AI Tools for Teaching and Learning

EPSY 247: Assessment of Special Needs

Accessible, Clear, Parent-Friendly

Reflection on Instructional Change:

I was really excited to engage in this FLC for AI use because I was initially hesitant and not knowledgeable about how to use AI. Specifically, I knew how to use ChatGPT, but not in any sophisticated manner, and I also had no idea about what could be done with it, and what other AI platforms were out there. Going through this course increased my willingness to use it, which also allowed me to feel confident speaking to my students and demonstrating to them how to effectively use AI platforms.

The primary aim of this course is for students to understand more advanced methods of special education assessment, especially focused on children with low incidence disabilities (e.g., orthopedic impairment, deafness), children who are Dual/Multi-Language Learners, Preschool Assessments, and using different models for Specific Learning Disabilities. AI helped me create some exercises to teach these concepts, and it was also a helpful way to support students in transforming their writing from what would normally be very jargon-filled and inaccessible to something clear, concise, and readable. I had students complete a mock analysis of scores from a special education assessment. This meant having them interpret and write up paragraphs for parents. After this, I asked them to have ChatGPT or other AI platforms assess the readability level (reading level by grade) and have it rewrite their writeup. Then, students were asked to reflect on the change. Students found found that much of their writing was inaccessible at a college student reading level, when, in our field, we need to be writing with parents as our audience and at a 4th - 6th grade reading level. This is because school psychology is a very niche field and historically has been inaccessible to lay audiences. We should never assume families do or don't understand what we are saying; therefore, we need to be writing to reach a broad audience.

Students were surprised by these findings and found it to be a good exercise and tool to use in the future. Many stated, though, that they felt the writing was devoid of their personality, used words they would not usually use, and put too much emphasis on things that the students did not perceive as very important. As such, they mostly stated that they would use AI as a support rather than having it complete all their work for them. One student stated:

"AI can be a tool used to help in terms of creating reports with accessible language, strength-based wording, and quickly summarizing unidentified information. School psychologists should make sure to review any inconsistencies between their expertise and what AI provided to ensure that the information/interpretations are accurate. It is important not to rely or become dependent on AI and knowing the limitations of using assistive technology (e.g., confidentiality)."

Future directions were generated from my conversations with my colleagues in the Observe and Analyze session. They gave me some great feedback on providing more structure and specific details on how to support my students with AI. They suggested smaller activities to get students comfortable with AI and scaling up from there. Other things that came out of my observe and analyze session included activities on generating resources for families and teachers that are evidence-based. ChatGPT, for example, can provide a lot of great suggestions, but they are not always backed by data-based sources. So, the challenge becomes how to create resources on whatever AI platform students use that also have proper sources. The second challenge will be to supports students with professional and accessible writing that, hopefully, also builds their confidence in the subject matter (e.g., analysis of cognitive testing scores and connections to real world achievement).

Evidence of Instructional Change

Evidence of Instructional Change
Example 1	Example 2	Example 3
This is an image of my sychronous in person class that I recorded for the purpose of this assignment. One part of the image is the powerpoint with the instructions, then there is an image of me, and then there is the auto generated zoom transcript.	This is an image of a reflection statement from a student who completed the AI assignment in my class. She talks about the strengths and mistakes made by AI-- notably, this student was able to see how AI could help her with her writing, but she also has the baseline knowledge to say that AI made mistakes or provided/did not provide information that she may have needed.	This is an image of my AI Tools for Teaching and Learning Completion Badge indicating my completion of the course.

Practice and Reflect Teaching and Learning with AI:

The AI Tools for Teaching & Learning Workshop significantly shifted my approach to integrating AI in my teaching by increasing my confidence and competence in using platforms like ChatGPT. I was initially uncertain and unfamiliar with the different AI tools, and this course helped me understand how to responsibly and effectively incorporate them into my teaching. In my EPSY 247 course, I created an exercise where students used AI to assess the readability of their technical writing and then revise it for a parent audience with accessible language for those who are not school psychologists. This activity highlighted the importance of accessible communication in school psychology and allowed students to reflect on the value and limitations of AI. While they appreciated AI’s utility in simplifying language and offering strength-based phrasing, many recognized the need to maintain their professional voice and critically evaluate AI outputs. I think they will likely continue to rise AI but be wary of it. Discussions with colleagues during the Observe and Analyze session further emphasized the need to scaffold AI use in the classroom and address the challenge of ensuring evidence-based accuracy in AI-generated content.

Course Syllabus - click here to view

Faculty Bio

Faculty Bio
Faculty Picture	Faculty Professional Background
	Dr. Swami is an Assistant Professor in the Sac State School Psychology Program and a credentialed school psychologist. She completed her Ph.D. in Counseling, Clinical, and School Psychology at the University of California, Santa Barbara in 2020 (pre-doctoral internship in Dallas, Texas). She has worked with children and families in various states including California, Texas, New Jersey, and New York as an educator and school psychologist (during graduate school). Her passions include teaching about cognitive assessments and providing psychoeducational assessments in order to understand the unique learning challenges and strengths that students bring to the table. She also has experience providing mental health services for youths experiencing anxiety, mood disorders, ADHD, Autism, and family issues through a multicultural lens. She has practiced in various public school settings (preschools, traditional K-12 schools, charter schools, and alternative educational placements) and also has also provided short and long term mental health therapy in a community-based family clinic setting.

Funding Source
	This work was supported by: US Department of Education P031S230256 and P031C210012 *Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation or the US Department of Education.