School of Teacher Education Colloquium: Dr. Michael Neal

Join the School of Teacher Education at the Anne Spencer Daves College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences for their colloquium featuring Dr. Michael Neal, Associate Professor in the Department of English at FSU.

His colloquium is titled, "A Pedagogy-First Approach to Teaching Critical AI Literacies."

Abstract: Students today and in the future will have access to generative AI (gen

AI) and will enter workplaces and societies where it is used regularly. The unique challenge for educators when addressing gen

AI is that our literacy objectives center less on comprehending and producing texts and more on using reading and writing processes to support cognitive development and learning. Therefore, the goal of a pedagogy-first approach to teaching critical AI literacies is helping students use gen

AI in ways that support their thinking rather than replace it. From my perspective, banning and policing gen

AI is not a feasible response, but neither is uncritical acceptance. I will present an approach to critical AI literacies that begins with learning goals and then develops strategies that support them. I’ll introduce seven critical AI literacies that have shaped my own teaching, such as engineering prompts that support learning; keeping the human as the decision-maker at every stage of the reading and writing process; and verifying, documenting, and reflecting on gen

AI uses. Participants will then explore how they might build critical AI literacies into their own future curricula and pedagogies.

Bio: Dr. Neal is an Associate Professor of English at Florida State University. His research focuses on the intersections of composition, writing assessment, and digital technologies. Dr. Neal serves on FSU's AI in Education Advisory Committee.

The talk will be held in the Stone Building, Room G151 and online. In-person attendance is strongly encouraged.

Register to attend via Zoom: https://fsu.zoom.us/meeting/register/s12sDPkRRY67Ld9YO9iPWQ#/registration