personalized/customized learning

“OpenAI announces first partnership with a university” [Field] + other items re: AI in our Learning Ecosystems

On 01/19/2024, in adult learning, Artificial Intelligence / Agents / LLMs / and Related, bots, business, collaboration, colleges, community colleges, corporate / business world, curriculum, digital learning, education technology, emerging technologies, experimentation, future, future of higher education, game-changing environment, Google, higher education, human-computer interaction (HCI), ideas, innovation, instructional design, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, IT in HE, leadership, learning agents, learning ecosystem, mathematics, Open AI, personalized/customized learning, platforms, productivity / tips and tricks, strategy, teaching & learning, tools, training / L&D, trends, United States, universities, using teams, vendors, web-based collaboration, workplace, by Daniel Christian

OpenAI announces first partnership with a university — from cnbc.com by Hayden Field

Key Points:

OpenAI on Thursday announced its first partnership with a higher education institution.
Starting in February, Arizona State University will have full access to ChatGPT Enterprise and plans to use it for coursework, tutoring, research and more.
The partnership has been in the works for at least six months.
ASU plans to build a personalized AI tutor for students, allow students to create AI avatars for study help and broaden the university’s prompt engineering course.

A new collaboration with OpenAI charts the future of AI in higher education — from news.asu.edu

The collaboration between ASU and OpenAI brings the advanced capabilities of ChatGPT Enterprise into higher education, setting a new precedent for how universities enhance learning, creativity and student outcomes.

“ASU recognizes that augmented and artificial intelligence systems are here to stay, and we are optimistic about their ability to become incredible tools that help students to learn, learn more quickly and understand subjects more thoroughly,” ASU President Michael M. Crow said. “Our collaboration with OpenAI reflects our philosophy and our commitment to participating directly to the responsible evolution of AI learning technologies.”

AI <> Academia — from drphilippahardman.substack.com by Dr. Philippa Hardman
What might emerge from ASU’s pioneering partnership with OpenAI?

Phil’s Wish List #2: Smart Curriculum Development
ChatGPT assists in creating and updating course curricula, based on both student data and emerging domain and pedagogical research on the topic.

Output: using AI it will be possible to review course content and make data-informed automate recommendations based on latest pedagogical and domain-specific research

Potential Impact: increased dynamism and relevance in course content and reduced administrative lift for academics.

A full list of AI ideas from AI-for-Education.org

You can filter by category, by ‘What does it do?’, by AI tool or search for keywords.

Navigating the new normal: Adapting in the age of AI and hybrid work models — from chieflearningofficer.com by Dr. Kylie Ensrud

Unlike traditional leadership, adaptable leadership is not bound by rigid rules and protocols. Instead, it thrives on flexibility. Adaptable leaders are willing to experiment, make course corrections, and pivot when necessary. Adaptable leadership is about flexibility, resilience and a willingness to embrace change. It embodies several key principles that redefine the role of leaders in organizations:

Embracing uncertainty

Adaptable leaders understand that uncertainty is the new norm. They do not shy away from ambiguity but instead, see it as an opportunity for growth and innovation. They encourage a culture of experimentation and learning from failure.

Empowering teams

Instead of dictating every move, adaptable leaders empower their teams to take ownership of their work. They foster an environment of trust and collaboration, enabling individuals to contribute their unique perspectives and skills.

Continuous learning

Adaptable leaders are lifelong learners. They are constantly seeking new knowledge, stay informed about industry trends and encourage their teams to do the same. They understand that knowledge is a dynamic asset that must be constantly updated.

Major AI in Education Related Developments this week — from stefanbauschard.substack.com by Stefan Bauschard
ASU integrates with ChatGPT, K-12 AI integrations, Agents & the Rabbit, Uruguay, Meta and AGI, Rethinking curriculum

“The greatest risk is leaving school curriculum unchanged when the entire world is changing.”
Hadi Partovi, founder Code.org, Angel investor in Facebook, DropBox, AirBnb, Uber

Tutorbots in college. On a more limited scale, Georgia State University, Morgan State University, and the University of Central Florida are piloting a project using chatbots to support students in foundational math and English courses.

Pioneering AI-Driven Instructional Design in Small College Settings — from campustechnology.com by Gopu Kiron
For institutions that lack the budget or staff expertise to utilize instructional design principles in online course development, generative AI may offer a way forward.

Unfortunately, smaller colleges — arguably the institutions whose students are likely to benefit the most from ID enhancements — frequently find themselves excluded from authentically engaging in the ID arena due to tight budgets, limited faculty online course design expertise, and the lack of ID-specific staff roles. Despite this, recent developments in generative AI may offer these institutions a low-cost, tactical avenue to compete with more established players.

Google’s new AI solves math olympiad problems — from bensbites.beehiiv.com

There’s a new AI from Google DeepMind called AlphaGeometry that totally nails solving super hard geometry problems. We’re talking problems so tough only math geniuses who compete in the International Mathematical Olympiad can figure them out.

