AI has definitely made a difference in my learning, especially for Software Engineering. Instead of being stuck on a problem and not knowing where to go next, I have a personal tutor that can help me out. While sometimes it may not be correct, I feel better knowing I have more resources at my disposal to learn better. I primarily use Claude because I find it more conversational than ChatGPT and other models, and I think it is simply more intelligent, at least for coding problems.
For the Experience WODs, AI was extremely helpful when I was stuck on something or I got an error. For example, when installing PSQL, I had some issues running the command, and using Claude, I was able to find out why it wasn’t working - I had to add the file to my path. There are numerous examples of that, like fixing ESLint errors, errors in VSCode, and many other applications. AI is a much easier tool to work with for troubleshooting because it’s like talking to an intelligent repo of knowledge, instead of just trying to google the issue and failing.
For in-class practice WODs, I would use AI after I attempted my try, and then ask it what I need to do next, or if it can fix my code to solve this problem.
For in-class WODs, I would first put down some pseudocode, and then after that, I would feed that to Claude, which would fill in the rest. I find that AI is extremely good at picking up where you left off, and I find it more efficient to have a structure you make, and have the AI fill it in based on your requirements.
For essays, I would use AI primarily for two things: spelling checks and overall flow, and ideas. I would sometimes ask it to generate the essay I have to write, and use some of the lines it used, as I am much better at writing when I have the first couple sentences down already, since coming up with them is the hardest part for me.
For the final project, using AI has been a great help. Being able to send it all your files and where they are in your project, and then asking it what it needs to see to fix your issue is great help. Especially for ESLint errors that pop up. Also for generally researching on how to implement some features.
Learning a concept has never been easier. Before, I would google or watch a video about the concept or thing I’m trying to learn. Now, I have my own tutor for free that can help me out, and point me in the right direction if I stray from the right path.
I didn’t really use AI for this, maybe once or twice but I primarily used my own intuition.
I didn’t use AI for this in the class, maybe for checking how to say something properly, but other than that, no.
I actually have used AI for coding examples, usually they were for how to link an image and where to put it, and other small details like that.
If I did not know how a piece of code worked, then I probably did ask Claude how it worked, and other information about it, like the methods it used.
I used Claude to help me write code. For WODs, when I was done with my pseudocode, I would give it to Claude and the assignment, and it would return me the completed sections, often times suggesting changes to make the code more efficient and run more smoothly. Once we got to using React and NextJS, Claude was extremely helpful in designing the webpage as it can see when you take a picture, and from there you can ask to change stuff depending on what you need.
I didn’t use it in this class, but for my keystone project I use code to help document code for future team members to help make the onboarding for next semester easier.
I used Claude a lot for this. Whenever I had an ESLint error, or just anything wrong with code, I would ask it if it can help. Often times it did it in one shot. Sometimes I would have to guide it to get to a proper solution.
Using AI for this class was a great and beneficial help. I often joked with my team members that I’m not sure if I’d be able to do a lot of the things I did this semester without AI. And I think that is partially true, but I think it’s more of a symptom than a cause. AI has now made it so that anyone and everyone can code. All they have to do is ask the right questions. Before AI, I would be scouring for solutions on Stack Overflow or on Reddit, getting nowhere, or having to ask my really good programming friend for help. But now, when I’m stuck, I have my own personal assistant to help. I really think that as AI gets smarter and more capable, coding will be less about proper syntax, but about overall design and functionality, because if all of a sudden now we can focus more on that instead of grunt work, well, that is better for productivity. Look at how animators work now. Before, they had to draw each frame by hand, and use cells to capture them. Now, the majority of animation is through computers, not drawing by hand. I think AI will continue to be welcomed into the classroom by students, and by teachers. Much like how math teachers would say we wouldn’t have calculators in our pockets, now we have assistants in our pockets. We just have to know how to use them correctly.