No. 4 - October 2023

So, what is the deal with AI?

w.forfun.com

Artificial Intelligence has been around a long time. Recently however, Generative AI has become very popular brought on by the success of Chat GPT. Have you tried it?  It's actually quite fun. You can simply ask questions or you can take it a step further  and ask the AI to get creative for you. 

For example, you could ask it to "write me a song in the style of Elvis Presley about  the 1980 presidential election" and you would get something like this:

🎶(Verse 1)

Well, the year was 1980, folks were talkin' 'bout a change, A nation lookin' for a leader, someone to rearrange, The stage was set for a showdown, in the political ring, With candidates and promises, oh, what a swing.

(Chorus) Viva, viva the election, in the land of the free, Everybody talkin' 'bout Reagan and Carter, what will it be? From the East Coast to the West, folks were casting their vote, In the 1980 presidential election, a changing note.

(Verse 2) Now, Reagan came in ridin', like a cowboy in the sun, With a charm and a smile, saying, "We need a job well done," Carter, he was fightin', for another term to claim, But the people had their say, it was time for a different game.

(Chorus) Viva, viva the election, in the land of the free, Everybody talkin' 'bout Reagan and Carter, what will it be? From the factories to the farms, the heartbeat of the nation, In the 1980 presidential election, a historic sensation.

(Bridge) The debates were like a jukebox, playin' tunes of policy, Folks were dancin' with their ballots, in a democracy, Red, white, and blue, the colors of the dream, In '80, the American spirit gleamed.

(Verse 3) Come November, ballots fallin' like leaves, Reagan won the prize, a victory he achieves, But as the '80s dawned, with a new commander in chief, The nation wondered what changes lay beneath.

(Chorus) Viva, viva the election, in the land of the free, Everybody talkin' 'bout Reagan and Carter, what will it be? From the cities to the small towns, in the heartbeat of the nation, In the 1980 presidential election, a transformative sensation.

(Outro) So here's to the year of '80, a chapter in history, Reagan took the reins, and the nation found its victory, With a little less conversation and a little more action too, In the style of Elvis, this song's for you. 🎶

Looks like a hit to me!

There are also art generative AI sites that can develop images for us that are limited only by our imagination. For example, if you ask creator.nightcafe.studio to create a picture of a "norse gold playing football in a red and black uniform in the style of a modern comic book" you might get this:

So what does this mean for our school? 

Roland-Story (along with every other school in the world) is navigating this new world and learning what it means for our teachers and students. Could students use it to cheat? Of course. Could they also use the web? Yes. 

The goal in education probably needs to shift once again. Educators will need to find ways to embrace this new technology and use it to instruct just like they did with the implementation of computers, calculators, and cell phones. But don't worry. We have some of the best educators in the country right here at Roland-Story!

Eric Padget

Technology Coordinator

Roland-Story CSD