Your classmate could be an AI student at this Michigan university [Frick] + other AI in our Learning Ecosystems

On 01/14/2024, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, Artificial Intelligence / Agents / LLMs / and Related, collaboration, colleges, community colleges, consortiums, emerging technologies, experimentation, faculty, innovation, instructional design, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Michigan, personalized/customized learning, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

Your classmate could be an AI student at this Michigan university — from mlive.com by Melissa Frick

BIG RAPIDS, MI – A Michigan university is believed to be the first in the country to use artificial intelligence (AI) to create virtual students that will enroll in classes and participate in lessons and assignments.

Ferris State University, which has one of just three undergraduate AI programs in the U.S., has developed two AI students who are enrolling at Ferris State as freshmen this semester and taking classes alongside human classmates.

At first, Ann and Fry will only be able to observe the class, but the goal is for the AI students to soon be able to speak during classroom discussions and have two-way conversations with their classmates, Thompson said.

Also relevant, see:

These two new Ferris State students are actually AI — from woodtv.com by Demetrios Sanders

BIG RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — As Ferris State University gets ready for its spring semester, two virtual students will begin classes as part of a new artificial intelligence experiment.

Ferris State University offers one of three AI undergraduate programs in the entire country.

“We are leaders in the artificial intelligence area, and why not put us to the test?” said Dr. Kasey Thompson, special assistant to the president for innovation and entrepreneurship at Ferris State.

University enrolling AI-powered “Students” who will turn in assignments, participate in class discussions — from futurism.com
Even students aren’t safe from AI.

Students at Ferris State University in Michigan will soon be sharing the classroom with AI-powered freshman “students” who will enroll in classes alongside them, MLive reports.

And no, they won’t have humanoid robot bodies — they’ll be interacting with students via computers, microphones, and speakers.

In an experiment led by associate professor Kasey Thompson, AI students dubbed Ann and Fry will be listening — or scanning through? — lectures, work on assignments, and even actively participate in discussions with other students, per the report.

AI & “Un-Personalised” Learning — from drphilippahardman.substack.com by Dr. Philippa Hardman
Exploring the full potential of AI to improve human learning, beyond the 1:1 AI tutor

In this week’s blog post we will look at AI from a different angle and ask: what are the pros and cons of using AI for personalisation? And what’s the potential impact of using AI to optimise and scale more connected, communal learning experiences?
…
TL;DR: while personalised learning has some benefits for some learner outcomes, the social interaction and connected aspects of communal learning are proven to offer similar academic benefits, as well as additional socio-cultural benefits for a broader range of students.
…
AI for “Un-Personalised” Learning
The next question is, of course: how could we use AI to scale the positive outcomes of “un-personalised”, communal learning?

Here are some initial ideas:

How to make the most of ChatGPT in 2024 — from wondertools.substack.com by Jeremy Caplan
A Wonder Tools guide

N.Y. Governor Hochul Proposes $400 Million To Launch University AI Consortium — from forbes-com.cdn.ampproject.org by Michael T. Nietzel

New York Governor Kathy Hochul wants to make New York the nation’s leader in artificial intelligence research and development. As part of her State of the State address on Tuesday, Hochul proposed the creation of Empire AI – a consortium of the state’s research universities and other institutions that would form an artificial intelligence computing center in upstate New York.

Empire AI would include seven founding institutions—Columbia University, Cornell University, New York University, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, the State University of New York (SUNY), the City University of New York (CUNY), and the Simons Foundation.

North Carolina AI Education Guidance Release — from stefanbauschard.substack.com by Stefan Bauschard
“A” grade in my mind; it just needs to anticipate the near future a bit more

TLDR
The Guidance

*North Carolina has arguably issued the best AI guidance to date (IMHO), and I explain why below (my highlighted version is here). This is in no way a knock on the other guidance reports, as I think they offer a lot them of very important and essential guidance. I just really like how NC packages it and the emphasis they put on certain things.

How to Co-Design Curriculum: Fostering Inclusivity through Shared Family Narratives — from gettingsmart.com by Jimmy McCue

Key Points

Discover a learner-centric curriculum at Embark Education, where learners recently co-designed a transformative project centered around family narratives and recipes.
Explore the intersection of culinary traditions, empathy, and critical analysis as learners delve into the complexities of cultural revitalization, shifting demographics, and systemic inequities in their communities.
Engage with a hands-on approach to competency-based education, culminating in the creation of a culturally rich product in collaboration with local community partners, fostering a deep sense of pride and ownership among learners and their respective communities, alike.

From DSC:
I especially like the learner-centered approach, along with the collaboration with local community partners here. As described in Getting Smart’s Smart Update:

Microschool Spotlight: Embark Education

Getting Smart admires Embark Education’s innovative approach for reimagining the middle school experience, recognizing the pivotal nature of adolescence. With a commitment to providing personalized and relevant learning experiences, Embark supports learners in courageously exploring, engaging, and discovering their sense of self, contributing to the broader mission of revolutionizing education.

