Article IV: How Do Oral and Written Communication Fare in the Era of Artificial Intelligence?
By Shawn L. Dilly, PhD, Director General of Emirates National Schools
1086 words - 4 mins read
With the arrival of ChatGPT and other large language-modelled artificial intelligence (AI), do we still need to consider oral and written communication as a top-priority competency? Undoubtedly, AI tools are forever altering our approach to communication. Despite these new developments, the knowledge economy’s demand for oral and written communication remains high. Why would these skills remain a high priority when we can quickly have a speech written, a presentation made, an email composed, along with the many other products of modern AI?
Gary N. Smith, senior fellow at the Walter Bradley Center for Natural and Artificial Intelligence, suggests three main reasons why communication skills remain vital for the future. The first is that the writing process supports understanding of concepts and develops critical thinking skills. This process requires multiple attempts at clarifying your message, refining one’s arguments, making your perspective more persuasive, including additional supporting evidence, and anticipating potential areas of disagreement. Smith contends that using AI eliminates all the learning surrounding this process. Secondly, AI may do a satisfactory job of analysing large historical texts, but this only applies to a few workplaces’ demands. Undoubtedly, AI can handle some superficial tasks, but challenging and high-costs communication requires greater caution given the many inaccuracies found in AI-generated text. The third reason is that communication bonds us. We can learn more about each other, our similarities, and our differences, and bring ourselves closer together through communication. If we want this bond to be genuine, should the communication accurately represent the person through the individual’s authentic voice?
I am not implying that these AI tools are not beneficial and should never be used. Nevertheless, it will be increasingly important to understand when and how they should be exploited. Moreover, they must comprehend the complexity surrounding increasingly diverse workplaces and the many cultural facets of effective communication, which has driven growing demand for individuals with effective communication skills. Fast Company presented the results of a LinkedIn survey listing communication as the most frequently required skill in job postings on its website. The analysis found that 2.3 million of the 6.5 million jobs posted on LinkedIn for that month cited effective communication in their core requirements. Leadership was the next most common, in only 1 million job postings. Communication is an essential soft skill that will give individuals a competitive advantage.
Despite the growth of technology in communications, soft skills — or as Simon Sinek, a thought leader in business leadership, calls them, human skills — remain crucial in the most critical interactions. The unique locution, non-verbal elements, medium, vocabulary, and other elements may alter the outcome of the communication. These sometimes subtle but nonetheless meaningful factors must be carefully understood. This was much easier when we remained largely homogeneous in our small villages, towns, and communities. However, today’s modern workplace brings many diverse backgrounds, socioeconomic conditions, cultures, and languages together. This environment requires a broad understanding of cultural influences, and sensitivity to differing communication strategies which may be very different from your traditional approach. Individuals with these communication competencies will excel as they navigate the many disruptions generated by economic forces (globalisation, urbanisation, technological change, environmental sustainability, diversification/demographic change, increasing inequality, political instability, and personal purpose and responsibility).
With the increasing value of oral and written communication, what are schools doing to prepare students for this changing demand? Well, as you may have guessed, not enough. Around the world, the primary focus has been on language arts test scores to meet established accountability models. While there is some merit for these measures, they need to align with workplace requirements. These assessments remain focused on college and university expectations, rather than the realities students will face when they enter the world of work, and they do not involve any form of oral evaluation. Schools are filled with opportunities for students to enhance their communication skills, but regrettably these are often overlooked or the focus is on the wrong targets. Educators must adjust the focus to cultivate the opportunities to nurture highly effective oral and written communication. Schools often include oral presentations and written assignments, but seldom invoke challenging concepts such as cultural lenses, non-verbal cues, and emotional intelligence, and this omission can severely hamper students’ success as they face the realities of the modern workplace.
Additionally, school governing bodies should consider modifying their accountability models to include these communication elements and future-ready competencies (FRCs). I am not a big proponent of high-stakes testing, as the research has clearly demonstrated the negative impact on students. Nevertheless, it has been apparent for most of my career in education that we value what we assess. In other words, resources, effort and time are allocated to areas that are tested, and other non-tested elements are deemphasised. If we recognise the importance of communication and other FRCs, we should prioritise them in our accountability models. Even with the advent of communication taking a more prominent role in accountability, the primary success of this shift remains with the individual teacher. Each teacher must understand the complexities surrounding effective communication and maximise the opportunities in their subject area. Consequently, school leaders must support teachers in developing these skills and creating new classroom approaches. Only through these educational shifts will students gain the necessary competencies to avoid being replaced by AI, at least for the foreseeable future.
AI is forcing education to reevaluate its core approaches, as many tasks can be completed much faster and more accurately with AI. This disruption to education, in my opinion, is a good thing. Education has for too long relied on outdated methodologies, such as teaching through memorisation and process rather than application and context. Education has also drifted from its primary purpose of preparing students for society. Undoubtedly, the accountability movement has been a significant reason for this departure. However, the economic, social and personal costs associated with education not getting this right only multiply for today’s students. They must now compete with a global talent pool and AI’s growing capabilities. It is only through these realisations that we can begin to make the needed changes in education to ensure that students graduate with the necessary competencies to face the harsh realities that lie ahead.