The technology section of a news website in 2017 throws up a new AI article on a seemingly weekly basis, each more incredible and thought-provoking than the last. And then there is the usual link to employment and what it will mean for the future of available work in that industry, either in the article itself or in the cascade of comments below it. Yet what is absent from such discourse is how AI and automation go one layer deeper to affect the mind and, to carry along the existential pathway I have started on, our very meaning and identity. But I would like to dial the tone back to the mind and, more specifically, mental health.
Mental health is a conversation that is currently having the volume knob turned up steadily and for good reason, with 1 in 6 New Zealanders reportedly carrying the label of diagnosis at least once in their lives. Psychology and psychometrics buff Dr Simon Walker is in the midst of some fascinating research around tracking students’ affective social self regulation and how this impacts on their learning as well as their mental health. His 82% accuracy rate suggests that there is something going on and why wouldn’t there be? We know the power of resilience and social competence on mental well-being, but do we know how this is going to be influenced and challenged by smart technologies? When even innate human creativity struggles fathom the implications this will have on society, I would argue the answer is no, not really.
It is perfectly understandable to envision the effects of AI on the perception of our own capacity, as an individual, a community, a race. Yet whilst metrics around this are fuzzy one things is not - that AI development is only going to go in one direction. So how does this link to the mind? The argument is that whilst algorithmic processing is being outsourced to technology, steering cognition is something that is intrinsically unique to the human mind, through our ability to understand and apply different perspectives to situations using foresight. The question therefore becomes how much of what we prioritise as educators fall under the umbrella of algorithmic learning, compared to steering cognition? And to what extent do we portray the message to students that cognitive steering is indeed a fundamental part of learning (and living in the world) and cannot simply be substituted with more algorithmic thinking or more 'stuff'. Of course the idea that steering cognition ought to be given higher regard may be biased toward my own desire to keep my job, or simple short-sightedness and an inability to conceive what AI will soon be capable of. But either way the mental health of our students is something which demands consideration now, and consequently requires a reflection where we are now.
We know that the Motorway Model of education, one which encourages students to think fast but not steer, is associated with increased anxiety, depression, and self harm. But this is not exactly the focus of my current strain of thought, which is instead questioning the effect of industry’s focus on automating algorithmic thinking on the mental health of learners who may feel unable to ‘keep up’ and provide anything useful to the world. As AI envelopes much of the thinking and processing that reflects the ‘speed’ in the Motorway Model, it carries with it the real assumption that that is what is important. Afterall, if it’s that AI that is taking all the potential jobs, then what else do we need to know or be able to do that the job-stealing AI can already accomplish? Add to this the truth that students are bombarded with information from all directions all the time, and it’s not a small jump to make to assume that they will believe an ability to manage limited cognitive resources is of little significance. But it is significant because, I believe, that ability provides humans with the tools and strategies to cope in a knowledge economy. It is perhaps naive to say that AI can never replace those concepts that steering cognition represent, but I do not consider it naive to claim that it is the attributes of steering cognition that will provide our students with the richest skillsets and competencies for the future workforce. Skillsets and competencies that allow them to be adaptable in a changing world, personable in a customisation and individualisation-driven economy, and ultimately, human. And that may become something that unto itself is a skill in the future.
Walker's Research can be found at http://steeringcognition.org/press-2/