“We are anchored in the unwavering belief that by simply trusting learners, both youth and adults, we create the conditions for them to curiously and confidently unlock their potential – and that their potential is limitless.” – Brian Hyosaka, Head of School

AI University for UK? [Clark]

On 01/05/2024, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, apprenticeships, Artificial Intelligence / Agents / LLMs / and Related, assessment, change, changing business models, competency-based learning/education, content development, aggregation, repositories, credentialing, culture, curriculum, Design Thinking, digital learning, education technology, emerging technologies, experimentation, future, future of higher education, higher education, ideas, innovation, instructional design, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning preferences, lifelong learning, multimedia, online learning, open courseware and systems, personalized/customized learning, strategy, student-related, teachers, teaching & learning, teaching online, tools, UK, United States, universities, vision/possibilities, by Daniel Christian

AI University for UK? — from donaldclarkplanb.blogspot.com by Donald Clark

Tertiary Education in the UK needs a fresh idea. What we need is an initiative on the same scale as The Open University, kicked off over 50 years ago.
…
It is clear that an educational vision is needed and I think the best starting point is that outlined and executed by Paul LeBlanc at SNHU. It is substantial, well articulated and has worked in what has become the largest University in the US.

It would be based on the competence model, with a focus on skills shortages. Here’s a starter with 25 ideas, a manifesto of sorts, based on lessons learnt from other successful models:

Non-traditional students in terms of age and background
Quick and easy application process
Personalised learning using AI
Multimodal from the start
Full range of summarisation, create self-assessment, dialogue tools
Focus on generative learning using AI
…and Donald lists many more (ending at #25)

Where a developing, new kind of learning ecosystem is likely headed [Christian]

On 11/17/2023, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, adjunct faculty, Artificial Intelligence / Agents / LLMs / and Related, career development, change, changing business models, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, colleges, communities of practice, community colleges, competency-based learning/education, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, cost of getting a degree, Daniel S. Christian, digital learning, distance education, education, education technology, educational games / serious games, elearning, emerging technologies, engagement / engaging students, faculty, future, future of higher education, game-changing environment, generational differences, heutagogy, higher education, homeschooling/homeschoolers, human-computer interaction (HCI), ideas, innovation, instructional design, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, K-12 related, law schools, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning spaces, lifelong learning, love of learning, marketplaces, microlearning, more voice more choice more control, new business models, online learning, online media, online tutoring, personalized/customized learning, platforms, professional development, reinvent, skills, smart/connected TV, social learning / networks, society, streams of content, student-related, teachers, teaching & learning, teaching online, technologies for your home, training / L&D, trends, ubiquitous learning, United States, universities, using teams, vendors, virtual tutoring, vision/possibilities, vocational / trades, workplace, youth, by Daniel Christian

From DSC:
As I’ve long stated on the Learning from the Living [Class]Room vision, we are heading toward a new AI-empowered learning platform — where humans play a critically important role in making this new learning ecosystem work.

Along these lines, I ran into this site out on X/Twitter. We’ll see how this unfolds, but it will be an interesting space to watch.

From DSC:
This future learning platform will also focus on developing skills and competencies. Along those lines, see:

Scale for Skills-First — from the-job.beehiiv.com by Paul Fain
An ed-tech giant’s ambitious moves into digital credentialing and learner records.

A Digital Canvas for Skills
Instructure was a player in the skills and credentials space before its recent acquisition of Parchment, a digital transcript company. But that $800M move made many observers wonder if Instructure can develop digital records of skills that learners, colleges, and employers might actually use broadly.
…

Ultimately, he says, the CLR approach will allow students to bring these various learning types into a coherent format for employers.

Instructure seeks a leadership role in working with other organizations to establish common standards for credentials and learner records, to help create consistency. The company collaborates closely with 1EdTech. And last month it helped launch the 1EdTech TrustEd Microcredential Coalition, which aims to increase quality and trust in digital credentials.

Paul also links to 1EDTECH’s page regarding the Comprehensive Learning Record

From GPTs (pt. 3) — from theneurondaily.com by Noah Edelman

BTW, here are a few GPTs worth checking out today:

ConvertAnything—convert images, audio, videos, PDFs, files, & more.
editGPT—edit any writing (like Grammarly inside ChatGPT).
Grimoire—a coding assistant that helps you build anything!

Some notes from Dan Fitzpatrick – The AI Educator:

Custom GPT Bots:

These could help with the creation of interactive learning assistants, aligned with curricula.
They can be easily created with natural language programming.
Important to note users must have a ChatGPT Plus paid account

Custom GPT Store:

Marketplace for sharing and accessing educational GPT tools created by other teachers.
A store could offer access to specialised tools for diverse learning needs.
A store could enhance teaching strategies when accessing proven, effective GPT applications.

