Core Principles of AI-Enhanced Pyragogy

Pyragogy is not just a philosophy — it is a design practice.

Realizing this vision of co-created, AI-enhanced learning requires more than ideals; it demands concrete principles to guide the architecture of our tools, interactions, and shared experiences.

These foundational design principles shape everything we build:

February , 2024 — by Fabrizio Terzi (FTG-003)

Human-First AI-Enhanced Our compass is humanity.
Design flows from our lived experiences and aspirations, leveraging Artificial Intelligence solely to enhance potential and deepen understanding.
AI acts as a supportive collaborator, ethically aligned with design justice and human well-being.

Transparent by Design: Systems should strive for explainability. Learners deserve clarity on how the AI functions, its knowledge boundaries (what it knows and doesn’t know), and the rationale behind its actions. This builds understanding and agency. Consider resources on Explainable AI (XAI).

Trust Through Intentionality: Trust isn’t assumed; it’s earned through consistent, intentional behaviour. We design AI interactions to be reliable, clear about their limitations (humble), and demonstrably aligned with the learner’s goals and well-being.

Symmetry of Growth: Learning is reciprocal. The AI adapts based on human interaction, just as humans learn with the AI. We design for co-adaptation – a mutual evolution that transcends simple personalization.

Adaptive Scaffolding: Support should be dynamic and context-aware. Pyragogy provides intelligent instructional scaffolding that fades gracefully as learner confidence and competence increase, fostering autonomy while remaining available when challenges arise.

Playful Co-Creation: Learning thrives in environments that invite experimentation, improvisation, and remixing. Pyragogical spaces should feel alive, responsive, and generative, encouraging creative exploration and discovery through interaction.

Open, Modular, Hackable: We champion remixability and interoperability. Tools, prompts, methodologies, and insights should be open source whenever feasible, shared generously to catalyze innovation and adaptation across diverse contexts. Think frameworks and shared repositories (e.g., links to potential project GitHub repos could go here).

Ethics Embedded: Ethical considerations aren’t afterthoughts; they are integral to the design process from inception. We proactively address issues like data privacy, algorithmic bias, potential manipulation, accessibility, and equitable inclusion in every design decision. Referencing established frameworks like the UNESCO AI Ethics Recommendations is crucial.

Embodied, Not Just Digital: Pyragogy acknowledges the limits of the digital. We intentionally design for and honor offline, embodied experiences – fostering direct human connection (core to Peeragogy), reflection, and presence, sometimes entirely free from technological mediation.

Designed for Transformation: Ultimately, Pyragogy aims beyond mere skill acquisition. We design for meaningful inner change – fostering self-awareness, deeper connection (to self, others, and knowledge), critical thinking, and a greater sense of agency and aliveness in learners.

Building Together

These principles are not a static blueprint — they are dynamic invitations to collaborate.

We encourage you to remix, challenge, expand, and build upon them within the Pyragogy community. (Perhaps link to a community forum or contribution guide here).

Pyragogy is an evolving practice and conversation. Let’s co-design the future of learning, together, one intentional choice at a time.