By Amellia Fowler

UW–Madison’s Shamya Karumbaiah, an assistant professor in the School of Education’s Department of Educational Psychology, was recently featured in an In Business Madison article, “All in on AI,” where she shared her expertise on the role of artificial intelligence (AI) in teaching and learning.

The article focuses on UW–Madison’s new College of Computing and Artificial Intelligence, examining why it was created, its goals, and questions skeptics have raised about prioritizing a technological shift over enduring educational needs, particularly concerning the environmental and ethical implications of AI technology.  

Karumbaiah’s research is focused on building a scientific and critical understanding of equitable and responsible use of AI in classrooms. In the article, she notes that many of the extreme conversations she sees surrounding AI are not “productive or beneficial.”

“Either people are entirely for AI or they’re entirely against AI… but it can’t be an entire problem or an entire solution,” she said. “It’s probably somewhere in the middle.”

Karumbaiah added that while she believes AI is a tool, it should not “replace teachers or shortcut learning.” A good practice, she said, is to put “education first” instead of “AI first.”

“Go teacher practices first. Go education research and theory first,” Karumbaiah said. “We know students learn better when they are collaborating with other students, when they are actively engaging in their learning, when they’re problem solving, when they have more agency.”

To learn more, read the full article: “All in on AI.”