From DSC:
I appreciate Dan’s potential menu of options for a child’s education:

Monday AM: Sports club
Monday PM: Synthesis Online School AI Tutor
Tuesday AM: Music Lesson
Tuesday PM: Synthesis Online School Group Work
Wednesday AM: Drama Rehearsal
Wednesday PM: Synthesis Online School AI Tutor
Thursday AM: Volunteer work
Thursday PM: Private study
Friday AM: Work experience
Friday PM: Work experience

Our daughter has special learning needs and this is very similar to what she is doing.

Also, Dan has a couple of videos out here at Google for Education:

The future of generative AI in higher ed? How to be critical, pragmatic, and playful at once? Nothing like having someone you admire ask you hard questions in a friendly way. This Q&A with Leon Furze got me to take a stab at articulating some responses.https://t.co/IxreZYwWmv

— Anna Mills, annamillsoer.bsky.social, she/her (@EnglishOER) November 13, 2023

Tuesday’s AI Ten for Educators (November 14) — from stefanbauschard.substack.com by Stefan Bauschard
Ten AI developments for educators to be aware of

Two boxes. In my May Cottesmore presentation, I put up two boxes:

(a) Box 1 — How educators can use AI to do what they do now (lesson plans, quizzes, tests, vocabulary lists, etc.)

(b) Box 2 — How the education system needs to change because, in the near future (sort of already), everyone is going to have multiple AIs working with them all day, and the premium on intelligence, especially “knowledge-based” intelligence, is going to decline rapidly. It’s hard to think that significant changes in the education system won’t be needed to accommodate that change.

There is a lot of focus on preparing educators to work in Box 1, which is important, if for no other reason than that they can see the power of even the current but limited technologies, but the hard questions are starting to be about Box 2. I encourage you to start those conversations, as the “ed tech” companies already are, and they’ll be happy to provide the answers and the services if you don’t want to.

Practical suggestions: Two AI teams in your institution. Team 1 works on Box A and Team 2 works on Box B.

“Colleges are wasting valuable time. They can’t keep AI out of the classroom.” [Gulya] + other items re: AI in our Learning Ecosystems

On 10/30/2023, in adjunct faculty, Artificial Intelligence / Agents / LLMs / and Related, business side of he, change, colleges, community colleges, education technology, emerging technologies, expectations, experimentation, faculty, future, future of higher education, game-changing environment, generational differences, higher education, innovation, instructional design, intelligent systems, law schools, leadership, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, personalized/customized learning, platforms, strategy, student-related, teachers, technology (general), tools, United States, universities, writing, by Daniel Christian

Teaching writing in the age of AI — from the Future of Learning (a Hechinger Report newsletter) by Javeria Salman

ChatGPT can produce a perfectly serviceable writing “product,” she said. But writing isn’t a product per se — it’s a tool for thinking, for organizing ideas, she said.

“ChatGPT and other text-based tools can’t think for us,” she said. “There’s still things to learn when it comes to writing because writing is a form of figuring out what you think.”

When students could contrast their own writing to ChatGPT’s more generic version, Levine said, they were able to “understand what their own voice is and what it does.”

Grammarly’s new generative AI feature learns your style — and applies it to any text — from techcrunch.com by Kyle Wiggers; via Tom Barrett

But what about text? Should — and if so, how should — writers be recognized and remunerated for AI-generated works that mimic their voices?

Those are questions that are likely to be raised by a feature in Grammarly, the cloud-based typing assistant, that’s scheduled to launch by the end of the year for subscribers to Grammarly’s business tier. Called “Personalized voice detection and application,” the feature automatically detects a person’s unique writing style and creates a “voice profile” that can rewrite any text in the person’s style.

Is AI Quietly Weaving the Fabric of a Global Classroom Renaissance? — from medium.com by Robert the Robot
In a world constantly buzzing with innovation, a silent revolution is unfolding within the sanctuaries of learning—our classrooms.

From bustling metropolises to serene hamlets, schools across the globe are greeting a new companion—Artificial Intelligence (AI). This companion promises to redefine the essence of education, making learning a journey tailored to each child’s unique abilities.

The advent of AI in education is akin to a gentle breeze, subtly transforming the academic landscape. Picture a classroom where each child, with their distinct capabilities and pace, embarks on a personalized learning path. AI morphs this vision into reality, crafting a personalized educational landscape that celebrates the unique potential harbored within every learner.

AI Books for Educators — from aiadvisoryboards.wordpress.com by Barbara Anna Zielonka

Books have always held a special place in my heart. As an avid reader and AI enthusiast, I have curated a list of books on artificial intelligence specifically tailored for educators. These books delve into the realms of AI, exploring its applications, ethical considerations, and its impact on education. Share your suggestions and let me know which books you would like to see included on this list.

SAIL: ELAI recordings, AI Safety, Near term AI/learning — by George Siemens

We held our fourth online Empowering Learners for the Age of AI conference last week. We sold out at 1500 people (a Whova and budget limit). The recordings/playlist from the conference can now be accessed here.

