Unit 1: Introduction to AI

Lesson 2: History of AI (1 hour)

Lesson content from Unit 1: Introduction to AI

Lesson 2: History of AI (1 hour)

Learning Objectives

  • Identify key milestones in AI history
  • Understand how AI has evolved over time
  • Recognize that AI is not new but has accelerated recently

Materials Needed

  • Timeline visual (digital or printed)
  • Videos or articles about AI history
  • Student notebooks
  • Internet access for research

Time Breakdown

  • Review previous lesson (5 min)
  • Timeline introduction (15 min)
  • Key milestones exploration (25 min)
  • Timeline creation activity (10 min)
  • Wrap-up (5 min)

Activities

1. Review and Connect (5 min)

  • Quick review: What is AI?
  • Share homework examples
  • Bridge: "How did we get here?"

2. AI Timeline Overview (15 min)

  • Present major milestones:
    • 1950s: Turing Test proposed, term "AI" coined
    • 1956: Dartmouth Conference (birth of AI field)
    • 1960s-70s: Early AI programs (ELIZA, chess programs)
    • 1990s: IBM Deep Blue defeats chess champion
    • 2000s: AI in everyday products (Google search, recommendations)
    • 2010s: Deep learning revolution (ImageNet, AlphaGo)
    • 2020s: ChatGPT, DALL-E, widespread AI adoption
  • Show timeline visualization
  • Discuss: Why has AI accelerated recently? (data, computing power, algorithms)

3. Hands-On: Milestone Exploration (25 min)

  • Divide students into groups
  • Each group researches one milestone:
    • Group 1: Turing Test (1950)
    • Group 2: Deep Blue (1997)
    • Group 3: ImageNet/Deep Learning (2012)
    • Group 4: AlphaGo (2016)
    • Group 5: ChatGPT (2022)
  • Each group finds: What happened? Why was it important? What changed?
  • Groups present findings (2-3 min each)

4. Create Personal Timeline (10 min)

  • Students create their own AI timeline with 5-7 key events
  • Include at least one event they remember happening
  • Add predictions for future milestones

5. Wrap-Up Discussion (5 min)

  • What surprised you about AI history?
  • How old is the field of AI?
  • What do you think is next?

Differentiation Strategies

  • Younger students: Focus on visual timeline, fewer milestones, more discussion
  • Older students: Research deeper into specific events, connect to computer science history
  • Struggling learners: Provide pre-made timeline to fill in, simpler milestones
  • Advanced learners: Explore AI winters, hype cycles, and criticism of AI claims

Assessment

  • Participation in group research and presentation
  • Accuracy of personal timeline
  • Understanding demonstrated in wrap-up discussion