Overview of the Two AI-Powered Educational Technology Tools

For this activity, I decided to compare Canva and Gamma to see how useful they could be for creating instructional materials. I chose Canva because I have used it before for work and for some of my college assignments, but I had never really used its AI features. I chose Gamma because it was completely new to me, and I wanted to see how it would create a presentation based on information I provided. Both tools were able to create a presentation fairly quickly, but I noticed some differences in the way they organized information and allowed me to customize the content.

The prompt I used for both tools was: “Create for me a lesson plan in the form of a PowerPoint for my GED classroom to introduce them to learning about AI. Include learning objectives, key concepts, discussion questions, and an assessment.”

One of the biggest strengths of Canva was how easy it was for me to use and customize. Since I was already familiar with Canva, I did not have much trouble putting the prompt into the AI tool and getting a presentation. I could change the colors, fonts, images, layouts, and information. I also liked that Canva had many visual options that could make a lesson more interesting for students. However, some of the AI-generated images were distracting, and some of the text was hard to read. The information was also somewhat limited, so I would have to add more content before actually using it in my classroom. 

Gamma was also easy to use, and I liked that the presentation was more simple and less crowded. The slides were organized with titles, and the information was basic but generally accurate. Gamma also allowed me to choose a design before creating the presentation. One limitation I noticed was that some of the information was too basic, and the text was sometimes difficult to read. It also did not provide as many options for making the lesson interactive compared to Canva. 

One experience that made me think differently about AI was using Canva as a GED teacher. Since I work with Spanish-speaking GED students, I sometimes need to translate instructional materials from English into Spanish. This can take a lot of time, especially when the material includes academic vocabulary that needs to make sense to adult learners.

Using an AI tool like Canva can help me get a Spanish version of instructional material started much faster. Instead of having to translate every part from the beginning, I can use AI to help create or translate the material and then go through it myself. This is especially helpful because I can look at the translation and change words or explanations that might not sound natural for my students. For example, a direct translation might be technically correct but still be confusing for a GED student. As the teacher, I know my students and can make the language easier to understand. This showed me that AI can be helpful when creating material for the students to better help them understand the lesson.

Based on my personal experience with both tools, I would recommend Canva to other educators. I personally found it more useful because there were more opportunities to customize and make the material interactive. I also think it would be helpful for teachers who need to create different types of classroom materials, such as presentations, worksheets, or visual resources. Gamma was useful for quickly creating a simple presentation, but Canva gave me more control over the final product. 

This activity taught me that AI can be a really useful tool for teachers, especially when we are trying to save time. As a GED teacher, I can see myself using AI to help create lessons, organize ideas, translate materials, or create a starting point for a presentation. However, I also learned that AI should not be doing all of the work for the teacher. Even though Canva and Gamma could create a presentation in a short amount of time, I still had to decide what information was actually useful for my students. 

 It can help us save time and come up with ideas, but teachers bring the personal experience and understanding of their students that AI does not have. As a teacher, I know the struggles my GED students have and what types of explanations work best for them. AI can help me create the material, but I still need to be the person making the final instructional decisions.