Competency-Based Education (CBE) Learning Platform Architecture White Paper [Feldstein]

On 10/18/2023, in career development, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, CMS/LMS, colleges, communities of practice, community colleges, competency-based learning/education, computer science, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, personalized/customized learning, platforms, programming, tools, United States, vendors, vision/possibilities, by Daniel Christian

Competency-Based Education (CBE) Learning Platform Architecture White Paper — from eliterate.us by Michael Feldstein

The core principles
The four basic principles for an LMS or learning platform to support CBE are simple:

Separate skill tree:
Mastery learning:
Integration:
Evidence of achievement:

IBM Commits to Train 2 Million AI Learners for Free by 2026 [Lucariello] + “Teaching with AI is hard.” [Gulya]

On 10/16/2023, in Artificial Intelligence / Agents / LLMs / and Related, business, corporate / business world, emerging technologies, experimentation, IBM, personalized/customized learning, training / L&D, United States, vendors, workplace, by Daniel Christian

IBM Commits to Train 2 Million AI Learners for Free by 2026 — from campustechnology.com by Kate Lucariello

As part of the 2023 78th General Assembly of the United Nations, IBM announced it will train, for free, 2 million learners in artificial intelligence worldwide within the next three years, building on its existing commitment to skill 30 million learners by 2030.

The free program, called IBM SkillsBuild, will use its career-building platforms to partner with universities around the world to develop and make available new generative AI courses, with a significant focus on adult learners in underrepresented communities.

Goldman Sachs CIO is ‘anxious to see results’ from GenAI, but moving carefully — from venturebeat.com by Sharon Goldman

Consider Marco Argenti, CIO at Goldman Sachs — who told me in a recent interview that the leading global investment banking, securities and investment management firm has, nearly a year after ChatGPT was released, put exactly zero generative AI use cases into production. Instead, the company is “deeply into experimentation” and has a “high bar” of expectation before deployment. Certainly this is a highly-regulated company, so careful deployment must always be the norm. But Goldman Sachs is also far from new to implementing AI-driven tools — but is still treading slowly and carefully.

Reflections on “The Misunderstanding About Education That Cost Mark Zuckerberg $100 Million” [Meyer]

On 10/15/2023, in collaboration, communities of practice, Daniel S. Christian, digital learning, experimentation, Facebook / Meta Platforms, K-12 related, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, personalized/customized learning, platforms, by Daniel Christian

The Misunderstanding About Education That Cost Mark Zuckerberg $100 Million — from danmeyer.substack.com by Dan Meyer
Personalized learning can feel isolating. Whole class learning can feel personal. This is hard to understand.

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

Last week, Matt Barnum reported in Chalkbeat that the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative is laying off dozens of staff members and pivoting away from the personalized learning platform they have funded since 2015 with somewhere near $100M.
…
I have tried to illustrate as often as my subscribers will tolerate that students don’t particularly enjoy learning alone with laptops within social spaces like classrooms. That learning fails to answer their questions about their social identity. It contributes to their feelings of alienation and disbelonging. I find this case easy to make but hard to prove. Maybe we just haven’t done personalized learning right? Maybe Summit just needed to include generative AI chatbots in their platform?

What is far easier to prove, or rather to disprove, is the idea that “whole class instruction must feel impersonal to students,” that “whole class instruction must necessarily fail to meet the needs of individual students.”

From DSC:
I appreciate Dan’s comments here (as highlighted above) as they are helpful in my thoughts regarding the Learning from the Living [Class] Room vision. They seem to be echoed here by Jeppe Klitgaard Stricker when he says:

Personalized learning paths can be great, but they also entail a potential abolishment or unintended dissolution of learning communities and belonging.

Perhaps this powerful, global, Artificial Intelligence (AI)-backed, next-generation, lifelong learning platform of the future will be more focused on postsecondary students and experiences — but not so much for the K12 learning ecosystem.

But the school systems I’ve seen here in Michigan (USA) represent systems that address a majority of the class only. These one-size-fits-all systems don’t work for many students who need extra help and/or who are gifted students. The trains move fast. Good luck if you can’t keep up with the pace.

But if K-12’ers are involved in a future learning platform, the platform needs to address what Dan’s saying. It must address students questions about their social identity and not contribute to their feelings of alienation and disbelonging. It needs to support communities of practice and learning communities.

180 Degree Turn: NYC District Goes From Banning ChatGPT to Exploring AI’s Potential — from edweek.org by Alyson Klein (behind paywall)

New York City Public Schools will launch an Artificial Intelligence Policy Lab to guide the nation’s largest school district’s approach to this rapidly evolving technology.

The Leader’s Blindspot: How to Prepare for the Real Future — from preview.mailerlite.io by the AIEducator
The Commonly Held Belief: AI Will Automate Only Boring, Repetitive Tasks First

The Days of Task-Based Views on AI Are Numbered
The winds of change are sweeping across the educational landscape (emphasis DSC):

Multifaceted AI: AI technologies are not one-trick ponies; they are evolving into complex systems that can handle a variety of tasks.
Rising Expectations: As technology becomes integral to our lives, the expectations for personalised, efficient education are soaring.
Skill Transformation: Future job markets will demand a different skill set, one that is symbiotic with AI capabilities.

