In a world where artificial intelligence can instantly solve equations, generate essays, and create art, what skills should we be teaching our students? This question has become increasingly urgent as AI tools like ChatGPT become part of our educational landscape.
The answer lies not in competing with what AI can do, but in developing what makes us uniquely human. This is where Habits of Mind become more valuable than ever before.
For over two decades, I’ve been working with teachers to develop students’ Habits of Mind – those dispositions identified by Costa and Kallick that determine how students approach challenges when answers aren’t immediately apparent. I’ve recently begun referring to these as “problem-solving superpowers,” and in an AI-transformed world, these superpowers aren’t just helpful – they’re essential.
Consider this: AI can provide answers, but it can’t determine which questions are worth asking. It can generate solutions based on patterns, but it struggles with truly novel challenges. It can process information at remarkable speeds, but it can’t persist through the emotional dimensions of complex problems.
The 16 Habits of Mind – from Persisting and Managing Impulsivity to Thinking Flexibly and Questioning – represent the very capabilities that will distinguish successful learners in an AI-rich environment.
When I work with schools implementing Learnership approaches, I emphasize that we’re not just teaching content – we’re developing the expertise students need to become effective learners. As AI handles more routine cognitive tasks, this learning expertise becomes the true competitive advantage.
Let me give you a concrete example: Recently, I observed a classroom where students were using AI to help with a research project. The students who approached this tool with well-developed Habits of Mind showed remarkably different results than their peers:
- They asked more precise questions (Questioning and Problem Posing)
- They verified information across multiple sources (Striving for Accuracy)
- They combined and extended AI-generated ideas with their own thinking (Creating, Imagining, Innovating)
- They recognized when AI produced limited or biased perspectives (Thinking Flexibly)
The difference wasn’t in their technical ability to use AI, but in their thinking dispositions – their Habits of Mind.
In the coming weeks, I’ll be exploring each of these habits and their renewed importance in an AI world, offering practical classroom strategies to develop them alongside AI literacy.
What Habits of Mind do you think become most critical in an AI-rich environment? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.
