How to Make the Dream of Education Equity (or Most of It) a Reality — from nataliewexler.substack.com by Natalie Wexler
Studies on the effects of tutoring–by humans or computers–point to ways to improve regular classroom instruction.

One problem, of course, is that it’s prohibitively expensive to hire a tutor for every average or struggling student, or even one for every two or three of them. This was the two-sigma “problem” that Bloom alluded to in the title of his essay: how can the massive benefits of tutoring possibly be scaled up? Both Khan and Zuckerberg have argued that the answer is to have computers, maybe powered by artificial intelligence, serve as tutors instead of humans.

From DSC:
I’m hoping that AI-backed learning platforms WILL help many people of all ages and backgrounds. But I realize — and appreciate what Natalie is saying here as well — that human beings are needed in the learning process (especially at younger ages). 

But without the human element, that’s unlikely to be enough. Students are more likely to work hard to please a teacher than to please a computer.

Natalie goes on to talk about training all teachers in cognitive science — a solid idea for sure. That’s what I was trying to get at with this graphic:
.

We need to take more of the research from learning science and apply it in our learning spaces.

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But I’m not as hopeful in all teachers getting trained in cognitive science…as it should have happened (in the Schools of Education and in the K12 learning ecosystem at large) by now. Perhaps it will happen, given enough time.

And with more homeschooling and blended programs of education occurring, that idea gets stretched even further. 

K-12 Hybrid Schooling Is in High Demand — from realcleareducation.com by Keri D. Ingraham (emphasis below from DSC); via GSV

Parents are looking for a different kind of education for their children. A 2024 poll of parents reveals that 72% are considering, 63% are searching for, and 44% have selected a new K-12 school option for their children over the past few years. So, what type of education are they seeking?

Additional polling data reveals that 49% of parents would prefer their child learn from home at least one day a week. While 10% want full-time homeschooling, the remaining 39% of parents desire their child to learn at home one to four days a week, with the remaining days attending school on-campus. Another parent poll released this month indicates that an astonishing 64% of parents indicated that if they were looking for a new school for their child, they would enroll him or her in a hybrid school.

 

Conditions that trigger behaviour change — from peoplealchemy.com by Paul Matthews; via Learning Now TV

“Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do.”

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Learning Transfer’s ultimate outcome is behaviour change, so we must understand the conditions that trigger a behaviour to start.

According to Fogg, three specific elements must converge at the same moment for a specific behaviour to occur. Given that learning transfer is only successful when the learner starts behaving in the desired new ways, Fogg’s work is critical to understanding how to generate these new behaviours. The Fogg Behavioural Model [*1] states that B=MAP. That is, a specific behaviour will occur if at the same moment there is sufficient motivation, sufficient ability and sufficient prompt. If the behaviour does not occur, at least one of these three elements is missing or below the threshold required.

The prompt is, in effect, a call to action to do a specific behaviour. The prompt must be ‘loud’ enough for the target person to perceive it and be consciously aware of it. Once aware of a prompt, the target immediately, and largely unconsciously, assesses their ability to carry out the requested behaviour: how difficult would this be, how long will it take, who can help me, and so on. They base this on their perception of the difficulty of the requested behaviour, and their ability, as they see it, to achieve that behaviour.

 

12 Books for Instructional Designers to Read This Year — from theelearningcoach.com by Connie Malamed

Over the past year, many excellent and resourceful books have crossed my desk or Kindle. I’m rounding them up here so you can find a few to expand your horizons. The list below is in alphabetical order by title.

Each book is unique, yet as a collection, they reflect some common themes and trends in Learning and Development: a focus on empathy and emotion, adopting best practices from other fields, using data for greater impact, aligning projects with organizational goals, and developing consultative skills. The authors listed here are optimistic and forward-thinking—they believe change is possible. I hope you enjoy the books.

 

A Notre Dame Senior’s Perspective on AI in the Classroom — from learning.nd.edu — by Sarah Ochocki; via Derek Bruff on LinkedIn

At this moment, as a college student trying to navigate the messy, fast-developing, and varied world of generative AI, I feel more confused than ever. I think most of us can share that feeling. There’s no roadmap on how to use AI in education, and there aren’t the typical years of proof to show something works. However, this promising new tool is sitting in front of us, and we would be foolish to not use it or talk about it.

I’ve used it to help me understand sample code I was viewing, rather than mindlessly trying to copy what I was trying to learn from. I’ve also used it to help prepare for a debate, practicing making counterarguments to the points it came up with.

