AI avatars that can display text: Students can convert text course content into videos to make them more engaging. Videos can be easily edited and translated into any language. Open AI's Sora models can create photorealistic video models and special effects.
Intellectual play and philosophical inquiry: Tools like OpenAI's voice mode, Eleven Labs' conversational agent, and Google NotebookLM can be used for thought experiments, philosophical conversations, role plays, podcasts, or scenario-based learning. For example, students can role-play with thinkers (e.g. bell hooks About education, Ada Loveless related to mathematics) or explore scenarios and thought experiments related to your field (e.g. A play-oriented university or Laplace's devil and quantum mechanics).
Generate code: Human Claude, OpenAI ChatGPT and Google Gemini can generate code snippets, suggest improvements, and debug errors. Codecademy provides step-by-step coding tutorials on how to use AI in your coding.
Scaffolding complex topics: AI tools can generate supporting materials to scaffold understanding of difficult topics, such as math problems, timelines of historical events, and explanations of policy documents.
Writing feedback: Using AI tools like Chat GPT's Canvas feature and Microsoft Copilot and Microsoft Word integration, students can get feedback on specific aspects of their writing (such as clarity, spelling, critical thinking, and subject matter knowledge) without compromising academic integrity. For example, a student could request feedback like this: “Please review my draft for clarity, conciseness, grammar, and style. Please provide guidance and examples.” How to improve your writing skills However, please do not rewrite the contents. ”
develop critical thinking: AI can help support critical thinking by advising on alternative sources of information and providing evaluations of these sources. This is more powerful than web search because it can infer what users are looking for and suggest keywords that are optimized for their search. Yes, AI can hallucinate the source, but this increases the opportunity for students to critically evaluate the output. Fine tuning and sophisticated prompts can help minimize hallucinations. In particular, models such as Perplexity and GPT-4o are better able to avoid such illusions due to their ability to link directly to modern source material or refer to real-world links outside of their training data.
Interactive learning games: Terminology instruction can be easily restructured within a responsive fill-in-the-blank game comparable to Wordle. Using Anthropic's Claude for coding, Black Forest Labs' Flux for visuals, and Google Labs' MusicFX for sound, educators can create amazing multimedia games that make learning and review engaging and rewarding, and keep students coming back for more.
Challenges and possible solutions:
- Culture of resistance: There is often resistance from colleagues who are afraid of new technology. Addressing this requires accessible tools, clear ethical guidelines, and support staff training.
- Data privacy: We need to be aware of whether the tool uses our data to train its models, what type of data is suitable as input, and whether our organization has non-disclosure agreements with these technology vendors.
- Accuracy of information: AI tools cannot always provide accurate and unbiased output. Currently, humans who can use their expertise must always be involved to ensure the accuracy of AI-generated content.
- Student cheating issues: Students may simply ask the AI to do what the instructor tells them to do. In the past, in-person exams, penalties, and detection tools helped reduce cheating, but AI is forcing universities to: Rethinking authentic evaluation design.
We have proposed various ways in which AI tools can be used to promote active learning in higher education. We encourage you to experiment, innovate, and collaborate with your learners with care, wisdom, and a sense of adventure to make the educational experience more engaging and inclusive.
Tab Betts is a Lecturer in Higher Education Pedagogy at the University of Sussex. Sherini Surendran is an associate professor of biological sciences. Martin Hawes is a Senior Lecturer in Veterinary Pharmacology and Therapeutics. Stella Kazamia is a senior lecturer in computer science and electronic engineering. Joey Sikchun Lam is a lecturer in computer science and electrical engineering at the University of Surrey.
Sean Le Boutilier is an associate professor of sociology. Uwe Matthias Richter is an associate professor and academic leader in digital education innovation. Jason Williams is a media specialist at Anglia Ruskin University.
Roman Moiseyev is a lecturer in Pharmacy at the University of Reading. John Pugh is Senior Lecturer in Applied Drama: Education, Wellbeing and Community at Trinity St David's, University of Wales. Geyan Sasha Surendran is the Head of Digital for GEMS Education in the Middle East. All part of an active learning network.
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