Intellectual Excellence in the
Age of A.I. By Josh Cobb, Head of School
4
T
his year, for my wife’s birthday, my son gave two birthday notes. One, without my wife knowing it at first, was written by ChatGPT. It was fine, a little general and superficial, but adequate for a mom who is happy to receive any acknowledgment from her twenty-year-old son. At the end of that note, my son revealed the actual author and asked her to flip the sheet to reveal his own unique letter, much more personal and poignant. It was a moment that has stuck with me as I often consider the question, what will humans need to differentiate themselves in this automated world? It is a crucial question for us all and mostly for educators who are attempting to prepare children to thrive in school and in life. My son’s clever two-faced birthday card, computer on one side and human on the other, is an indicator of the hybrid world we are currently living in. David Brooks recently addressed this in an opinion piece entitled, “In the Age of A.I., Major in Being Human.” In this piece, Brooks focuses on character attributes like empathy and advocates studying literature and history so that “you can learn about what goes on in the minds of other people,” an ability that machines do not currently possess. He also stresses the importance of presentation skills, stating, “The ability to give a good speech, connect with an audience [...] seem like a suite of skills that A.I. will not replicate.” Finally, he emphasizes creativity, specifically, “a childlike talent for creativity.” Here at Graland, we have numerous children with a talent for innovation, which was on display at the recent Gates Innovation and Invention Program Expo. Over twenty years ago, Charles C. Gates prophetically knew how precious this creativity was and wanted to unleash that talent through the program he initiated