AI alone cannot teach something; there needs to be critical interaction with the responses we are given. However, this is something that is true of any form of education. I could sit in a lecture for hours a week, but if I don’t do the homework or critically engage with the material, I don’t expect to learn anything.


A Map of Generative AI for Education — from medium.com by Laurence Holt; via GSV
An update to our map of the current state-of-the-art


Last ones (for now):


Survey: K-12 Students Want More Guidance on Using AI — from govtech.com by Lauraine Langreo
Research from the nonprofit National 4-H Council found that most 9- to 17-year-olds have an idea of what AI is and what it can do, but most would like help from adults in learning how to use different AI tools.

“Preparing young people for the workforce of the future means ensuring that they have a solid understanding of these new technologies that are reshaping our world,” Jill Bramble, the president and CEO of the National 4-H Council, said in a press release.

AI School Guidance Document Toolkit, with Free Comprehensive Review — from tefanbauschard.substack.com by Stefan Bauschard and Dr. Sabba Quidwai

 

State of Higher Ed LMS Market for US and Canada: Year-End 2023 Edition — from onedtech.philhillaa.com by Phil Hill

  • The market continues to be a matter of Canvas and Brightspace winning new accounts, Anthology Bb Learn and Moodle losing accounts, with more variety for smaller institutions.
  • Canvas has further consolidated its position as the market leader in North America, with 41% of the market share. Blackboard fell from 18% of the market share to 17%. Moodle has plateaued at 16% while Brightspace increased to 16%. As a reminder, we have removed Open LMS from the Moodle market share.
  • Populi LMS (3%), Open LMS (3%), Sakai (2%), and Schoology (1%) round out the remainder of the market, with 1% of the market going to Other.
  • As always, market share is very much a story of size, type of institution (public or private), and control. The numbers above refer to the market take as a whole, but if we start to drill down to different sizes and types of institution, we get very different market dynamics.

.

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AI Is Becoming an Integral Part of the Instructional Design Process — from drphilippahardman.substack.com Dr. Philippa Hardman
What I learned from 150 interviews with instructional designers

1. AI already plays a central part in the instructional design process
A whopping 95.3% of the instructional designers interviewed said they use AI in their day to day work. Those who don’t use AI cite access or permission issues as the primary reason that they haven’t integrated AI into their process.

2. AI is predominantly used at the design and development stages of the instructional design process 
When mapped to the ADDIE process, the breakdown of use cases goes as follows:

  • Analysis: 5.5% of use cases
  • Design: 32.1%
  • Development: 53.2%
  • Implementation: 1.8%
  • Evaluation: 7.3%

Speaking of AI in our learning ecosystems, also see:


Will AI Use in Schools Increase Next Year? 56 Percent of Educators Say Yes — from edweek.org by Alyson Klein

The majority of educators expect use of artificial intelligence tools will increase in their school or district over the next year, according to an EdWeek Research Center survey.

Applying Multimodal AI to L&D — from learningguild.com by Sarah Clark
We’re just starting to see Multimodal AI systems hit the spotlight. Unlike the text-based and image-generation AI tools we’ve seen before, multimodal systems can absorb and generate content in multiple formats – text, image, video, audio, etc.

 

 

From DSC:
Given this need…

We need to take more of the research from learning science and apply it in our learning spaces.
…I’m highlighting the following resources:


How Learning Happens  — from edutopia.org
In this series, we explore how educators can guide all students, regardless of their developmental starting points, to become productive and engaged learners.

These techniques have resonated with educators everywhere: They are focused on taking advantage of the incredible opportunity to help children reach their full potential by creating positive relationships, experiences, and environments in which every student can thrive. In fact, the science is beginning to hint at even more dramatic outcomes. Practices explicitly designed to integrate social, emotional, and cognitive skills in the classroom, the research suggests, can reverse the damages wrought by childhood trauma and stress—while serving the needs of all students and moving them onto a positive developmental and academic path.


Also from edutopia.org recently, see:

How to Introduce Journaling to Young Children — from edutopia.org by Connie Morris
Students in preschool through second grade can benefit from drawing or writing to explore their thoughts and feelings.

The symbiotic relationship between reading and writing can help our youngest students grow their emergent literacy skills. The idea of teaching writing at an early age can seem daunting. However, meeting children where they are developmentally can make a journaling activity become a magical experience—and they don’t have to write words but can convey thoughts in pictures.

