A “human intelligence only” activity gives students a short stretch to think, discuss, or write without using devices or AI. It helps them practice working through ideas on their own while still leaving room for technology in other parts of the course. Bomsta writes about a few simple practices that help students understand the purpose:
- Establish the concept early. Explain what the designation means and why you are using it. Students are more likely to understand a device-free activity when they know that the restriction serves a particular learning purpose.
- Make the boundaries clear. Tell students when devices need to be put away and when they can come back out. A defined interval makes clear that human intelligence only is not a blanket technology ban but a particular mode of learning with specific learning outcomes.
- Use it selectively. If everything in the course is human intelligence only, you have simply created a no-device policy. That makes sense in some classrooms, but the value of the designation lies partly in the contrast. Students experience both technologically assisted and unassisted thinking and begin to recognize that each has its place
In an educational environment increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence, we can help our students become AI-literate partly by teaching them to recognize when human intelligence is enough. AI literacy also means knowing when to pause before turning to a tool and recognizing what our own thinking can accomplish.