Building AI capabilities for educators -

 Organised by  TELe advisors Network which is a SIG of ASCIILITE. 

Notes taken from webinar this afternoon on - Developing AI capabilities for teaching, learning, and educational practice - how can educators build the critical perspectives and Ai capabilities, needs to support students effectively, and navigate rapidly changing landcapes.

The webinar was faciliatated by Bettina Schwenger from University of Auckland. 

First presentation with  Associate lecturer Clare Roden from the University of Woolongong. She shared 'from curiosity to confidence' - her journey from high school teacher, through using technology to support learning and the arrival of AI. In New South Wales, there ia an AI community of practice who are working on a shared AI resource (e.g. EduChat from the Department of Education). Networks with Universities - Deakin (CRADLE), Sydney (Cogniti).

Wanted to assure deep learning and understanding rather than for students to replace their learning from AI. Foundational knowledge, curiosity, critical thinking, refleaction and evaluation, ethical judgement, feedback and revision are all important skills university stidents need to learn.

Her response was to understand how to use AI ethically and effectively. How can students use it to support their learning and to know enough, to not fear using AI. Teachers modelling how to use AI to support creative thinking is one way to help reassure students and also teach students how to use AI to support thinking. Important to steer students to the supporting resources available and to help students use AI as a support, rather than a replacement for learning. Teaching Gen AI to prompt - through character, request, example, adjust, type and extras (CREATE). for text -  bias, learn, interesting, no checkt that and know next (BLINK) and for images - bias, interesting and no check that (BIN). 

Provided some examples from using Cogniti. Grounded by 'technology can generate, people understand, and together we progress.

Next. Ashwini Datt, Marion Blumenstein and Bettina from University of Auckland on 'a networked approach to HE capability development in the age of AI. 

Introduces AiSLE - AI share and learning effort. informed by prior research on networking to build capacity for teaching technologies. Shared the AiSLE research approach. Rationale is to keep 'people in the loop' emphasise digital citizenship, complexities around literacy, dealing with AI refusal and unpacking various terminology and definitions.

Started with scoping the literature. Then a survey of HE educators. Survey focused on how LLMs differ from human 'meaning-making'; enthic awareness, confidence in identifying issues with AI, self -efficacy and professional identity. Found struggle to create assessments that guide students through critical awareness. 

Overall, support for critical, ethical and carefully governed AI but need for clearer institutional guidance, better training, equitable access and assessments that preserve meaningful learning.

Educators actively experimenting, cautiously exploring or resisting AI. Indication of Ai adoption expanding. Next steps to complete and publish scoping review, conduct focus groups and organise inter-faculty workshops.

Andrew Kemp and Roger Cook from Queensland University of Technology then presented on building capability (6 frameworks). 

Aligned these to JISC framework for digital capabilities for educators.

Then presented on one aspect - digital identity and well-being with respect to AI one of the JISC individual capabilities. along with their work in progress. Then shared a padlet for participants to add to their 'topics' for each capability. Diverse ideas collected. Modelled a way to collect data and to trigger participants to think about how they use AI, how prepared (or not) they are, and pick up new ideas from others. 

Q & A followed. 

Interesting presentations providing more to be explored. It looks like there is much activity in trying to understand how educators connect with / or not with AI, how they utilise it, support their students and better understand and work through the challenges. Good to see positive direction across Higher Education sector.