Tech Tip: Generative AI and the Brain

By Kristina O’Connor, Director of Curriculum & Instruction

Earlier this month, Dr. Tracey Tokuhama-Espinosa visited our campus and talked with our entire faculty, visiting faculty, administration, and parents about Mind, Brain, and Education (MBE) and the science of learning.

Tracey spoke about how our brains synthesize information and how learning occurs. Throughout the day, she covered topics including but not limited to memory, attention, executive functioning, sleep, nutrition, and generative AI.

Generative AI

This is a topic that has the world buzzing about how it can help humans, how it can hurt the environment, and how it is moving at such a rapid pace of development that all industries are having a difficult time keeping up, including education.

When thinking about the intersection of generative AI and education, it is important to keep in mind the goal of education: learning. And what organ is needed for learning? The brain.

During her visit, Tracey laid out three core ideas about generative AI and the brain:

1. The brain adapts to what it does most.
2. Use it or lose it.
3. Writing is thinking, and thinking is writing (people should write to think and think to write).

As we go about our days using technology (and modeling the use of technology for our kids), are we using technology in a way that our brains are doing the thinking, or is technology doing the thinking for us?

Are we using and applying the information and skills that we have, or is technology recalling the information and applying skills for us?

Are we writing to think and thinking to write, or is technology replacing the thinking and writing for us?

It’s all about balance. Stay curious, think critically, and ask questions. Our brains depend on it.