GCISD is hosting its second annual Artificial Intelligence (AI) Camp this summer for middle and high school students. The camp this year has been expanded to three week-long sessions with different students participating, all with various levels of experience and interest in the new technology that is now mainstream thanks to the launch of various platforms, like ChatGPT and OpenAI.
Currently, GCISD has a few openings for the third week of the camp, Monday-Thursday, July 8-11, for sixth-12th grade students. Sign ups can be completed via this link. The cost is $150.
“The intent of the class is to provide students a safe and educational opportunity to explore generative AI,” said Andy Thomason, who teaches at Colleyville Middle School during the school year and builds augmented reality applications for his secondary science classes. “This is the internet generation so students are able to interface a lot easier and a lot faster.”
While students learn about AI throughout the week, they also have an opportunity to create projects to practice their new skills.
For example, on day one students created their own children’s books.
“I’m making a stick man superhero book,” Christian Baggett, an incoming Heritage Middle School sixth grader shared. “I learned how to use ChatGPT to help me make a good storyline. I explain the characters that are going to be in it protecting the city and it would give me stuff that I need to come up with a good storyline and information to make [images] anime style. It’s turning out really good for me.” Anime is hand-drawn or computer-generated animation.
A table over, Cross Timbers Middle School student Farheen Ahsan’s story was about a girl who lost her teddy bear, and she, too, was learning how to generate AI cartoon-type images, which she said was similar to using the Magic Media feature on Canva, a free online graphic design program, that she had used before.
“I feel like the camp is good, especially if you want to learn good tricks and things for the future,” she shared.
Ahsan also knew that it’s important to become familiar with the uses for AI, but to use it as a learning tool, rather than an answer generator.
“I wouldn’t recommend answering questions for your homework, but I would recommend it if you want to know a formula better or know how to substitute something. I think you can use it that way,” she emphasized, giving a good example why.
“Like for the SAT, you are not going to have ChatGPT right in front of you and you are not going to be able to access it so I would recommend using AI as a tool to help you better understand than complete all your work for you.”
When asked if her generation should learn more about AI, Ahsan didn’t hesitate in her response.
“AI will get more and more complex so at least knowing the basics as AI advances in the future will help you grasp the subject. I think that everyone should know the basics,” adding that GCISD's AI camp “is a pretty good camp and it will help a lot.”
Offered by GCISD’s Technology Services, this AI Camp supports the district’s commitment to Student Achievement and Post Secondary Preparedness, which is one of the district’s priorities.