AI in Early Years: A Helping Hand or Hype?

This blog is No.3 in the AI suite

This week, I want to examine how, or indeed, if AI can help with daily office tasks. I am coming at this whole AI world with an open mind which is my advice to anyone exploring it. New technology is often embraced enthusiastically by early adopters, while the rest of us follow – usually with less excitement – after experiencing the gap between bold promises and underwhelming delivery. Therefore, it’s best to maintain restrained optimism.

One of the most common conversations in the ECEC sector is the one where we talk about how to reduce time spent on support and admin activities, so that we have more time for the actual pedagogical engagement with the children. However, the cynic in me also thinks that some of this narrative belies the wish or need to cut costs with the intention of working more effectively in an underfunded service. So, be warned not to be fooled into thinking that tech will be the answer to better managing an already tight budget. There are always hidden costs!

One area of the admin service which may be helped by AI is content creation for our social media and data collection to provide evidence for reports and documentation. AI is being used a lot for content creation as the demand for digital marketing keeps on growing. But this also requires human engagement. We need the creative ideas for the content, even though AI can produce the content. Beware that AI content, while looking slick and smart, has a feel of AI about it.

I am interested in how AI can collate and analyse data in quick time. But we also know that we might be getting an analysis of poor-quality data because rubbish in means rubbish out – inputting wrong or insufficient data means incorrect decisions are taken and it takes more time to resolve the resulting problems and unravelling the problem takes more time in the long run. So be careful!

Sometimes, trying to write a letter is overwhelming and AI can provide a practical tool that addresses the brain freeze by writing the first draft and then can help produce quality content more efficiently. Beware though, the AI language is easy to spot, and people want authenticity. Many ECEC settings have students and apprentices and therefore you need a plagiarism checker because AI is an easy-to-reach tool, especially late at night when students have lost all enthusiasm for their assignment and asking ChatGPT seems like such an easy option. One of the most popular programmes to have is Turnitin but you need to learn how to read it to avoid references and standard sentences being caught up in the AI net. Reports and assignments have little to no protection of IP or personal data once they are filtered through AI. So be careful.

Much of the systems we use currently have an AI element in them. Starting with word, which has Gemini and ChatGPT. Then there is a range of downloadable minute-taking AI services like Otter, Bluedot, Krisp AI, Jaime AI and many more. But once that data goes into the AI brain bank, queries and responses can be collected,stored and used by AI to train future models. Also, if the AI-notetaker is not limited to certain sessions or cannot be disabled for certain portions of a meeting, confidential information may become compromised. For example, you might be sharing commercially sensitive information that could potentially harm a business’s competitive position if disclosed, such as plans for a new service or details about occupancy.
Free AI tools that are web-based can provide copyright-free data that is not personally identifiable and is not commercially sensitive. For example, you can ask Google Gemini for suggestions for team building activities or get Bing Chat to make you a picture of a baby penguin sitting on a swing in a nursery or power a transcription or a summary of a book. Overall, though, free tools produce low grade output, and you can only ask generic questions. They contain AI hallucinations, no recall of previous content and no controls. Think twice before inviting an AI agent to join a meeting or a group for the purpose of notetaking or providing a transcript. Nothing is ever free!

Finally, one of the most time challenging activities facing the modern-day educator is creating a garden of delight for children. Planning and looking after gardens is now one of the expectations of a nursery teacher, particularly since we realised the impact of the garden on children’s well-being. Gardens need some careful planning to ensure the right plant is put in the right place. That is the secret of successful gardening! Plants are expensive so it’s best to try and avoid killing them. You can use AI powered apps to plan a garden, including design, plant recommendations, plant identification, pest management, integrated soil sensors and irrigation management. I know many an Early Years teacher who will be delighted with an app that can help them distinguish between weeds and other plants! We can also access robots equipped with seeds to plant them evenly, mobile watering robots and pest detecting robots are just some of the AI-driven equipment that can help the novice gardener. Of course, they are less good at spontaneous problem solving and cannot replicate the uniquely human joy, creativity and connection that gardeners experience when working with plants.

Simple reminder:

• Be careful what you post into AI especially images. Think about consent.

• Never grant AI access to your files with any personal data.

• Never provide AI with credentials such as usernames and passwords to link to online services or applications, e.g. adding an AI plug-in to Outlook or your web browser.

• Never upload business information such as management accounts, turnover details or commercially sensitive information unless a legally human judgement and intervention will be essential for ensuring appropriate and ethical use. Ensure a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) and Data Processing Agreement is in place.

• Be transparent about use of AI technologies, informing parents and stakeholders about the benefits and limitations of these tools.