7 Digital Tools That Help Bring History to Life — from edutopia.org by Daniel Leonard
Challenging games, fun projects, and a healthy dose of AI tools round out our top picks for breathing new life into history lessons.

We’ve compiled a list of seven teacher-tested tools, and we lay out how educators are using them both to enhance their lessons and to bring history closer to the present than ever.

Integrating Technology Into Collaborative Professional Learning — from edutopia.org by Roxi Thompson
Incorporating digital collaboration into PD gives teachers a model to replicate when setting up tech activities for students.

 

Online Teaching Is Improving In-Person Instruction on Campus — from edsurge.com by Robert Ubell (Columnist)

In fact a slew of research over the past two decades has found that teaching online makes professors better teachers in their classrooms, so much so that one 2009 study recommended that “faculty should be trained in distance education methods and technologies and should be encouraged to use those methods back in the classroom.”

It’s a message I’ve been arguing for a while. But now that so many educators and students have had direct experience with online formats, it’s a narrative that seems to be sinking in.

Now is the time to fully embrace how physical classrooms can be improved by online techniques.

When professors teaching face-to-face adopt online pedagogy, the classroom is transformed into a “blended” experience, moving from conventional to active learning. And that helps students turn from passive to engaged participants in their own intellectual excursions.

 

Ecosystems for the future of learning — from thebigidea.education-reimagined.org by Education Reimagined and the History Co:Lab

The intent of this report is to help communities build their capacity for transformation of education, advancing toward what our society needs most—a system that works for young people. It draws on the experiences and insights of innovators across the United States who are already answering this challenge—creating learner-centered, community-based ecosystems.

This report includes:

  • a landscape analysis of select communities creating learning ecosystems;
  • a framework that emerged from the analysis and can be used by communities to consider their readiness and appetite for this transformation;
  • an invitation to communities to explore and discover their own path for reimagining education; and
  • a call for national and regional institutions to listen, learn from, and create the conditions for communities to pursue their visions.

From DSC:
The above items was accessed via the article below:

Where Does Work to Imagine a Learner-Centered Ecosystem Begin? — from gettingsmart.com by Alin Bennett

Key Points

  • The Norris School District in Wisconsin exemplifies how learner profiles and community connections can enhance authentic learning experiences for young people, fostering a culture of belonging and responsibility.
  • Purdue Polytechnic High School demonstrates the importance of enabling conditions, such as creating microschools with access to shared services, to support a learner-centered approach while ensuring scalability and access to a variety of resources.
 

Programs, Services, and More: A Map of CTL Tactics — from derekbruff.org

My colleagues and I at the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL) have been reading and discussing Mary C. Wright’s new book Centers for Teaching and Learning: The New Landscape in Higher Education (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2023). Wright identified all the centers for teaching and learning (CTLs) in the United States and then did a content analysis of their websites to see what they were all about. For someone like me, who has spent his career working in CTLs, Wright’s work is a fascinating look at my own field and how it represents itself through mission statements, listings of programs and services, and annual reports.

Also from Derek, see:

Recap: Study skills, flipped learning, and more at spring STEM teaching lunches — from umcetl.substack.com
With the final spring STEM teaching lunch coming up on March 4th, here’s a recap of what you missed at the first two lunches.

    • February 8th – Helping students learn how to learn
    • February 20th – Reconsidering class time through flipped learning
 

Using Generative AI throughout the Institution — from aiedusimplified.substack.com by Lance Eaton
8 lightning talk on generative AI and how to use it through higher education


The magic of AI to help educators with saving time. — from magicschool.ai; via Mrs. Kendall Sajdak


Getting Better Results out of Generative AI — from aiedusimplified.substack.com by Lance Eaton
The prompt to use before you prompt generative AI

Last month, I discussed a GPT that I had created around enhancing prompts. Since then, I have been actively using my Prompt Enhancer GPT to much more effective outputs. Last week, I did a series of mini-talks on generative AI in different parts of higher education (faculty development, human resources, grants, executive leadership, etc) and structured it as “5 tips”. I included a final bonus tip in all of them—a tip that I heard from many afterwards was probably the most useful tip—especially because you can only access the Prompt Enhancer GPT if you are paying for ChatGPT.


Exploring the Opportunities and Challenges with Generative AI — from er.educause.edu by Veronica Diaz

Effectively integrating generative AI into higher education requires policy development, cross-functional engagement, ethical principles, risk assessments, collaboration with other institutions, and an exploration of diverse use cases.


