share the link with students.

20. TeachAid 

teacher aid - how to use ai in the classroom

TeachAid (teachaid.ca) automates lesson prep as your AI teaching assistant. It includes lesson planning, assessment planning, interactive presentations, and learning activities. It includes several tools you'd find in different apps in one spot. 

How it works

  • Create an account at teachaid.ca. 
  • You can create new units with AI and lesson materials, assessments, and rubrics from there.

21. Education Copilot

education copilot - How to Use AI in the Classroom

Need a starting point for your lesson plans? Education Copilot provides AI-generated templates for lesson plans, writing prompts, educational handouts, student reports, project outlines, and more. It has 10+ tools to help save time and create content for the classroom. 

How it works

  • Open Copilot and choose one of its teacher's tools, including informational handouts, lesson plans, and more. 
  • Add some details on the content you want to cover. 
  • Generate a product. If it isn't exactly what you want, adjust the information you inputted to create something else.

22. Nolej 

nolej - how to use ai in the classroom

Nolej generates a lot of interactive educational content, such as all-in-one courses, interactive videos, assessments, and plug-and-play content. 

How it works

  • Provide content (like text, videos, audio, YouTube, websites, etc.). 
  • AI analyzes it and generates educational content. 
  • Afterward, you can embed, export, or integrate with your learning management system (LMS). 

23. Eduaide.ai 

eduaide ai - how to use ai in the classroom

Eduaide.ai is an AI-powered teaching assistant designed to help teachers with lesson planning, instructional design, and generating educational content. It offers a resource generator, teaching assistant, feedback bot, and AI chat. 

How it works: Like MagicSchool.ai, Eduaide.ai provides many options for resources for your grade level and content area. 

24. Khanmigo 

khan migo - how to use ai in the classroom

Khanmigo is an AI-powered learning tool developed by Khan Academy that can be used as a virtual tutor and as a debate partner. Teachers can also use it to generate lesson plans and assist with other administrative tasks. 

How it works

  • For Students: Khanmigo is a virtual tutor provides step-by-step guidance, explanations, and feedback on various academic subjects like math, science, and humanities. Students can engage in interactive activities such as debates, story co-writing, and word games with Khanmigo. The AI adapts responses based on the student's input, offering personalized learning experiences. 
  • For Teachers: Khanmigo assists with lesson planning by generating lesson outlines, warm-up activities, exit ticket questions, and rubrics. It can summarize student activity and skill mastery, providing insights to teachers. Teachers can use Khanmigo as an instructional aid, leveraging its knowledge base and ability to explain concepts differently.

25. Copy.ai 

copy ai - how to use ai in the classroom

Copy.ai is an AI-powered writing tool that uses machine learning to generate various types of content, including:

  • Blog headlines
  • Emails
  • Social media content
  • Web copy and more

Educators can use it to generate lesson plans, substitute teaching plans, newsletter copy, email, writing prompts, etc. 

How it works: Enter your prompt to generate your text copy. 

Grading Assistance

26. got feedback by gotLearning 

got learning - how to use ai in the classroom

gotFeedback helps teachers provide more individualized feedback to their students in a timely way. It's integrated into the gotLearning platform. It's modeled on the research that feedback needs to be goal-referenced, tangible and transparent, actionable, user-friendly, timely, ongoing, and consistent.

How it works

  • Choose what you want gotFeedback to provide feedback on. 
  • Upload a Word document, video, PDF file, scan work using the mobile app, or paste in text. 

It provides an evaluation you can use as a teacher or copy/paste to give to a student.

27. Grammarly 

grammarly - How to Use AI in the Classroom

Grammarly is your online writing assistant. Using artificial intelligence, it helps you compose bold, clear, mistake-free writing. It can work inside your email client, your productivity suites, and even your social media. Grammarly’s AI checks grammar, spelling, style, tone, and more. 

How it works: Type directly into the Grammarly editor, paste writing from another document or use the Grammarly add-on available for many sites and apps. 

28. Quillbot 

quillbot - How to Use AI in the Classroom

Quillbot is an AI-powered writing assistant that can rephrase, summarize, and improve text through various modes, such as paraphrasing, summarizing, and expanding. 

