Building Bots That Teach Thinking: Using Custom AI Chatbots to Enhance Critical Thinking and Decision-Making

Generative AI is increasingly common in education, but its effect on student learning depends largely on how it is used. This interactive session will introduce practical strategies for creating custom AI chatbots that encourage students to think through problems rather than simply ask for answers. Participants will explore ways to design bots that ask learners to explain their reasoning, consider alternative perspectives, identify assumptions, and revise their thinking before receiving feedback. Examples from healthcare education and other disciplines will show how these tools can support guided inquiry, reflective questioning, clinical reasoning, and decision-making. Participants will review and revise sample chatbot instructions, then begin developing a bot for a course or learning activity of their choice. The session will also cover practical considerations such as choosing reliable source materials, setting appropriate boundaries, protecting student privacy, testing the bot before use, and refining instructions based on its responses. Participants will leave with sample prompts, practical design principles, and a plan for using a custom chatbot in their own educational setting. The goal is to help educators use AI in ways that preserve productive struggle, provide a safe environment for practice, and strengthen students’ ability to explain and defend their decisions.