Teaching: How to help students better understand generative AI — from chronicle.com by Beth McMurtrie
Beth describes ways professors have used ChatGPT to bolster critical thinking in writing-intensive courses

Kevin McCullen, an associate professor of computer science at the State University of New York at Plattsburgh, teaches a freshman seminar about AI and robotics. As part of the course, students read Machines of Loving Grace: The Quest for Common Ground Between Humans and Robots, by John Markoff. McCullen had the students work in groups to outline and summarize the first three chapters. Then he showed them what ChatGPT had produced in an outline.

“Their version and ChatGPT’s version seemed to be from two different books,” McCullen wrote. “ChatGPT’s version was essentially a ‘laundry list’ of events. Their version was narratives of what they found interesting. The students had focused on what the story was telling them, while ChatGPT focused on who did what in what year.” The chatbot also introduced false information, such as wrong chapter names.

The students, he wrote, found the writing “soulless.”

7 Questions with Dr. Cristi Ford, VP of Academic Affairs at D2L — from campustechnology.com by Rhea Kelly

In the Wild West of generative AI, educators and institutions are working out how best to use the technology for learning. How can institutions define AI guidelines that allow for experimentation while providing students with consistent guidance on appropriate use of AI tools?

To find out, we spoke with Dr. Cristi Ford, vice president of academic affairs at D2L. With more than two decades of educational experience in nonprofit, higher education, and K-12 institutions, Ford works with D2L’s institutional partners to elevate best practices in teaching, learning, and student support. Here, she shares her advice on setting and communicating AI policies that are consistent and future-ready.

AI Platform Built by Teachers, for Teachers, Class Companion Raises $4 Million to Tap Into the Power of Practice — from prweb.com

“If we want to use AI to improve education, we need more teachers at the table,” said Avery Pan, Class Companion co-founder and CEO. “Class Companion is designed by teachers, for teachers, to harness the most sophisticated AI and improve their classroom experience. Developing technologies specifically for teachers is imperative to supporting our next generation of students and education system.”

7 Questions on Generative AI in Learning Design — from campustechnology.com by Rhea Kelly
Open LMS Adoption and Education Specialist Michael Vaughn on the challenges and possibilities of using artificial intelligence to move teaching and learning forward.

The potential for artificial intelligence tools to speed up course design could be an attractive prospect for overworked faculty and spread-thin instructional designers. Generative AI can shine, for example, in tasks such as reworking assessment question sets, writing course outlines and learning objectives, and generating subtitles for audio and video clips. The key, says Michael Vaughn, adoption and education specialist at learning platform Open LMS, is treating AI like an intern who can be guided and molded along the way, and whose work is then vetted by a human expert.

We spoke with Vaughn about how best to utilize generative AI in learning design, ethical issues to consider, and how to formulate an institution-wide policy that can guide AI use today and in the future.

10 Ways Technology Leaders Can Step Up and Into the Generative AI Discussion in Higher Ed — from er.educause.edu by Lance Eaton and Stan Waddell

Offer Short Primers on Generative AI
Explain How to Get Started
Suggest Best Practices for Engaging with Generative AI
Give Recommendations for Different Groups
Recommend Tools
Explain the Closed vs. Open-Source Divide
Avoid Pitfalls
Conduct Workshops and Events
Spot the Fake
Provide Proper Guidance on the Limitations of AI Detectors

ChatGPT meets Pixar’s 22 Rules of Storytelling.

How to turn ChatGPT into the ultimate storyteller (I shouldn’t be giving this prompt away for free): pic.twitter.com/hFt3QTHd9o

— The AI Solopreneur (@aisolopreneur) October 4, 2023

Two items re: K-12 learning ecosystem that show the motivating power of choice

On 09/02/2023, in career development, change, changing business models, education, education reform, innovation, instructional design, K-12 related, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, learning preferences, more voice more choice more control, motivation, online learning, personalized/customized learning, by Daniel Christian

Build Your Own High School: Phoenix Students Choose from 500 Classes, Internships, College Courses, Career Programs & More — from the74million.org by Beth Hawkins; via Michael Horn
At Phoenix Union City, high school doesn’t refer to a building but a personalized path of experiences that teenagers create for themselves.

PXU City HS has no physical site — its 83 students create custom programs, choosing from a menu of some 500 options from Phoenix Union High School District’s bricks-and-mortar schools; its online-only program, internships; jobs; college classes; and career training programs.

But in the process, it became clear just how many high school-aged students were working, caring for siblings, filling in for their parents or significantly behind — or ahead and bored — academically.
…
If PXU City works as well for all its students as it does for Dominguez, he adds, every high school in the district ought to throw away the bell schedule and offer a truly personalized education.