How it works

  • Paste the text into Quillbot
  • Select the desired mode (e.g., Paraphrase)
  • Then, the AI will process and rephrase the text accordingly

29. Goblin Tools 

goblin tools - how to use ai in the classroom

Goblin Tools is a collection of small, simple, single-task tools designed to help neurodivergent people with tasks they find overwhelming or difficult. The tools include:

  • Magic ToDo
  • Formalize
  • Judge
  • Estimator
  • Compiler 

How it works

  • Visit the website or download the app and select the tool you need. For example, to use Magic ToDo, users can enter a task and adjust the "spiciness level" to break it down into parts. 
  • Once the task is broken down, users can further simplify any subtasks if necessary and check off completed task.

Interactive Learning

30. Hello History 

hello history - how to use ai in the classroom

Hello History is an app that lets you have lifelike conversations with historical figures. Get a personal perspective on life, history, and the world from some of the most influential figures of all time, Cleopatra, Einstein, Buddha, and more.

31. Chat PDF 

chat pdf - how to use ai in the classroom

ChatPDF is an AI-powered tool that allows users to interact with PDF documents in a conversational format. From the website ChatPDF in a Nutshell Your PDF AI - like ChatGPT but for PDFs. Summarize and answer questions for free. 

How it works

  • Upload your PDF by clicking on the Drop PDF here section and selecting the PDF you want to upload to the chatbot. You can also drag the file into the Drop PDF here section. 
  • Once you've uploaded the file, you will be sent to the actual chatbot. ChatPDF will automatically generate a brief summary of the key points in the PDF. 
  • You can then interact with your document by typing a question in a conversational language in the chat box, just as if speaking to an actual person.

32. Suno 

suno - how to use ai in the classroom

Suno is a generative AI music creation program that generates realistic songs combining vocals and instrumentation, or purely instrumental tracks. It operates by producing songs based on text prompts provided by users. 

How it works

  • Enter a text prompt describing the type of song you want
  • Suno will generate a complete song with vocals and instrumentals based on that prompt.

33. summarize.tech 

summarize tech - how to use ai in the classroom

Get a summary of any long YouTube video, such as a lecture, live event, or government meeting. Powered by ChatGPT. 

How it works: Add a URL of a YouTube video. It creates a summary with clickable timestamps that you can copy and paste to use anywhere.

34. QuestionWell 

questionwell - how to use ai in the classroom

QuestionWell generates an endless supply of questions so teachers can focus on what matters. Just input some reading, and the AI will write essential questions, learning objectives, and aligned multiple choice questions. 

How it works: Copy/paste a reading. Add a topic and any learning objectives/standards. The AI creates learning objectives and questions you can export.

35. Formative AI 

formative ai - How to Use AI in the Classroom

Formative has long been an assignment and quiz platform, allowing teachers to ask students a variety of question types. Now, it has incorporated the power of ChatGPT to generate new standard-aligned questions and hints for learners, as well as student feedback. 

How it works

  • Activate beta features in your Formative account. 
  • Then use the Auto-Generate button inside your Formative assignment.

36. Quizizz AI 

quizizz ai - How to Use AI in the Classroom

Quizizz AI is an artificial intelligence-powered tool that can generate multiple-choice questions with four answer options, one of which is the correct answer. It can automatically determine the appropriate number of questions to generate from the content provided. 

Quizizz AI can also modify existing quizzes, both manually created and AI-generated, with Enhance to customize activities according to students' needs. 

How it works: From the Quizizz help center, there are three ways you can allow Quizizz AI to automatically generate a quiz for you. 

  • Generate a quiz from a document: Upload a PDF/ PPT/ DOC file and Quizizz AI will extract its contents to generate a set of questions.
  • Generate a quiz from a webpage: Paste the link, and Quizizz AI will automatically process its contents to create a quiz. 
  • Generate a quiz from text: Copy and paste any text material, type in your quiz topic, or provide a prompt with a few keywords and watch as Quizizz AI churns out a unique quiz for you

37. Conker 

conker - How to Use AI in the Classroom

Conker lets you create multiple-choice, read-and-respond, and fill-in-the-blank quizzes for students at a variety of levels on specific topics. It will also let you copy/paste reading material to generate quizzes. 