Creating Guidelines for the Use of Gen AI Across Campus — from campustechnology.com by Rhea Kelly
The University of Kentucky has taken a transdisciplinary approach to developing guidelines and recommendations around generative AI, incorporating input from stakeholders across all areas of the institution. Here, the director of UK’s Center for the Enhancement of Learning and Teaching breaks down the structure and thinking behind that process.

That resulted in a set of instructional guidelines that we released in August of 2023 and updated in December of 2023. We’re also looking at guidelines for researchers at UK, and we’re currently in the process of working with our colleagues in the healthcare enterprise, UK Healthcare, to comb through the additional complexities of this technology in clinical care and to offer guidance and recommendations around those issues.


From Mean Drafts to Keen Emails — from automatedteach.com by Graham Clay

My experiences match with the results of the above studies. The second study cited above found that 83% of those students who haven’t used AI tools are “not interested in using them,” so it is no surprise that many students have little awareness of their nature. The third study cited above found that, “apart from 12% of students identifying as daily users,” most students’ use cases were “relatively unsophisticated” like summarizing or paraphrasing text.

For those of us in the AI-curious bubble, we need to continually work to stay current, but we also need to recognize that what we take to be “common knowledge” is far from common outside of the bubble.


What do superintendents need to know about artificial intelligence? — from k12dive.com by Roger Riddell
District leaders shared strategies and advice on ethics, responsible use, and the technology’s limitations at the National Conference on Education.

Despite general familiarity, however, technical knowledge shouldn’t be assumed for district leaders or others in the school community. For instance, it’s critical that any materials related to AI not be written in “techy talk” so they can be clearly understood, said Ann McMullan, project director for the Consortium for School Networking’s EmpowerED Superintendents Initiative.

To that end, CoSN, a nonprofit that promotes technological innovation in K-12, has released an array of AI resources to help superintendents stay ahead of the curve, including a one-page explainer that details definitions and guidelines to keep in mind as schools work with the emerging technology.


 

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Per Donald Taylor this morning:

The results of this year’s L&D Global Sentiment Survey are now live online!

They are unlike anything else I’ve seen in the 11-history of the Survey.

Over 3,000 people from nearly 100 countries shared their views, and you can see my summary of them on LinkedIn:


 

 

Top 6 Use Cases of Generative AI in Education in 2024 — from research.aimultiple.com by Cem Dilmegani

Use cases included:

  1. Personalized Lessons
  2. Course Design
  3. Content Creation for Courses
  4. Data Privacy Protection for Analytical Models
  5. Restoring Old Learning Materials
  6. Tutoring

The Next Phase of AI in Education at the U.S. Department of Education — from medium.com by Office of Ed Tech

Why are we doing this work?
Over the past two years, the U.S. Department of Education has been committed to maintaining an ongoing conversation with educators, students, researchers, developers — and the educational community at large — related to the continuous progress of Artificial Intelligence (AI) development and its implications for teaching and learning.

Many educators are seeking resources clarifying what AI is and how it will impact their work and their students. Similarly, developers of educational technology (“edtech”) products seek guidance on what guardrails exist that can support their efforts. After the release of our May 2023 report Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Teaching and Learningwe heard the desire for more.


2024 EDUCAUSE AI Landscape Study — from library.educause.edu by Jenay Robert

Moving from reaction to action, higher education stakeholders are currently exploring the opportunities afforded by AI for teaching, learning, and work while maintaining a sense of caution for the vast array of risks AI-powered technologies pose. To aid in these efforts, we present this inaugural EDUCAUSE AI Landscape Study, in which we summarize the higher education community’s current sentiments and experiences related to strategic planning and readiness, policies and procedures, workforce, and the future of AI in higher education.


AI Update for K-16 Administrators: More People Need to Step-Up and Take the AI Bull By the Horns — from stefanbauschard.substack.com by Stefan Bauschard
AI capabilities are way beyond what most schools are aware of, and they will transform education and society over the next few years.

Educational administrators should not worry about every AI development, but should, instead focus on the big picture, as those big picture changes will change the entire world and the educational system.

AI and related technologies (robotics, synthetic biology, and brain-computer interfaces) will continue to impact society and the entire educational system over the next 10 years. This impact on the system will be greater than anything that has happened over the last 100 years, including COVID-19, as COVID-19 eventually ended and the disruptive force of these technologies will only continue to develop.

