[Must-Read for Teachers] Don't Panic Over the Discontinuation of Gems! Learning 'Humanity and Timing' for the AI Era from GTO Onizuka
“Could the AI lesson plans I worked so hard to prepare... be gone!?”
I just talked about lesson plans utilizing Gemini's custom AI feature 'Gems' last time, but news is circulating that “Gems will be discontinued and terminated on October 20th” (*Note: There is no major official press release at this time, but...).
“What will happen to the Gems I worked so hard to create?”
“Do I have to start over from scratch?” You might feel a moment of panic.
Hello, this is Nagita! I usually teach science at a junior high school, and I share information about school DX and the use of generative AI.
Actually, this summer vacation has been a series of new challenges for me!
I started posting on note in July, and since entering August, I finally took the first step toward asset formation by opening a NISA account that I had been curious about for a long time.
Now, this time I will talk about everything from the 'trend' news of the transition of AI tools to the 'unchanging truths (the most important things in the field)' that I was made to think about while watching the 4th episode of the drama 'GTO' the other day!
[Trend] The Gems Discontinuation News and the 'Core of Thinking' That Doesn't Disappear Even When Tools Change
First, let's organize the situation regarding the trending 'Gems Discontinuation' news.
Regarding the notification of discontinuation on October 20th It seems that some Gemini users have started seeing a notification on their app screen saying, 'Gems will end on October 20th. Please save your instructions or recreate them as Skills' (*Note: There is no major official press release at this time).
Why is it disappearing? It seems to be viewed not as the function itself disappearing, but as the integration and migration to the new 'Skills' feature progressing.
It's sad that the settings you worked hard to create will disappear, but the mindset we want to have here is “Don't rely on tools; make your own prompt thinking an asset.”
Tools changing or disappearing has happened often in the past.
Even if 'Gems' disappears and becomes 'Skills,' or changes to another AI tool, the know-how you have cultivated in your own head—'what role to assign, and what background or conditions to convey to get the desired answer'—will never disappear.
Even so, it's sad and disappointing when things disappear, isn't it?
If you are using Gems, it is safe to take the following two steps just in case.
📝 Back up your prompts: Copy and paste the prompts and system instructions you created into a text file (Google Docs or Notepad) and save them on hand.
🔄 Prepare for migration to Skills: As soon as 'Skills' becomes available on the screen, recreate them using the saved prompts.
“Tools are things that change. But my know-how remains!”
Let's take it lightly and keep trying new features!
[Unchanging Truth] Learning 'Humanity and Timing' from Eikichi Onizuka
Are you watching the drama 'GTO'?
I happened to talk about GTO at school this May, and I was told that 'a drama will start in July.' Since then, I have been looking forward to watching the Reiwa version of GTO every week (laughs).
And while watching the fourth episode the other day, I was strongly reminded that "what finally moves a student's heart in the classroom is intuition and timing that go beyond any plan."
※Please be aware that this contains spoilers for episode 4 of "GTO"!
The final scene was particularly impressive. After two teachers had taken turns talking to a student who had run away from home, the student was asked, "Onizuka-sensei, do you have anything to say?"
Instead of giving a difficult and correct lecture on pedagogy, Onizuka-sensei said this.
He said:
"I have one thing. Happy birthday."
I don't know if Onizuka-sensei really knew the student's birthday in advance. You could just call it a dramatic device, but I felt that "being able to look at the student in front of you and offer the words and actions they need most at that very moment" is exactly what makes a teacher great and appealing."being able to look at the student in front of you and offer the words and actions they need most at that very moment"—I felt that this is exactly what makes a teacher great and appealing.
Teachers who can plan and guide meticulously are amazing, and I truly respect them.
But at the same time, I think teachers who, like Onizuka-sensei, have the flexibility and human touch to grasp the atmosphere and flow of the moment, and even make "luck" their ally, are also wonderful.
The Reiwa version of "GTO" may exaggerate the depiction of modern children a bit, but I feel that most of their worries and the general vibe match the current reality. And above all,Eikichi Onizuka's straightforward and clumsy humanity will definitely resonate with children living in the Reiwa eraas well.
[Summary]
Use AI to smartly streamline lesson preparation and administrative tasks. Then, stand in the classroom with the time and peace of mind created by that, and like Onizuka-sensei, capture the changes and timing of the children in front of you without missing a beat.
I thought this might be the form of "hybrid education" that we should aim for.
Even if AI functions change in October, our passion and flexibility in facing the children in front of us will not change.
Let's enjoy new challenges and have fun with the children after the summer break!
💡 Recommended articles to read together
★This is the previous article!
★I talked about the importance of prompts.
★An article similar to this content.
💬 I'm also waiting for your comments, likes, and follows!
"I was watching GTO too!"
"How are you dealing with the AI function changes?" Please feel free to let me know in the comments section!