Three-positioning taxonomy: teachers position classroom AI as a teaching partner, a grading assistant, or a substitute teacher¶

Theory · All theories
Evidence · 6 claims (6 for) · 1 study (1 qualitative), q2 · 0 of 1 report an effect size · 6 claims rest on one study

Description¶

The article proposes an inductively derived taxonomy of how teachers position an AI writing tool in instruction. In the partner positioning the AI is "one of many instructional tools" with the teacher as instructional leader; in the assistant positioning the teacher delegates assessment and administration to save time; in the substitute positioning the teacher gives the AI the instructional lead and moves to the periphery. The taxonomy emerged from iterative coding of 27 teacher interviews by five interviewers with reviewer cross-classification, and was member-checked at teacher convenings.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Derived from interview and convening data with teachers actually using an AI-equipped AES/AWE platform in writing instruction

Constraints¶

• Classification of 24 teachers was reached by interviewer-reviewer agreement after initial disagreement in 11 cases; the authors note approaches are not static

Target Learners¶

• Middle school language arts teachers
• Middle school students in writing instruction

Target Learning Objectives¶

• Argumentative writing instruction
• Teacher instructional decision-making with AI tools

Claims¶

• Teacher Positioning Distribution Topeka [+M]
• Partner Positioning Instructional Leadership [+M]
• Teachers at convenings said the three AI approaches are fluid rather than static, with movement across approaches as experience grows [+W]
• Trust in AI varied by positioning: partners saw bias and assigned their own grades, while substitutes trusted AI scores as actual grades [+W]
• The focus of teacher-student interactions differed by AI positioning: learning for partners, score-increasing for assistants, completion for substitutes [+W]
• Partner-positioned teachers built students' AI literacy, while assistant and substitute teachers' transparency centered on gaming scores [+W]

Related Theories¶

Examples¶

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Key Sources¶

• Hillary Greene Nolan, Ph.D, Merijke Coenraad, Ph.D, Viki Young, Ph.D. (2024). Teaching Partner, Grading Assistant, Substitute Teacher: Three Ways Teachers Positioned an Artificial Intelligence Tool in Writing Instruction. Digital Promise, Center for Inclusive Innovation. https://digitalpromise.dspacedirect.org/items/4f2d86a3-9b66-4538-a5ad-977bb8fbacf7