‘Every day matters’: CCSD students, teachers kick off 2023-24 school year — from reviewjournal.com by Julie Wootton-Greener; via Michael Horn

There are 10 areas of study students chose from: architectural design, business administration logistics-distribution, computer science, construction technology, cybersecurity, diesel/auto technology, energy technologies, human and social services, teaching and training, and sports medicine.

Students pick a job within the program they’re working toward, but that can change, Cordia said, noting that there are hundreds of possible jobs within the automotive program.

The school received e more than 1,000 applications from interested students, he said, calling it “very humbling.”

Addendum that also involves changes within the K12 learning ecosystem:

Is the Post-Pandemic Era Ripe for Rethinking High School? — from edsurge.com by Rebecca Koenig

“A TV show with no ending” [Khan] — DC: Some interesting thoughts for those who are studying acting, film production, & the like.

On 08/25/2023, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, A/V -- audio/visual, business, career development, content development, aggregation, repositories, drama/theater, media/film, personalized/customized learning, workplace, by Daniel Christian

A TV show with no ending — from joinsuperhuman.ai by Zain Kahn
ALSO: Turbocharged GPT is here

We’re standing on the cusp of artificially generated content that could theoretically never end. According to futurist Sinéad Bovell, “Generative artificial intelligence also means that say we don’t want a movie or a series to end. It doesn’t have to, you could use AI to continue to generate more episodes and other sequels and have this kind of ongoing storyline.”

If we take this logic further, we could also see hyper-personalized content that’s created just for us. Imagine getting an AI generated album from your favourite artist every week. Or a brand new movie starring actors who are no longer alive, like a new romcom with Marylin Monroe and Frank Sinatra.

While this sounds like a compelling proposition for consumers, it’s mostly bad news for actors, writers, and other professionals working in the media industry. Hollywood studios are already investing heavily in generative AI, and many professionals working in the industry are afraid to lose their jobs.

Will one of our future learning ecosystems look like a Discord server type of service? [Christian]

On 08/17/2023, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, adult learning, Alternatives, Artificial Intelligence / Agents / LLMs / and Related, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, collaboration, communications, communities of practice, competency-based learning/education, content development, aggregation, repositories, Daniel S. Christian, digital learning, distance education, education technology, educational games / serious games, elearning, emerging technologies, Emotion, engagement / engaging students, experimentation, future, global / globalization, higher education, homeschooling/homeschoolers, human-computer interaction (HCI), ideas, innovation, instructional design, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, internet, IT in HE, K-12 related, law schools, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, learning preferences, learning spaces, lifelong learning, love of learning, microlearning, multimedia, New "Amazon.com" of Higher Education, new business models, online learning, online media, online tutoring, passions, personalized/customized learning, platforms, play, simulations, skills, social learning / networks, society, streams of content, student-related, technologies for your home, universities, user experience (UX), vendors, virtual field trips, virtual K-12 schools, Virtual Reality (VR) / worlds / learning, virtual tutoring, vision/possibilities, web-based collaboration, by Daniel Christian

DC: Is the future of one of our powerful learning ecosystems more like adding your own desired groups/cohorts, topics, items, etc. to your server? Like a learning-focused type of Discord service? (https://t.co/Vq4dZamBf2)#future #learningecosystems #personalizedlearning pic.twitter.com/wVMWYBN3R1

— Daniel Christian (he/him/his) (@dchristian5) August 17, 2023

AI 101 for Teachers [Code,ISTE,Khan Academy,ETS,ISTE]; What value do you offer? [Fitzpatrick] + 14 other items re: AI in our learning ecosystems

On 08/15/2023, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, adjunct faculty, Asia, assessment, colleges, community colleges, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate universities / corporate training, digital learning, disruption, education, education technology, emerging technologies, experimentation, faculty, future, future of higher education, game-changing environment, generational differences, global / globalization, higher education, human-computer interaction (HCI), ideas, India, innovation, instructional design, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, IT in HE, K-12 related, law schools, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, learning preferences, learning spaces, legislatures / government / legal, lifelong learning, mathematics, personalized/customized learning, platforms, policy, productivity / tips and tricks, professional development, science, teachers, teaching & learning, UK, United States, by Daniel Christian

What value do you offer? — from linkedin.com by Dan Fitzpatrick — The AI Educator

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

So, as educators, mentors, and guides to our future generations, we must ask ourselves three pivotal questions:

What value do we offer to our students?
What value will they need to offer to the world?
How are we preparing them to offer that value?

The answers to these questions are crucial, and they will redefine the trajectory of our education system.

We need to create an environment that encourages curiosity, embraces failure as a learning opportunity, and celebrates diversity. We need to teach our students how to learn, how to ask the right questions, and how to think for themselves.

5 Little-Known ChatGPT Prompts to Learn Anything Faster — from medium.com by Eva Keiffenheim
Including templates, you can copy.

Leveraging ChatGPT for learning is the most meaningful skill this year for lifelong learners. But it’s too hard to find resources to master it.

