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#metacognition

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The educator panic over AI is real, and rational.
I've been there myself. The difference is I moved past denial to a more pragmatic question: since AI regulation seems unlikely (with both camps refusing to engage), how do we actually work with these systems?

The "AI will kill critical thinking" crowd has a point, but they're missing context.
Critical reasoning wasn't exactly thriving before AI arrived: just look around. The real question isn't whether AI threatens thinking skills, but whether we can leverage it the same way we leverage other cognitive tools.

We don't hunt our own food or walk everywhere anymore.
We use supermarkets and cars. Most of us Google instead of visiting libraries. Each tool trade-off changed how we think and what skills matter. AI is the next step in this progression, if we're smart about it.

The key is learning to think with AI rather than being replaced by it.
That means understanding both its capabilities and our irreplaceable human advantages.

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AI isn't going anywhere. Time to get strategic:
Instead of mourning lost critical thinking skills, let's build on them through cognitive delegation—using AI as a thinking partner, not a replacement.

This isn't some Silicon Valley fantasy:
Three decades of cognitive research already mapped out how this works:

Cognitive Load Theory:
Our brains can only juggle so much at once. Let AI handle the grunt work while you focus on making meaningful connections.

Distributed Cognition:
Naval crews don't navigate with individual genius—they spread thinking across people, instruments, and procedures. AI becomes another crew member in your cognitive system.

Zone of Proximal Development
We learn best with expert guidance bridging what we can't quite do alone. AI can serve as that "more knowledgeable other" (though it's still early days).
The table below shows what this looks like in practice:

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Critical reasoning vs Cognitive Delegation

Old School Focus:

Building internal cognitive capabilities and managing cognitive load independently.

Cognitive Delegation Focus:

Orchestrating distributed cognitive systems while maintaining quality control over AI-augmented processes.

We can still go for a jog or go hunt our own deer, but for reaching the stars we, the Apes do what Apes do best: Use tools to build on our cognitive abilities. AI is a tool.

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Replied in thread

@clacke

Re. Not anthropomorphizing LLMs

I'm a sucker for this. Thankyou for writing about it. I'll apologise to an inanimate object if I walk into it.

I find useful practical tips for myself in following this to be:
1. Use the verb "I prompted" rather than I told or I asked.
2. State that the program "output" rather than it replied.
3. I don't discuss "confabulation" because it's an anthropomorphization (the reality is that the computer program is doing exactly what it is instructed to do by the user), but if I was compelled to anthropomorphize, I would use "confabulation" rather than hallucination.

I would be curious to know if you or any other readers had any more tips!

The following cartoon is from:
smbc-comics.com/comic/precise

#LLM#AI#GAN

L’Homme est-il vraiment si exceptionnel ? Réflexions sur la conscience animale

Dans notre 🧠 L'Homme est-il vraiment si exceptionnel ? La science révèle que la conscience et la métacognition existent chez de nombreux animaux. Des rats aux dauphins, en passant par les singes, les preuves s'accumulent. Notre "exceptionnalité" s'effrite, nous invitant à repenser notre relation avec le règne animal. #ConscienceAnimale #Métacognition #ÉthiqueAnimale 🐘🐬🐒 Vers un continuum de…

homohortus31.wordpress.com/202

Homo Hortus · L’Homme est-il vraiment si exceptionnel ? Réflexions sur la conscience animaleDans notre 🧠 L’Homme est-il vraiment si exceptionnel ? La science révèle que la conscience et la métacognition existent chez de nombreux animaux. Des rats aux dauphins, en passant par les sin…

10 MILLIONS !

Quand j’ai créé Méta de Choc en février 2019, je n’ai absolument pas anticipé le succès qu’il rencontre aujourd’hui. Je me suis simplement dit : « Et si j’essayais de faire connaître la #metacognition avec un #podcast ? Ça a l’air cool comme média et ça me permettra de m’exprimer entre deux réalisations documentaires ! » Aujourd’hui et depuis un moment déjà, Méta de Choc est mon travail à plein temps et les films documentaires sont clairement passés au second plan.👇

Are you interested in taking part in a research study exploring metacognition and autism?

Anyone who is over 18 years old can take part. This study is all online, but will not work on mobile devices.

2 questionnaires and an experimental task involving faces and decision making.

Please consider sharing with anyone who might be interested in taking part.

I'm sorry, but on this occasion there is no reward.

I really appreciate it.

Are you interested in taking part in a research study exploring metacognition and autism?

Anyone who is over 18 years old can take part. Diagnosed and self identified autistic as well as non autistic adults. This study is all online, but will not work on mobile devices.

Please consider sharing with anyone who might be interested in taking part.

I'm sorry, but on this occasion there is no reward.

Many, many thanks :-)

Link:
bellsamuel.github.io/metacogni

Metacognitive Exam Preparation Assignments in an Introductory Biology Course Improve Exam Scores for Lower ACT Students Compared with Assignments that Focus on Terms lifescied.org/doi/10.1187/cbe.
See also info on:
* Exam wrappers canvas.instructure.com/courses
* Stress reappraisal & expressive writing interventions canvas.instructure.com/courses
* Supporting material for Saundra McGuire's Teach Students How to Learn routledge.com/Teach-Students-H
#STEMeducation #StudentSuccess #Metacognition #Biology #EdDev

CBE—Life Sciences EducationMetacognitive Exam Preparation Assignments in an Introductory Biology Course Improve Exam Scores for Lower ACT Students Compared with Assignments that Focus on TermsPreparing for exams in introductory biology classrooms is a complex metacognitive task. Focusing on lower achieving students (those with entering ACT scores below the median at our institution), we compared the effect of two different assignments distributed ahead of exams by dividing classes in half to receive either terms to define or open-ended metacognitive questions. Completing metacognitive assignments resulted in moderately higher exam scores for students on the second and third exams. Metacognitive assignments also improved accuracy (difference between predicted and actual exam scores) for the second and third exam in lower ACT students, but that improvement was driven largely by higher exam scores in the metacognitive group. Thus, despite the fact that the metacognitive assignments specifically asked students to reflect on their previous exam performance, their previous estimates and predict how well they expected to perform on the exam they were preparing for, there was little evidence that these assignments influenced lower achieving students’ confidence levels any more than assignments where students defined terms. While understanding relevant terms was certainly important in this course, these results highlight that open-ended metacognitive prompts may improve exam scores in some students in introductory biology classrooms.