Kevin van der Pol
Kevin van der Pol

Kevin van der Pol on Working at NOLAI

Kevin van der Pol is a Dutch teacher at the Lorentz Lyceum in Arnhem and an ICT innovator within the umbrella school community, Stichting Quadraam. Since November 2022, Kevin has also been working as a Teacher in Residence (TiR) at NOLAI and is committed to the direct connection between educational practice and scientific research.

"I am always innovating my teaching and bringing ICT into the classroom. That's also how I started using AI in my classes. Soon, I was so enthusiastic about it that I wanted to do more with it, which is how I ended up at NOLAI." Kevin's enthusiasm is contagious; he sees from students and colleagues alike. Kevin: "I like to show colleagues that it can really pay off in their own work but also in the learning process of students. I actually work with generative AI in almost every lesson, which students find super fun, and it saves me a lot of time." 

Unique Position 

Science and everyday teaching practice are often two very different worlds. NOLAI's Teachers in Residence provide the link between teaching practice and research projects. Kevin: "On the one hand, I take a lot of information and knowledge from NOLAI into school, which has given me a deep theoretical basis for my teaching. On the other hand, I bring a lot of practical examples and teaching experience to NOLAI. That input is hugely meaningful." 

NOLAI teacher in residence, Kevin van der Pol

"It feels unique to be able to make direct links in practice." 

Making a Difference 

It often takes a long time before results from scientific research can be implemented in practice, especially when it comes to rapidly developing techniques such as AI. Kevin: "That's the beauty of NOLAI's projects. While we design and build prototypes, we also start deploying them already. That process and collaboration ensure that we can immediately use and distribute the prototypes when they are finished. The road to the prototype is also already making a difference in the classroom because a lot of learning is already happening within schools. Even though we don't yet know the output, there is always an effect, making it really magical." 

Focus on Ethics 

All NOLAI's Teachers in Residence are also partnered with a focus area. For Kevin, that is the Ethics focus area. "I made a conscious decision to do this because I was initially a bit worried about the use of AI in education. Where would it go, and wasn't it going too far? The Ethics focus group made me less afraid of AI. I got tools for assessing AI applications, and I saw where the risks are and what considerations we can make when using AI. And I like the fact that there are people who are very knowledgeable about the ethics of AI in education, even though it's such a new area." 

Something for you? 

Are you a teacher in special, primary or secondary education and, like Kevin, looking to deepen your profession? Then be sure to read on here!

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Contact information

Organizational unit
National Education Lab AI (NOLAI)
Theme
Artificial intelligence (AI)