How it works

Open Conker and provide some details about the quiz you want to create. Conker creates a short quiz you can assign to students with a code or export to Google Forms. You can even create a printable question sheet and answer sheet.

38. Twee 

twee - How to Use AI in the Classroom

Twee is an AI-powered tool designed to simplify lesson planning for English teachers by generating the following:

  • Questions
  • Dialogues
  • Stories
  • Letters
  • Articles
  • Multiple-choice questions
  • True/false statements and more 

How it works: To use Twee, teachers can go to twee.com and create an account. Once they're in, they can choose a tool to generate resources, such as a matching exercise. They can input the information needed to produce the content and click Do the magic!

39. FigJam Jambot 

figma jambot - how to use ai in the classroom

Jambot is a FigJam widget that brings the power of ChatGPT’s AI to your boards. 

How it works:

  • From the Figma website: To find and run the Jambot widget 
  • Hover over the pile of recently used icons in the toolbar, then click More
  • From the Widgets tab, search Jambot
  • Click or drag to add the widget to the board
  • Add text to the input sticky
  • Select a function

40. Q-Chat 

q chat - how to use ai in the classroom

Q-Chat is an AI-powered tutoring assistant integrated into the Quizlet learning platform. It can answer questions, explain concepts, and provide study help across various subjects. 

How it works: While studying on Quizlet, click the Q-Chat icon to open the AI assistant and ask it questions related to the study material.

41. Snorkl 

snorkl - how to use ai in the classroom

Snorkl is an educational platform powered by AI transcription and analysis tools, allowing students to record and share their thoughts. 

How it works: Students record their verbal responses to assignments, which are then transcribed and analyzed by Snorkl's AI for feedback and grading.

42. Class Companion 

class companion - how to use ai in the classoom

Class Companion is an AI teaching assistant that provides instant feedback, practice assignments, and data insights for teachers across various subjects. 

How it works: Teachers assign practice work through Class Companion, and the AI provides feedback and analysis on student submissions.

43. Parlay Genie 

parley genie - how to use ai in the classroom

Parlay Genie (part of Parlay) is a discussion prompt generator. It generates higher-order thinking questions for your class based on a topic, a YouTube video, or an article. It uses ChatGPT to generate prompts for your students. 

How it works

  • Create a RoundTable inside Parlay (parlayideas.com). 
  • Select Parlay Genie. 
  • Choose between a written or verbal RoundTable.
  • Fill in information about the topic you want and click "Generate Prompt." 
  • Edit what it creates if you'd like. Then, invite students.

44. Yippity 

yippity - How to Use AI in the Classroom

Yippity can easily transform any text or webpage into a quiz. By utilizing the text entered, it automatically generates a set of questions and answers that can be copied and pasted into a flashcard app or quiz tool. 

Users can submit up to 10,000 characters of text from their notes or simply paste the URL of a webpage. Once submitted, Yippity generates a set of questions and answers that can be easily shared with others using the share button.

45. Gradescope

gradescope - how to use ai in the classroom

Gradescope is an AI tool that enables students to assess each other while providing feedback, which saves time and energy. Gradescope enables you to effortlessly manage and evaluate all your assessments, whether they are conducted online or in a physical classroom. By using it, you can streamline your grading process and gain a comprehensive understanding of your students' progress.

46. Beautiful AI 

beautiful ai - How to Use AI in the Classroom

In just a matter of minutes, you can produce visually appealing slides. The effective communication of ideas requires a meaningful and convenient approach that does not disrupt other tasks. 

Beautiful.ai employs intelligent techniques to make your work more efficient, allowing you to accomplish great things in less time. With its extensive collection of 

With AI-generated smart slides, you can effortlessly craft striking and professional presentations. This enables you to communicate ideas effectively while minimizing interruptions to your workflow. 

47. Turnitin 

turn it in - How to Use AI in the Classroom

Turnitin is an advanced AI tool that helps teachers detect potential plagiarism in student work. 

