By Anna Tong
(Reuters) – OpenAI and its nonprofit partner Common Sense Media have launched a free training course for educators aimed at demystifying artificial intelligence and rapid engineering, the organizations said on Wednesday.
The move comes as OpenAI steps up efforts to highlight the positive role in education of its chatbot ChatGPT, whose November 2022 launch sparked a craze for generative AI and made it one of the applications the fastest growing in the world.
Trained on reams of data, generative AI can create entirely new content just like a human does, helping users write essays, complete science homework, and even write entire novels.
The launch of ChatGPT – in the middle of the school year – took teachers by surprise when they realized it could be used as a tool for cheating and plagiarism, which then sparked backlash and bans school.
OpenAI, backed by Microsoft and other investors and valued at $157 billion in its latest funding round, has formed a dedicated team to support what it sees as responsible use of AI in education and learning, led by former Coursera executive Leah Belsky.
“My goal in this role is to put AI in the hands of every student and every teacher… and also give them the skills to learn how to do it responsibly and effectively,” Belsky told Reuters. Belsky said student adoption of ChatGPT is “very, very high” and parents are generally supportive, viewing AI skills as essential for future careers.
The training, aimed at K-12 teachers, shows them how to use the ChatGPT chatbot product for various educational use cases, such as creating course content or streamlining department meetings. Available on the Common Sense Media website, this is the first offering from OpenAI’s partnership with Common Sense Media.
(Reporting by Anna Tong in San Francisco; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)