Stay up to date
Description:
The task was to write a knowledge synthesis of less than 900 words, presented in the form of an opinion piece in the style of The Conversation. Writing my article on generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) in knowledge building communities was a particularly rewarding experience, not least thanks to the integration of new GenAI tools such as Scite, Elicit and ChatGPT. These technologies facilitated document research and the extraction of key ideas in line with what I had to say.
Optimizing documentary research with the IAG
One of the main constraints of the project was to support the argument with at least eight sources published in the last 12 months, a challenge in a rapidly evolving field. Rather than manually mining academic databases, I used Scite and Elicit, which enabled me to identify recent articles, analyze their relevance and automatically extract abstracts and key citations.
Scite was particularly useful for assessing the credibility of sources, displaying impact metrics and cross-citation of articles. Elicit is similar to Scite and I only used it to tame it in order to compare the two platforms. In my field, it's important to explore several tools that increase our productivity, and this assignment was a good opportunity for me to do just that. A training course given by Laval University enabled me to learn more about Elicit afterwards.
Structuring and editing with ChatGPT
ChatGPT played a complementary role in structuring the article. Once the sources had been collected and analyzed, I used this tool to restructure my work plan. Since I knew my subject fairly well, I didn't need to have passages of my text generated. As a result, my work is 100% original and written by me.
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Take aways
Staying informed in a rapidly changing field
Writing this opinion piece has reinforced for me the importance of staying up-to-date in a field as dynamic as artificial intelligence and educational innovation. AI is evolving rapidly, and knowing how to use tools like Scite, Elicit, and ChatGPT allows you to access the latest research, effectively analyze trends, and integrate recent sources into a rigorous academic framework.
Write with clarity and impact
One of the main challenges of this project was to adopt an accessible and engaging style while maintaining intellectual rigor. The format of The Conversation requires finding a balance between popularization and solid argumentation, which pushed me to clarify my ideas, structure my speech and make my remarks impactful for a diverse audience.
Developing a critical mindset regarding sources
The abundance of information on GenAI confronted me with the need to select relevant and credible sources. Thanks to GenAI tools, I was able to filter, compare and synthesize recent knowledge, thus strengthening my ability to assess the validity of publications and avoid bias in my argument.
A key skill for the future
This experience has strengthened my ability to write clear, structured texts that meet specific requirements, an essential skill for producing professional reports and analyses. In a constantly changing field, knowing how to articulate documented and rigorous thinking is a major asset for evolving and innovating in technopedagogy.