Is it important to practice politeness with chatbots and other AI tools?
Read opposing viewpoints and take a side; evaluate potential reasons for and against practicing politeness when speaking to chatbots.
Subscriber Only Resources
Access this article and hundreds more like it with a subscription to Choices magazine.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
HEALTH ED STANDARDS
NHES 2: Analyze influences that affect health and well-being of self and others.
CASEL: Social awareness
Lesson Plan: Should You Be Polite to Chatbots?
PREPARING TO READ
Before you read the debate “Should You Be Polite to Chatbots?” ask your students the following pre-reading question:
What are the pros and cons of practicing politeness with chatbots?
READING AND DISCUSSION
- Have your students read the debate “Should You Be Polite to Chatbots?” independently; read the debate out loud to them; or have one student read one side of the debate and another student read the other side.
- After they’ve read the debate, revisit the pre-reading question. Have their answers changed?
BUILDING COMPREHENSION
Check students’ comprehension of and engagement with the story with the following assessment tools:
- Comprehension Quiz
EXPANDING SEL OPPORTUNITIES
Continue the learning journey with the following extension activity:
In RESEARCH, WRITE, DISCUSS! everyone’s voice will be heard! Use a polling tool of your choice to have students pick the statement they most agree with: “You should be polite to chatbots,” or “It doesn’t matter if you are polite to chatbots.” Divide the class into groups of four or five. Then have each of these groups split into two smaller teams, each arguing for one of the above statements. While preparing, they should not collaborate with the opposing side, but rather try to craft their argument to respond to what the opposing side might say. Once groups are finished preparing, have the teams debate one another in the format of your choice. At the end, use the reflection questions to elicit discussion from the class about how research and conversation helped them understand the debate topic better.
Text-to-Speech