The Question
"If AI can write learning objectives, create scenarios, and draft entire modules... what's left for me to do?"
Valid question. Especially when AI generates in 30 seconds what used to take you 30 minutes.
Here's what's actually happening:
AI isn't replacing your work. It's replacing the typing part of your work.
Everything else? Still requires you.
What AI Does Well
AI is fast. Really fast. At specific things.
| AI excels at | Why |
|---|---|
| First drafts and outlines | Pattern recognition—it's seen thousands |
| Multiple variations quickly | No fatigue, no creative blocks |
| Reformatting (bullets → paragraphs) | Pure structure manipulation |
| Following templates you provide | Literal rule-following |
| Expanding brief notes | Elaboration from patterns |
| Catching typos and errors | Consistent attention |
These tasks are time-consuming when done manually.
But they're not instructional design.
What AI Gets Wrong
AI fails at exactly the things that make instructional design valuable.
| AI struggles with | Why |
|---|---|
| Your specific audience's context | No access to their reality |
| What your SME actually meant | Can't read between the lines |
| Organizational politics | No awareness of sensitivities |
| Pedagogically sound vs. grammatically correct | No teaching expertise |
| Appropriate challenge level | No sense of your learners |
| Your org's unstated standards | Doesn't know what you know |
💡 The pattern
AI knows averages. You know specifics. Sometimes AI's guesses are close. Often they're off. You're the one who knows which is which.
What Only You Can Do
This is your value. AI can't touch it.
✓ Strategic Decisions
- What needs to be learned (and what doesn't)
- How to sequence content for this audience
- Which activities will actually work
- What assessments genuinely measure performance
✓ Contextual Judgment
- Is this scenario realistic for our workplace?
- Will this example resonate with our learners?
- Does this align with our culture?
- Is this the right tone?
✓ Quality Evaluation
- Is this accurate for our context?
- Does this meet our standards?
- Will this actually teach what it claims?
- Is this appropriately challenging?
✓ Stakeholder Management
- What will the SME accept?
- What will leadership approve?
- What will learners actually use?
- What constraints are we really working within?
AI can't do any of this. These require expertise, context, and judgment that only you have.
The Partnership in Action
Think of AI as a very fast, very literal assistant who knows patterns but doesn't understand context.
⏱️ Total time: 8 minutes instead of 45
The pattern:
- AI does the typing, drafting, reformatting
- You do the thinking, judging, refining
- Together: faster than either alone
The Division of Labor
| Let AI handle | You handle |
|---|---|
| Generate initial draft | Define what it should draft |
| Create structure | Decide if structure is appropriate |
| Write examples | Judge if examples fit your context |
| Suggest activities | Determine if activities will work |
| Format and polish | Ensure it meets standards |
| Generate variations | Select which variation to use |
Key Takeaways
- AI replaces typing, not thinking. You're still the instructional designer—AI is your assistant.
- Context is your superpower. AI knows patterns; you know your specific learners, culture, and constraints.
- Quality requires judgment. AI generates options; you decide what's actually good.
- Partnership beats either alone. AI's speed + your expertise = better results, faster.
Try It Now
🎯 Your task:
Think about your last project. List 3 things you spent time on that AI could have drafted. Then list 3 decisions you made that AI couldn't.
The test: Can you see the clear division between what AI accelerates and what requires your expertise?
📥 Download: Human-AI partnership framework (PDF)
Decision guide showing what to delegate to AI vs. what requires your expertise.
Download PDF