A MENTONE teacher has won a $15,000 grant to undertake research on the integration of artificial intelligence into English classes.
Bridget Forster is a VCE literature teacher at Mentone Girls Grammar. She has been handed $15,000 through the Reading Australia Fellowship to complete a project in the education sector.
The project will see AI generated texts used to interrogate the idea of an “Australian literary voice”. Her research will look into biases and ethical issues associated with the use of AI in schools.
MENTONE Girls Grammar literature teacher Bridget Forster. Picture: Supplied
Forster says her project will “explore the fate of the Australian written voice in the age of AI generated texts.”
“The wide adoption of AI Large Language Models such as ChatGPT in Australia changes the tone, rhythm, and language of our communications, diluting our rich and distinct Australian voice. My research will explore approaches to AI Large Language Models in the English classroom, covering issues of identity, creativity, and ethics,” she said. “This project is important to me because I see Australian stories as important in both negotiating and affirming personal and cultural identity. Moreover, it is crucial that we equip our students to navigate the evolving AI-powered information landscape critically and ethically.”
Forster hopes to share the research next year.
First published in the Chelsea Mordialloc Mentone News – 12th July 2023