AI Teaching and Learning Series 5 – Thinking with AI: Practical Classroom Strategies for Creative and Critical Engagement

Presented by: UTM, RGASC

In-person on Wednesday, February 11th, 2026, 10:00am – 11:00am in the ALC, MN3260 Online on Thursday, February 12th, 2026, 10:00am – 11:00am on Microsoft Teams

For many students, generative AI functions as a convenient “answer key,” enabling them to bypass the productive struggle that supports deep learning. This session reframes AI’s role by positioning it as an intellectual thought partner, a source of productive friction that can extend inquiry rather than shortcut it. We will explore active learning strategies that treat AI not as an oracle but as a debate opponent, a role-play simulator, or a “sparring partner” that pushes students to consider alternative perspectives, surface assumptions, and engage with complexity. Through hands-on examples such as the Socratic Simulator, Perspective Shifter, and other AI-as-partner frameworks, participants will experience these techniques directly and adapt a specific activity to their own disciplinary context. The session emphasizes designing for higher-order thinking, where students must interrogate, critique, and iterate on AI-generated ideas as part of the learning process.

Learning Outcomes:

· Apply AI-as-partner frameworks (e.g., AI as Debater, Socratic Simulator, Multi-Lens/Perspective Shifter) to design active learning experiences that foster critical inquiry.

· Create iterative prompts that require students to challenge, fact-check, and refine AI-generated outputs, shifting the focus from the product to the reasoning process.

· Develop metacognitive reflection questions and assignment instructions that assess the “human loop,” evaluating how students curate, critique, and build upon AI contributions.
Visit the RGASC website for details on how to register for both in-person and online options