Teaching & Learning in the Age of AI
Scenario:
Imagine you discover a student has used generative AI to complete an assignment without permission. What鈥檚 your first step?
Task:
Write down a quick response or approach you would take. Consider how you might address the situation to balance accountability and learning.
Navigating Generative AI: Opportunities and Challenges in Teaching
Generative AI refers to artificial intelligence that can create new text, images, videos, audio, code, or data (Rouse, 2023). While this technology has been around since the 1960s, its rapid integration into teaching and learning has only recently become a major focus (White, 2023). For educators, generative AI presents both challenges and opportunities, raising important questions about how to prepare students to engage with AI responsibly and ethically in their academic, professional, and personal lives.
The Center for Teaching & Learning is here to support CU educators as they navigate the evolving role of AI in the classroom. Whether it鈥檚 adapting teaching strategies or exploring new possibilities for learning, we鈥檙e committed to equipping you with the tools and resources needed to thrive in the age of AI.
Note: This webpage focuses on generative AI specifically. For a broader look at artificial intelligence in higher education, check out this insightful article (2023).
Learn More About Generative AI and Teaching & Learning:
The image above was generated on Oct. 12, 2023, with Canva鈥檚 Magic Design tool using the prompt 鈥渁bstract image of a graph with scattered data points converging into a line.
Generative AI works by training a statistical model to identify and "learn" patterns within a large dataset. When prompted, it generates new outputs by predicting what is most probable based on those detected patterns.
For instance, imagine a generative AI model trained on all the text messages you鈥檝e ever sent. If the model finds that the word 鈥渢hank鈥 is most often followed by 鈥測ou鈥 (as in 鈥渢hank you鈥) rather than 鈥渕e鈥 (as in 鈥渢hank me鈥), it will prioritize that pattern. So, if you prompt the AI to draft a thank-you message after meeting a friend for coffee, it will likely include the phrase 鈥渢hank you鈥 rather than 鈥渢hank me.鈥
Want to dive deeper into how generative AI works? Check out this for more insights!
Wharton School. (2023, August 23). . YouTube.
AIPRM Ultimate Glossary of AI Terms: This was recommended to us by a summer STEM Club for girls. In the spirit of this club鈥檚 own approach to learning how vast and advanced AI has become, we encourage you to explore this glossary (e.g., learn one new term each day) or use it for inspiration for future assignments.
The image above was generated on Oct. 12, 2023, with Canva鈥檚 Magic Design tool using the prompt 鈥渃olorful abstract image of computer with scattered data, tools, clouds.
The following is a list of generative AI tools with various functions for teaching, learning, and research. When exploring these tools, we encourage you to consider how generative AI may harvest and share data, copyright issues, and accessibility considerations and to note that some platforms could transition into subscription-based or pay-to-use services. This list is not exhaustive, as this new technology is part of the ever-changing digital landscape. If you have an AI tool that you have been using for teaching and learning, send us an email and let us know!
AI Presentation Makers | , , , , , |
AI Image Generators | , , , , |
AI Video Creators | |
AI Lesson Plan Generators | , , |
AI Quiz Generators | , , , , |
AI Discussions and Across Curriculum | , , , , , |
AI Assessment Helpers | , |
AI Grading Tools | , , |
AI Tutors | , |
AI Coaching Tools | , , |
AI Writers |
, , , |
AI Researchers | , , |
AI Note-Taking Aids |
, , , , |
AI Productivity Hacks | , |
The image above was generated on Oct. 12, 2023, with Canva鈥檚 Magic Design tool using the prompt 鈥渁bstract image of college students using a computer cooperating.
The U.S. Department of Education has suggested that we think of AI as 鈥渕ore like an electric bike and less like robot vacuums鈥 (2023). Drawing on this metaphor, we encourage you to think of AI as a technology that can be leveraged to support, rather than undermine, the learning process. As is the case with any technology, however, using generative AI effectively in the classroom requires forethought and intentionality. If you are interested in incorporating AI into your own courses, we recommend that you begin by reflecting on your course learning objectives. This will inform whether and how you incorporate AI into course assignments.
For example, let鈥檚 say one of your learning objectives for a writing course is for students to be able to skillfully make sentence-level grammatical choices to support their rhetorical goals (e.g., persuading a particular audience). In this context, merely having students prompt ChatGPT to write a persuasive essay would not be well-aligned with this learning objective. In contrast, asking students to revise the grammar in an essay written by ChatGPT to make it more persuasive for a particular audience would be well-aligned with this learning objective. Learn more about .