As a learning science nerd, I’ve explored hundreds of prompts over the past months. Most of the advice doesn’t go beyond text summaries and multiple-choice testing.

That’s why I’ve created this article — it merges learning science with prompt writing to help you learn anything faster.

Midjourney AI Art for Teachers (for any kind of teacher, not just Art Teachers) — from The AI Educator on YouTube by Dan Fitzpatrick

From DSC:
This is a very nice, clearly illustrated, free video to get started with the Midjourney (text-to-image) app. Nice work Dan!

Also see Dan’s
AI Generated Immersive Learning Series

What is Academic Integrity in the Era of Generative Artificial intelligence? — from silverliningforlearning.org by Chris Dede

In the new-normal of generative AI, how does one articulate the value of academic integrity? This blog presents my current response in about 2,500 words; a complete answer could fill a sizable book.

Massive amounts of misinformation are disseminated about generative AI, so the first part of my discussion clarifies what large language models (Chat-GPT and its counterparts) can currently do and what they cannot accomplish at this point in time. The second part describes ways in which generative AI can be misused as a means of learning; unfortunately, many people are now advocating for these mistaken applications to education. The third part describes ways in which large language models (LLM), used well, may substantially improve learning and education. I close with a plea for a robust, informed public discussion about these topics and issues.

Dr. Chris Dede and the Necessity of Training Students and Faculty to Improve Their Human Judgment and Work Properly with AIs — from stefanbauschard.substack.com by Stefan Bauschard
We need to stop using test-driven curriculums that train students to listen and to compete against machines, a competition they cannot win. Instead, we need to help them augment their Judgment.

The Creative Ways Teachers Are Using ChatGPT in the Classroom — from time.com by Olivia B. Waxman

Many of the more than a dozen teachers TIME interviewed for this story argue that the way to get kids to care is to proactively use ChatGPT in the classroom.
…
Some of those creative ideas are already in effect at Peninsula High School in Gig Harbor, about an hour from Seattle. In Erin Rossing’s precalculus class, a student got ChatGPT to generate a rap about vectors and trigonometry in the style of Kanye West, while geometry students used the program to write mathematical proofs in the style of raps, which they performed in a classroom competition. In Kara Beloate’s English-Language Arts class, she allowed students reading Shakespeare’s Othello to use ChatGPT to translate lines into modern English to help them understand the text, so that they could spend class time discussing the plot and themes.

AI in Higher Education: Aiding Students’ Academic Journey — from td.org by J. Chris Brown

Topics/sections include:

Automatic Grading and Assessment
AI-Assisted Student Support Services
Intelligent Tutoring Systems
AI Can Help Both Students and Teachers

Shockwaves & Innovations: How Nations Worldwide Are Dealing with AI in Education — from the74million.org by Robin Lake
Lake: Other countries are quickly adopting artificial intelligence in schools. Lessons from Singapore, South Korea, India, China, Finland and Japan.

I found that other developed countries share concerns about students cheating but are moving quickly to use AI to personalize education, enhance language lessons and help teachers with mundane tasks, such as grading. Some of these countries are in the early stages of training teachers to use AI and developing curriculum standards for what students should know and be able to do with the technology.

Several countries began positioning themselves several years ago to invest in AI in education in order to compete in the fourth industrial revolution.

AI in Education — from educationnext.org by John Bailey
The leap into a new era of machine intelligence carries risks and challenges, but also plenty of promise

In the realm of education, this technology will influence how students learn, how teachers work, and ultimately how we structure our education system. Some educators and leaders look forward to these changes with great enthusiasm. Sal Kahn, founder of Khan Academy, went so far as to say in a TED talk that AI has the potential to effect “probably the biggest positive transformation that education has ever seen.” But others warn that AI will enable the spread of misinformation, facilitate cheating in school and college, kill whatever vestiges of individual privacy remain, and cause massive job loss. The challenge is to harness the positive potential while avoiding or mitigating the harm.

Generative AI and education futures — from ucl.ac.uk
Video highlights from Professor Mike Sharples’ keynote address at the 2023 UCL Education Conference, which explored opportunities to prosper with AI as a part of education.

Bringing AI Literacy to High Schools — from by Nikki Goth Itoi
Stanford education researchers collaborated with teachers to develop classroom-ready AI resources for high school instructors across subject areas.

To address these two imperatives, all high schools need access to basic AI tools and training. Yet the reality is that many underserved schools in low-income areas lack the bandwidth, skills, and confidence to guide their students through an AI-powered world. And if the pattern continues, AI will only worsen existing inequities. With this concern top of mind plus initial funding from the McCoy Ethics Center, Lee began recruiting some graduate students and high school teachers to explore how to give more people equal footing in the AI space.

Learning Ecosystems

Competency-Based Education (CBE) Learning Platform Architecture White Paper [Feldstein]

“A TV show with no ending” [Khan] — DC: Some interesting thoughts for those who are studying acting, film production, & the like.

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