Science fiction has long anticipated the rise of machine intelligence. Today, a new generation of self-learning computers has begun to reshape every aspect of our lives. Incomprehensible amounts of data are being created, interpreted, and fed back to us in a tsunami of apps, personal assistants, smart devices, and targeted advertisements. Virtually every industry on earth is experiencing this transformation, from job automation, to medical diagnostics, even military operations. Do You Trust This Computer? explores the promises and perils of our new era. Will A.I. usher in an age of unprecedented potential, or prove to be our final invention?

The creators of this film are allowing anyone to watch it free (it is just over an hour long) on their website until this Sunday night. You can watch Do You Trust This Computer? by clicking here.

A couple thoughts (and questions) I had after watching this as it relates to education...

Consider the following scenario:

We give our students the tests.

Machines grade the tests.

Test data is used to measure the teacher.

The teacher teaches to the test…

But what happens when the machine teaches the test, and then grades the test, and the data says the machine is a better teacher than the actual teacher?

We have to focus on teaching above and beyond the test, so our students are empowered to learn deeply, create daily, and inspire each other to dare greatly.

Let’s be intentional about innovation and focus on doing the work that a machine could never do, and technology could never replace.

Would love to hear your thoughts on our Facebook page! Let's discuss!

Thanks for reading (and watching),

AJ