Cornell University Center for Teaching Innovation. (n.d.). .
Stachowiak, B. (Host). (2023, June 8). (No. 469) [Audio podcast episode]. In Teaching in Higher Ed.
Stachowiak, B. (Host). (2023, August 31). (No. 481) [Audio podcast episode]. In Teaching in Higher Ed.
UBC Center for Teaching, Learning and Technology. (n.d.) .
The image above was generated on Oct. 12, 2023, with Canva鈥檚 Magic Design tool using the prompt 鈥渁bstract image of college students using a computer cooperating.
Although generative AI is a powerful tool, it has several significant limitations. Namely, generative AI sometimes 鈥渉allucinates鈥 inaccurate information, including attributing content to the wrong source or fabricated sources. It can also be used to create 鈥渄eepfakes鈥濃搃mages, videos, or audio of a person doing or saying something that they did not actually do (e.g., see ). Furthermore, generative AI has been shown to reproduce non-inclusive language and biases, including gender, racial, anti-Muslim, disability-related, and other biases present in the data on which the statistical model was trained (e.g., Sun et al., 2023; Johnson et al., 2022; Abid et al., 2021; Whittaker et al., 2019). Lastly, generative AI raises a host of concerns around data privacy and copyrights.
As educators, we can provide students with guidance on how to use AI responsibly and ethically, as well as opportunities to practice essential AI literacy skills. This includes skills like fact-checking, verifying AI-generated outputs, and writing effective prompts.
Cornell University Center for Teaching Innovation. (n.d.). .
Notre Dame Learning. (n.d.). .
The image above was generated on Oct. 12, 2023, with Canva鈥檚 Magic Design tool using the prompt 鈥渁bstract image college student cheating on exam.
The rapid gain in popularity of generative AI tools has raised concerns among educators that some students will misuse these tools in educational settings (e.g., use a chatbot to compose an essay or get the answers to a closed-book exam). As part of equity-minded assessment, we encourage educators to be explicit and transparent regarding which uses of AI, if any, are acceptable, as well as how students should cite AI-generated content. You can include this information in the instructions for individual assignments or a more general statement in your syllabus (e.g., Guidance on crafting an AI syllabus statement, ). Furthermore, for which it is not permitted. For students, we have also developed a list of .
Lastly, although we empathize with concerns around AI and academic dishonesty, it is important to recognize that and prone to error and biases. For example, emerging evidence suggests that GPT detectors are biased toward misclassifying non-native English writing as AI-generated (). Learn more about !
Thompson, S. A. & Hsu, T. (2023, June 28). The New York Times.
Further reading & resources:
Abid, A., Farooqi, M., & Zou, J. (2021). . Proceedings of the 2021 AAAI/ACM Conference on AI, Ethics, and Society, 298-306.
Classpoint. (n.d.). .
Crompton, H. & Burke, D. (2023). . International Journal of Education Technology in Higher Education, 20(22).
Duke Learning Innovation. (2023, September 6).
Dalhousie Centre for Learning and Teaching. (n.d.).
Eaton, L. (Host). (2023, June 29). (No. 472). [Audio podcast episode]. In Teaching in Higher Ed.
Johnson, T. L., Johnson, N. N., McCurdy, D., & Olajide, M. S. (2022). . Government Information Quarterly, 39(4).
Liang, W., Yuksekgonul, M., Mao, Y., Wu, E., & Zou, J. (2023). Patterns, 4(7), 100779.
Oregon State University. (n.d.). Artificial intelligence tools: .
Rouse, M. (2023, June 27). Techopedia.
Sun, L., Wei, M., Sun, Y., Suh, Y. J., Shen, L., & Yang, S. (2023). [Unpublished manuscript]. Department of Communication Arts, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin.
U.S. Department of Education, Office of Educational Technology (2023).
White, M. (2023, January 7). . Medium.
Whittaker, M., Alper, M., Bennett, C. L., Hendren, S., Kaziunas, L., Mills, M., Morris, M. R., Rankin, J., Rogers, E., Salas, M., & West, S. M. (2019). [Report]. AI Now Institute at NYU.
Zeide, E. (2019, August 26). . Educause Review.
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