ChatGPT Study Mode

Explore the features and functionality of ChatGPT's new study mode.

Transcript

Paul Beckermann 0:00 Paul, welcome to Tech Talk for Teachers. I'm your host, Paul Beckermann.

Transition Music with Rena's Children 0:05 Check it out. Check it out. Check it out. What's in the toolkit? Check it out.

Paul Beckermann 0:16 The topic of today's episode is ChatGPT Study mode. One of the main concerns teachers have had about generative AI is that it'll make students lazy. They're afraid their students will use it just to write papers for them or to get answers to the questions without them having to do any of the hard work.

Now, have some students used tools like ChatGPT in this way? Yes, they have, and despite the positive potential of generative AI, this is a valid concern that needs to be addressed. It seems that Open AI, the creators of ChatGPT, have been listening. In response, they've released a feature called study mode. It's currently available in both free and paid versions of ChatGPT, and will be coming to the edu version soon. I should also note, study mode was developed for college age students, but ChatGPT says it's also appropriate for high school.

So what is study mode?

Transition Music with Rena's Children 1:13 Here's the here's the here's the tool for today.

Paul Beckermann 1:19 Study mode is a new feature designed to help guide users through the process of finding the answers to questions step by step, rather than simply having the answers given to them with no effort. In a sense, it's intended to act like a guiding teacher or tutor, and it's meant for learning tasks such as homework help, test prep, and learning new topics.

It was created in collaboration with teachers, scientists, and pedagogy experts to support deeper learning, including encouraging active participation, managing cognitive load, proactively developing metacognition and self-reflection, fostering curiosity, and providing actionable and supportive feedback—all things that teachers want to do. It combines Socratic questioning, hints, and self-reflection prompts to guide learning. It's programmed to not provide the answers directly, although students could simply switch the study mode off and then ask for the answer.

Still, if they really want to learn, students can stay in study mode and do the work. The experiences are tailored to the right level for the user based on questions that assess skill level. It also pulls from previous chats in that user's account, if applicable. It conducts knowledge checks using both quizzes and open-ended questions, and it offers personalized feedback to track progress, support knowledge retention, and help learners apply the knowledge to new contexts.

So how does it work? The first step is to go to ChatGPT and turn on study mode. You can find it by going to ChatGPT and then selecting the Tools menu that lives at the bottom of the main input field. From there, you can toggle it on and off. Then you type in something that you'd like help learning with. To get a feel for it, I pretended to be an 11th grade English language arts student and asked for help learning about figurative language. ChatGPT began with, "Let's start with what you already know."

"Which of these do you already feel confident about? Just tell me yes, sort of, or not yet for each." Then it listed simile, metaphor, personification, hyperbole, and idiom. I responded "yes" to the first three and "not yet" to hyperbole and idiom.

It then offered me Step one, "Let's break down hyperbole." It gave me a definition and an example, which it explained. Then it turned it over to me saying, "Your turn. Think of a moment from your life, like being tired, cold, bored, or annoyed, and exaggerate it for dramatic effect. Try finishing this sentence: 'I was so tired that...'" It even encouraged me with, "Go for it. Make it ridiculous." I offered, "I could have died." It congratulated me, and then asked me to explain why my answer was hyperbole. When I got that right, it moved on to ELA to idioms. This time, it offered me a multiple-choice question and checked my understanding. Then it asked me to explain an example of an idiom that it offered: "spilled beans."

After that, it combined both terms and a quiz question before asking me to apply the concept by writing a short paragraph that included both hyperbole and idiom. It broke down my response, calling out the examples I gave and explaining why they were correct. It followed that up with more writing challenges.

Now I had answered the prompt correctly, and I wanted to know what would happen if I got an answer wrong, so I asked it to simulate that for me. This time, it responded to the incorrect answer with, "Great try, but not quite. Let's walk through it together." It proceeded to explain what I did wrong in gentle, supportive language, and then gave me the correct answer with an explanation. From there, it offered some re-teaching and reflection work to help me re-learn and practice the concept that I struggled on. Overall, it was a good experience.

I tried another example, asking it to teach me about musical modes, and I found that to be a little more confusing. When I asked it for an image, it offered guitar chord shapes with only five strings instead of the normal six strings on the guitar. To be fair, ChatGPT acknowledges that they're still working to improve this experience. They note that they're analyzing the results of early use to make it stronger. Their Getting Started page says, "We plan on training this behavior directly into our main models once we've learned what works best through iteration and student feedback." They add:

"We're also exploring functionality to make study mode more engaging and helpful for students, including clearer visualizations for complex or text heavy concepts, goal setting and progress tracking across conversations, deeper personalization tailored to each student's skill level and goals."

Despite its imperfections, study mode in ChatGPT has potential to help students who are looking for support, especially when they're not in the classroom with their teacher readily present.

Here's a bonus tip: It seems ChatGPT was eager to promote its new study mode to me, and it asked me if I wanted insights for the article I told it that I was writing. Here's a bit of what it gave me. What it's like to use study mode in ChatGPT:

Number one: It feels like a patient tutor who adapts as you go. The conversation is step by step, starting with what you know. It checks for understanding often, but without judgment. If you make a mistake, it explains why, gently using it as a learning opportunity.

Number two: It mixes explanation with engagement. Study mode doesn't just define terms. It gives examples, mini quizzes, and writing challenges. You get to try things out and get feedback, which makes it feel more interactive than just reading.

Number three: It tracks your progress and adjusts after each response. The AI updates its approach based on how confident or uncertain you seem. For example, when you said "not yet" for hyperbole and idiom, it zoomed in on those and skipped what you already knew.

Number four: It mirrors effective teaching practices. It uses formative checks like matching questions and reflection prompts, scaffolded practice (starting with examples, then having you try), immediate feedback on incorrect answers with re-teaching built in.

And number five: Tone and trust matter. The voice is supportive, casual, but clear, and doesn't make you feel bad if you get something wrong. This encourages students to keep trying rather than shutting down.

I have to admit, this was a pretty nice summary, and I'm glad that ChatGPT suggested it to me.

Now, will study mode prevent students from using generative AI to cheat? Probably not, but it does provide a more constructive, guided alternative for students who want to learn new content when their teacher is not available.

Overall, I suggest checking out ChatGPT Study mode for yourself so you can decide if it's a tool that has a place in your teacher toolbox.

To learn more about today's topic and explore other free resources, visit Avidopenaccess.org. Specifically, I encourage you to check out the article collection, "AI in the K-12 Classroom," and of course, be sure to join Rena, Winston, and me every Wednesday for our full-length podcast Unpacking Education, where we are joined by exceptional guests and explore education topics that are important to you.

Thanks for listening, take care, and thanks for all you do. You make a difference.