AI in Teacher Education: An Introductory Training Session for Pre-service Teachers Involving Microsoft Copilot

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has recently emerged as a transformative force due to the ability of large language models to generate surprisingly human-like responses to complex queries and tasks across various domains. Educators should embrace the technological affordances of AI to improve their teaching. However, it is first incumbent upon teacher educators to develop training programs that familiarize teachers with AI tools and their applications in educational settings. The aim of this study was to design a 45-min training session for pre-service teachers to use the AI chatbot Microsoft Copilot and identify ways AI can be used to assist with future teaching practices, particularly the creation of learning materials. The design of the intervention focused on demonstrating the usefulness and ease of use of the AI chatbot. Data from 43 pre-service teachers was collected and AI-assisted qualitative analysis performed. The results show that teachers perceive the AI tool to be most beneficial in the following categories: lesson planning, creating assessment questions and tasks, creating images, brainstorming and idea generation, creating educational games, generating text and rewriting text. This study provides initial insights on how AI tools like Microsoft Copilot can be introduced to teachers and how teacher education programs can help develop AI literacy among educators. More research is necessary to explore the long-term impacts of such training on teaching practices and student outcomes.