For undergraduate staff such as teaching assistants and lecturers, this is quite possible - if anything, there's a need for a revolution in higher education given the exponentially increasing tuition costs relative to the quality of education provided to learners.
However I doubt this will affect tenured professors so long as they continue to focus their efforts on research & publication work.
I believe that AI could easily replace many professors teaching in the classroom. At the university level, many professors have PhDs in their chosen field, but no formal teaching training whatsoever. Some will spend the entire hour with their back to the class writing formulas on the board. One of my professors wrote the textbook on fluid dynamics but spoke almost no English making lectures rather pointless. Some were notorious for giving exams where the average scores were around 30% which tells not what the students learned but how poorly they were prepared for the questions. I personally got one post-doc terminated for his abusive behavior towards his students.
At research focused universities, many professors look at the teaching as an unfortunate administrative function that they must perform in addition to their laboratory work. Many students would probably benefit more from teaching focused software programmed for the learning objectives of a class, than an industry renowned expert with no skills or interest in teaching. Saving Changes...
Senior Projects Manager | Field & Marten AssociatesNew Westminster, British Columbia, Canada
Dr. ElSayed, my thoughts are totally in line with Kiron’s. While I believe AI could replace teacher in classes, yet, it will most probably be an asset to professors doing research to help elevate education and knowledge. Saving Changes...
Dr. Elsayed -
The notion that university professors and instructors may be replaced by artificial intelligence (AI) raises significant issues on how to combine technology and human interaction in the classroom. AI can customize learning and streamline administrative processes, but it cannot replace the inspiration, empathy, and mentoring that come from working with human educators.
I believe AI is therefore more likely to be used as a tool to enhance education than to replace teachers in the classroom.
Carlos Saving Changes...
To some extent yes. However, if it reaches to that point in a flawless way, then being a student may not make sense! Why would we need students! We will have lots of professors... . Saving Changes...
George FreemanThought Leader | Author | Architect| Florida, United States
Taking this one step further, instead of the proposition that AI could replace teachers and faculty in a university setting, it would seem more likely to me that universities, as we know them now, could face competition and find themselves in a position where they may no longer be considered the pinnacle of higher education.
In this setup, imagine a new accreditation organization (e.g., the ACE-AI - Accreditation Commission for Education through Artificial Intelligence) that empowers, sanctions, and licenses an immersive virtual environment standard, whose affiliates have a proven record of creating first-tier graduates that enter industries at twice the starting salary of graduates from traditional programs.
Would this type of competitive environment benefit society? How realistic is this outcome?
.
George Saving Changes...
Omar JabbarProject Management and Digital Transformation Consultant| OGreen IT Service Inc.Ontario, Canada
During the 70s and 80s, futuristic movies featuring machines that prepared food, served as waiters, and accepted payment through a device, depicted today's reality.
If AI is capable of replacing doctors and lawyers, then why wouldn't it be able to replace university professors?
Artificial intelligence will become more integrated into our lives, including the way we receive and deliver education. Saving Changes...
Lately I'm seeing a lot of "The Simpsons" knew it before it happen... so, I used AI to find if there is a season or chapter where they had some teacher robots, or AI.
Here chatgpt answer:
Yes, "The Simpsons" once explored the concept of a robot teacher in the episode "Bart Gets an F" from the second season, which aired in 1990. In this episode, Bart's teacher, Mrs. Krabappel, introduces a robot named PIXON to assist students with their studies. PIXON is portrayed as a high-tech solution to educational challenges, but Bart's disruptive behavior with the robot highlights the limitations of relying solely on technology for teaching.
I personally don't believe that will replace ALL faculty members, only those that aren't adding value and limit their classes to boring lectures with easy to find in AI tools that information. Saving Changes...
Sergio Luis ConteHelping to create solutions for everyone| Worldwide based OrganizationsBuenos Aires, Argentina
Not at all. I am saying this because I am faculty and lecturer. Then, I have internal debates with my partners. Which demands is faculty and lecturer move from the comfort zone and create the conditions needed just, if alumni use the tools, put them in the place to use it as an assistant only. Is to leverage human in the loop principle that exists in AI from long, long time ago. Saving Changes...
Michael BrowningDirector, Cybersecurity| Vanderbilt UniversityNashville, United States
Thank you, this was a very interesting read! Saving Changes...
Community Champion
