Preparing social studies teachers to apply ChatGPT as a linguistically responsive tool for multilingual learners through teacher research (Poster 5)

• In Event: AI in Social Studies Education: Tools for Thoughtful Practice With Generative Artificial Intelligence

Abstract

It is challenging to prepare teachers to integrate linguistically responsive pedagogies for multilingual learners (ML; Lucas et al., 2008). How do pre-service and in-service teachers of MLs learn to apply ChatGPT in content-area literacy instruction? Participants included six pre-service teacher candidates enrolled in a MA+ESL licensure program who are studying to become social studies teachers, as well as ten in-service social studies teachers enrolled in a professional development course. They investigated the applications, benefits, and challenges of ChatGPT in the context of content-area literacy instruction. Content analysis was used to identify concrete pedagogical applications of ChatGPT and thematic analysis was employed to highlight emerging themes and patterns of the ways in which both pre-service and in-service teachers applied ChatGPT in their literacy instruction. Findings explore two general applications of ChatGPT in social studies literacy instruction: interpreting content/texts and composing/revising texts. Teachers researched ways to support content & text interpretation by positioning the tool as a reading scaffold for MLs. Specifically, they experimented with ChatGPT to help MLs define terminology, ask follow-up questions, generate video subtitles, and to translate/paraphrase academic content language in texts. Others used ChatGPT to translate and differentiate content, such as manipulating the reading level of texts and creating content-specific exemplar texts that model disciplinary literacy practices. Teachers also experimented with it as a writing scaffold to support MLs to compose and revise social studies texts, as well as writing preparation and production activities, such as brainstorming and organizing thoughts and exploring writing topics and generating connections/implications. They also used it to support text revising and editing at the sentence level and summarizing or paraphrasing at the paragraph level. While this study highlights the value of ChatGPT as a linguistically responsive tool for content-area literacy instruction, implications focus on the need to integrate it more deeply with culturally responsive and sustaining pedagogies (Ladson-Billings, 1995; Paris & Alim, 2017).

Author

• Kevin Donley, Georgetown University