misterebs and fellow educators discuss best practices for managing AI-enabled features like GitHub Copilot in Visual Studio while teaching foundational programming skills to students, offering strategies, alternative tools, and reflections on teaching philosophies.

Managing AI Features in Visual Studio for Education

Author: misterebs and community

Overview

misterebs, a veteran high school Computer Science teacher, shares experiences using Visual Studio (VS) to teach programming languages like Visual BASIC and C/C++, and raises concerns about the presence of AI features such as GitHub Copilot and Intellisense in the educational environment.

Educators and community members contribute advice and opinions on restricting AI-driven tooling for beginners, with practical administration tips and broader commentary on programming pedagogy in the age of AI.

Main Concerns

  • AI Integration in IDEs: Teachers struggle with AI features (Copilot, Intellisense) interrupting foundational learning. Concerns center on students relying on AI before mastering core programming principles.
  • Difficulty Disabling AI: The process to disable or exclude Copilot and similar features requires technical know-how, administrative rights, or institutional support.
  • Evolving IDE Preferences: VS Code and cloud-based solutions like Codespaces are gaining traction, offering different experiences and configurability, sometimes preferred for their flexibility in academic settings.

Key Strategies Suggested

  • Uninstalling/Blocking Copilot: Teachers can open the Visual Studio installer to remove Copilot, though students might reinstall it. Organizational licensing may permit group policies to exclude Copilot via group policy templates.
  • Classroom Policy: Teachers begin courses instructing students not to enable AI features. Some propose learning without Intellisense during early education stages.
  • Alternatives to VS: Codespaces allows managed, AI-disabled environments for students, though with additional cost. VSCodium and older IDE versions provide further alternatives with minimal AI integration.

Philosophical Perspectives

  • Foundational Skills Matter: Several contributors argue that manual programming experience is critical before using AI tooling. They caution that over-reliance on Copilot or Intellisense can hamper basic skill acquisition.
  • AI as a Tool, Not a Crutch: Some suggest explicitly teaching prompt engineering and “AI literacy” after students demonstrate competency, reflecting evolving industry practices.
  • Balancing Technology and Pedagogy: Comments reflect the tension between leveraging modern IDE conveniences and preserving rigorous, hands-on educational standards.

Community Reflections

  • Nostalgia for earlier IDEs like Borland C++ 4.5 and Visual Basic 6 highlights how tooling and expectations have changed.
  • Increasing popularity of VS Code (and Codespaces) in educational settings reflects both the technical shift and a desire for flexible configuration.
  • The consensus is that while AI can be a powerful aid for advanced students, early learners benefit most from traditional, hands-on programming experiences without automated assistance.

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