By comparing student submissions to a vast database of academic sources and internet publications, Turnitin provides a similarity report. 

It also detects emerging trends in misconduct to keep teachers informed of new methods of plagiarism. Turnitin is trusted as the gold standard for plagiarism checking in academic research and publishing, ensuring accuracy and reliability for teachers.

48. Lumen5 

lumen 5 - how to use ai in the classroom

Lumen5 is an online video creation tool that uses artificial intelligence to turn written materials into videos. It is an excellent tool for teachers and educators who need to create professional yet engaging videos in minutes when slideshows fail. Lumen5 offers tools to:

  • Add text to videos
  • Merge clips
  • Compress and resize videos and more 

As a teacher, you can use Lumen5 to create study materials for students, important presentations, and school announcements. Simply paste an article, blog post, or even your own script into Lumen5, and the tool will generate a video with corresponding visuals, music, and text overlays.

49. Class Companion 

class companion - how to use ai in the classroom

Class Companion, an AI tool for giving writing feedback, was originally designed with Advanced Placement courses in mind, and it’s still largely geared toward document-based questions as well as the short answer and long essay formats found on end-of-year AP tests. 

Teachers create assignments and invite students to complete them on the site. Teachers can write their own assignments and set the format (essay or short answer), rubric, sources or texts, questions, and submission guidelines. A searchable library populated with lessons from other teachers is also available. 

50. Curipod 

curipod - How to Use AI in the Classroom

Curipod helps teachers create interactive slide presentations, but it’s perhaps best known for its AI lesson-creation tool. This tool can generate full presentations on any subject with background information, images, interactive polls, and reflection questions, all from a single prompt.

51. Cognii 

cognii - how to use ai in the classroom

Cognii’s AI learning platform includes a virtual learning assistant, writing assessment tool, data analytics, and more. These are the types of thoughtfully designed tools that make AI for teachers truly useful and meaningful.

52. Quizbot 

quiz bot - how to use ai in the classroom

Writing strong assessments is an important way to measure student progress, but it can be time-consuming. Let AI for teachers help you out with Quizbot, which can generate questions from text, video, audio, and even images. If offers a wide array of question types, and makes it easy to export your assessments to learning management systems or other tools.

What Should You Look for in AI Tools for Teachers?

man on a laptop - How to Use AI in the Classroom

1. Centralized Control: The Key to Streamlined Workspaces  

Educators juggle a seemingly endless to-do list. An AI tool with a streamlined workspace can help reduce the chaos. Look for an AI teaching assistant tool with a centralized hub for all your materials, including:

  • Lesson plans
  • Educational resources
  • Student details
  • Every AI-generated content for easy access. 

2. Collaboration Features: Get More Than Just a Writing Assistant  

Some AI tools help you write faster. But good AI writing assistants do more than simply generate text. They also promote teamwork and communication. When choosing a tool, look for features that enable live collaboration, like:

  • Real-time editing
  • Ideating
  • Commenting
  • File sharing

3. Organization: Tag, Sort, and Filter to Help You Manage Tasks  

AI tools can create content to help you with your teaching tasks. The real benefit of these tools is that they help you manage your time and stay organized so you can focus on what matters most: your students. Seek AI-powered tools with robust organizational features like tagging and filtering to help you categorize and prioritize tasks.

4. Time Management Features: Keep Track of Deadlines  

Like any good teaching assistant, AI tools can help you manage your time. Look for programs that offer time tracking, deadline reminders, and progress tracking features to help you maximize productivity and focus on what matters most: student learning.

5. Writing and Documenting Features: Don't Just Create. Organize and Share 

AI tools can create all types of educational content, from lesson plans to test to student reports. Choose tools with built-in writing and documenting capabilities, such as:

  • Note-taking
  • Editing
  • Pre-built templates
  • To create, edit, and share work material seamlessly.

6. Generative AI: Use AI to Get Creative  

AI can help you create engaging lessons, presentations, and activity ideas. When looking for an AI tool for teachers, opt for programs with generative AI to increase creativity and efficiency in your teaching.

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