BY WHOSE AUTHORITY ? A Plea for Teaching Discernment in the Emerging World of AI
By Dr . Alan Pue , President , Barnabas Group , Inc
IN his 1948 book Ideas Have Consequences , Richard
Weaver observed that we were being overrun by a “ juggernaut of technology .” Imagine what he might say today . I believe Peggy Noonan provides a better and more thoughtful update on the current impact technology has on how we view our world than many other present-day observers : “ I will be rude here and say that in the past 30 years , we have not only come to understand the internet ’ s and high tech ’ s steep and brutal downside — political polarization for profit , the knowing encouragement of internet addiction , the destruction of childhood , but a nation that has grown shallower and less able to think .” 1
She observes , “ The men and women of Silicon Valley have demonstrated extreme genius-like brilliance in one part of life , inventing tech . Because they are human and vain , they think it extends to all parts . It doesn ’ t . They aren ’ t especially wise , they aren ’ t deep , and as I ’ ve said , their consciences seem unevenly developed .” 2 Bill Gates pretty quickly comes to mind .
THE CHALLENGE
And therein lies the challenge we face as those who desire to educate our children from a biblical perspective : How do we equip them to see beyond the truly remarkable educational and entertainment capabilities of ChatGPT , TikTok , and the myriad of other applications readily available ? How do we equip them to be wise and discerning in the face of the tsunami of information and misinformation unleashed by those men and women of Silicon Valley ? If we don ’ t figure out a sound way forward , I fear that we doom our children and , in too many cases , ourselves to the manipulative power of technology and the internet .
Consider , for example , the ability of ChatGPT to cull through enormous amounts of information on any topic to produce a “ thoughtful ” essay on virtually any topic , from the history of the Roman Empire to the literature of sixteenth-century England to essays on the reliability of the
Scriptures . The problem ? ChatGPT can ’ t evaluate the quality or truthfulness of all the material it examines and thus creates a flawed basis for its artificially produced essay .
In reality , no “ intelligence ,” artificial or otherwise , is involved in these efforts . All that currently exists is technology and algorithms created with the ability to locate reams of information on a particular topic . Without the ability to sift through and evaluate what is being presented , the recipient of all that data is left without the capacity to decide what has value and what might be inaccurate and even harmful . Given the vast information dumps available through current technology , it is easy to see how simple it would be to distort reality .
A TEMPLATE TO EQUIP
In the book of Acts , Luke recounts the story of Paul ’ s visit to the Macedonian city of Berea . As was his custom upon arriving in a new community , Paul would locate the local synagogue and share the Gospel with those in attendance on Sabbath . Talk about a disruptive message . Paul was asking righteous Jews to consider Jesus of Nazareth as the long-awaited Messiah and the fulfillment of all they had long been taught from the Old Testament Scriptures . He was , in essence , asking them to abandon what they had long believed to be true and risk losing lifelong relationships in the process .
What happens at the conclusion of Paul ’ s presentation provides a template for how we must equip our students for the most recent disruption caused by twenty-first-century technology , the AI revolution , and its impact on education as it is practiced in America today .
Rather than simply dismissing Paul , as many did , these Jews in Berea decided to take the time to examine relevant passages in the Old Testament to see if there was any truth in Paul ’ s argument . After a week of intense study , they embraced Paul ’ s message . In other words , they took what Paul had taught them and compared it against what they
42 THE RENEWANATION REVIEW