The human and the machine

When contemplating artificial intelligence, Esther Brownsmith turns to an unlikely source: the Book of Genesis. 

Long, long ago, the assistant professor of religious studies recounted from the Bible, God breathed into a handful of dirt and awoke the first human. “But God didn’t think it was good for the human to be alone,” she said. God made helpers — the ox, the dog, the sparrow — but none was a true partner and companion until God used the bones of the first to make a second.

“The Bible and its interpreters teach that there is a loneliness in our souls that only other humans can fill,” she said. “We were not built to be alone.”

As AI technology progresses, its capacity to disconnect humans from one another — think about chatbots replacing college study groups — has religious, societal and educational implications.

But in the uncertainty, Brownsmith sees an opportunity.

“[AI] challenges us about what it means to be human,” she said — which can lead to depth and exploration.

Faculty and staff are doing just that in a yearlong conversation about AI and how a Catholic, Marianist university known for education in the family spirit can advance use of the technology to educate ethical and innovative citizens and professionals.

At November’s meeting, participants discussed topics including:

• Creating a compassionate classroom where students can question their own use of AI and have space to make mistakes.
• Assigning AI-assisted work outside the classroom to deepen discussion and synthesis with peers in the classroom.
• Considering environmental and other impacts when weighing appropriate use of the resource-intensive technology, with the common good as a guide.

Meghan Henning, senior assistant provost for undergraduate curriculum and student success, convened the conversation as a way to bring together educators who care deeply about students and how technology is changing the learning landscape.

“We are asking questions about how we as a Catholic, Marianist university want to frame AI,” she said. “It is critical for students — and for us — to retain curiosity and humility in knowledge production and our interactions with one another.”

“We are asking questions about how we as a Catholic, Marianist university want to frame AI,” she said. “It is critical for students — and for us — to retain curiosity and humility in knowledge production and our interactions with one another.”

Faculty and staff will use the conversations to craft chapters of a book, to be completed this summer, with the goal of offering a reflective, religious framework to others looking to build AI pedagogy, practice and policy based on an institution’s mission.

Keeping the human — made in the image and likeness of God — at the center of the conversation is key for Brownsmith, in her instruction in the classroom and her contributions to the book conversation.

“We need more than helpers in our lives; we need people, the fundamental connection of community,” she said. “That is where we begin.”