I love my AI

Over the past month, several articles have been printed expressing the downside of having assistant instructors teach undergraduates. The AI/student system is designed to create smaller class sizes and more chances for one-on-one instruction with students as well as letting graduate students have the opportunity to gain valuable teaching skills. Unfortunately, these articles have been extremely biased, facilitating the needs of below-average undergraduates to place blame for their poor performance and understanding on their AIs. I am an AI that teaches Introduction to Biology Lab in the biology department and feel that it is time that the AIs are heard.\nBecause I have never been taught by an assistant instructor, I cannot speculate on the students'\nperspective. However, my experience as an AI gives me the opportunity to debate the notion that all AIs are "green-faced graduate students trying to gain a better understanding of the material." I teach a lab course that addresses a wide spectrum of topics in biology. The fact that I and my co-workers have been given the opportunity to teach shows that we have already proven ourselves to be sufficiently knowledgeable in the subject areas to be covered. Although not always the case, AIs, for the most part, have a better understanding of the subject matter than the students.\nThe statement that AIs are "green-faced" (although I gather it is intended as an insult) just conveys the fact that AIs are often new to teaching. If the argument that no new AIs should be hired is true, then no one would get a chance to teach to begin with and the entire education system would fall apart.\nAlthough I am in favor of having AIs teach, I sympathize with students' frustrations at having AIs\nfrequently make mistakes. Like students, AIs are more knowledgeable in some areas than others. For instance, I can discuss photosynthesis processes better than I can genetic inheritance mechanisms, but I am still required to cover the latter material. However, assuming that replacing AIs with credited professors will eliminate confusion in the classroom is a mistake in itself. From experience, many tenured professors have confused issues just as much, if not more than, some student teachers.\nNo matter the opinions expressed by the students of their AIs, the roles of the debating sides remains the same as that of a student/professor system. The AIs provide a means by which students can learn material that they have not been introduced to before or do not understand entirely. The students are still required to come to class, ask questions and communicate with their AIs to let them know how well they understand the material covered in class. In turn, the students' understanding and effort put into the work is shown through the grades they make.\nAfter nearly two semesters teaching as an AI, I have found that the majority of complaints come from\nstudents who do not seek help and carry the "test-be-damned" attitude as their motto or those who\nfeel they deserve an A just because they wish to get into medical school. I feel it is time to hear from those students who appreciate what their AIs do for them instead of focusing on the ideas of undergraduates who attend too many parties and do not fulfill their roles as students.