Using AI Wisely

4 sessions · free of charge

Using artificial intelligence tools wisely for learning: why technology in learning always makes the same promise, how a language model helps with self-testing and explaining, where it weakens learning, and how to check studies and evidence yourself.

Start the course with an accountand your progress is saved Start the course without an accountprogress kept only in this browser, for a limited time

✅ Checklist: the key points of this course

Four sessions, one resolution per lesson, to check off. This is the ideal approach; you will find the reasons and evidence in each session.

Session 1 · Technology in Learning: The Same Old Promise

☐ With every new learning tool, I ask whether it has been tested instead of believing the promise.
☐ I do not learn only from materials; I also look for people to work with.
☐ I learn what I can do without the tool and check claims myself.

Session 2 · AI for Learning: Self-Testing, Explaining, Limits

☐ I use a language model as a conversation partner, not as a source.
☐ I do not let the language model take over my own retrieval attempt.
☐ I have it quiz me instead of explaining: one question, wait, feedback afterward, material from my lecture notes.
☐ I do the explaining myself and use the model as a listener who asks follow-up questions. I do not hand over the work that will be assessed later.
☐ I follow the exam regulations and the course announcements, enter no third-party or personal data, and do not adopt any reference without checking it.

Session 3 · When It Gets Hard, You Are Learning

☐ I write the back of my flashcards myself, in my own words.
☐ I ask the tool for hints instead of solutions and then solve the problem again without any aids.
☐ After a lecture, I test myself without notes: Can I restate what it was about and solve a problem on it?

Session 4 · Reading Academic Literature

☐ I read a paper in this order: abstract, figures, discussion, methods, introduction. For a new topic, I read the introduction early.
☐ After each section, I ask what is being claimed and why it is supposed to follow, instead of highlighting.
☐ I ask five questions of every study: Who, and how many? Was there a comparison group? Was assignment random? How large is the difference? Has it been replicated?
☐ Before citing any paper, I check it on the journal’s website, and I base a claim on several independent papers.
☐ For each text, I keep a reading log with six lines: short citation, claim, evidence, limitation, my use, verbatim quotes with page numbers.