AI is the bull in the China Shop, redefining the world and the educational system. Students writing a paper with AI is barely a poke in the educational world relative to what is starting to happen (active AI teachers and tutors; AI assessment; AI glasses; immersive learning environments; young students able to start their own business with AI tools; AIs replacing and changing jobs; deep voice and video fakes; intelligence leveling; individualized instruction; interactive and highly intelligent computers; computers that can act autonomously; and more).


 

 

Digital Learning Pulse Survey Reveals Higher-Ed Unprepared for Expected Impact of AI — from prnewswire.com by Cengage
Research illustrates that while GenAI could ease ongoing challenges in education, just 1 in 5 say their school is ready

WASHINGTONFeb. 6, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — While three-quarters of higher-education trustees (83%), faculty (81%) and administrators (76%) agree that generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) will noticeably change their institutions in the next five years, community college trustees are more optimistic than their community college counterparts, with (37%) saying their organization is prepared for the change coming compared to just 16% of faculty and 11% of administrator respondents.

Those findings are from the 2023-2024 Digital Learning Pulse Survey conducted by Cengage and Bay View Analytics with support from the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT), the Association of College and University Educators (ACUE), College Pulse and the United States Distance Learning Association (USDLA) to understand the attitudes and concerns of higher education instructors and leadership.

From DSC:
It takes time to understand what a given technology brings to the table…let alone a slew of emerging technologies under the artificial intelligence (AI) umbrella. It’s hard enough when the technology is fairly well established and not changing all the time. But its extremely difficult when significant change occurs almost daily. 

The limited staff within the teaching & learning centers out there need time to research and learn about the relevant technologies and how to apply those techs to instructional design. The already stretched thin faculty members need time to learn about those techs as well — and if and how they want to apply them. It takes time and research and effort.

Provosts, deans, presidents, and such need time to learn things as well.

Bottom line: We need to have realistic expectations here.


AI Adoption in Corporate L&D — from drphilippahardman.substack.com by Dr. Philippa Hardman
Where we are, and the importance of use cases in enabling change

At the end of last year, O’Reilly Media published a comprehensive report on the adoption and impact of generative AI within enterprises.

The headline of the report is that we’ve never seen a technology adopted in enterprise as fast as generative AI. As of November 2023, two-thirds (67%) of survey respondents reported that their companies are using generative AI.

However, the vast majority of AI adopters in enterprise are still in the early stages; they’re experimenting at the edges, rather than making larger-scale, strategic decisions on how to leverage AI to accelerate our progress towards org goals and visions.

The single biggest hurdle to AI adoption in large corporates is a lack of appropriate use cases.

 

Conversational & Experiential: The New Duality of Learning — from learningguild.com by Markus Bernhardt

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

The future of corporate learning and development (L&D) is being profoundly reshaped by the progress we are witnessing in artificial intelligence (AI). The increasing availability of new technologies and tools is causing L&D leaders and their teams to rethink their strategy and processes, and even their team structure. The resulting shift, already gaining momentum, will soon move us toward a future where learning experiences are deeply personal, interactive, and contextually rich.

The technological advancements at the forefront of this revolution:

  • Allow us to create high-quality content faster and at a fraction of the cost previously experienced.
  • Provide us with a range of new modalities of delivery, such as chat interfaces, as well as immersive and experiential simulations and games.
  • Enable us to transform learning and training more and more into a journey uniquely tailored to each individual’s learning path, strengths, weaknesses, and confidence levels.

We are already seeing signs of the immediate future—one where AI will adapt not only content but the entire learner experience, on-the-fly and aligned with the needs and requirements of the learner at a specific moment of need.


Harnessing AI in L&D: Reviewing 2023 & Imagining the Future — from learningguild.com by Juan Naranjo

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

AI-assisted design & development work: A dramatic shift
This prediction was right. There has been a seismic shift in instructional design, and the role is evolving toward content curation, editing, and resource orchestration. Critical thinking skills are becoming more important than ever to make sure that the final learning asset is accurate. All of this is happening thanks to AI tools like:

  • Adobe Firefly…
  • ChatGPT…
  • Another tool, one that isn’t usually part of the L&D ecosystem, is Microsoft’s Azure AI Services…

Early estimates indicate these improvements save between 30 percent and 60 percent of development time.

As a reminder, meta-learning, in this context, refers to tools that serve up experiences to learners based on their preferences, needs, and goals. It is the superstructure behind the content assets (e.g., programs, courses, articles, videos, etc.) that assembles everything into a coherent, and purposeful, body of knowledge for the users.

 
© 2024 | Daniel Christian