On the 24th March, we ran our latest AI in FE Community meet-up. This time we started with a lean coffee style discussion which allowed participants to vote on topics they would like to discuss. This was followed by a breakout session around approaches to assessment and AI.
Lean Coffee
During our Lean Coffee session, we had time to discuss the two most upvoted topics. The first being the evolving role of AI in libraries, which prompted a discussion around popular applications such as Perplexity for enhancing search functionalities and summarisation, and Elicit for academic research. The conversation also navigated the complexities of citing AI-generated content, with participants sharing valuable insights and links to higher education (HE) guidelines for reference.
The next topic was educating learners to use AI. Despite the eagerness to integrate these tools, a noticeable gap exists in guidance from senior leadership, prompting discussions on strategies to foster their involvement and commitment. This led to a consensus on the urgent need for a comprehensive resource toolkit designed to assist colleges in implementing responsible AI training programs for students, addressing concerns about the inconsistent quality of existing educational materials.
Breakout Session on Assessment
In the breakout session dedicated to assessment strategies, participants were divided into four groups, each exploring different stances on integrating AI into academic evaluations—ranging from outright avoidance to full embracement. The feedback converged on a general agreement that embracing AI offers the most constructive path forward, despite uncertainties about how vocational courses align with these strategies. Special attention was given to the challenges of incorporating AI tools in citations, a topic that one group specifically highlighted. Discussions also touched on the importance of collaborating with awarding bodies.
We finished by promoting our 3 working groups:
- FE AI Literacy Working Group
- AI & Assessment in FE: Assessment methods
- AI & Assessment in FE: Plagiarism / AI detection.
If you are interested in volunteering for one of our working groups please email ai@jisc.ac.uk.
We will continue to host our online AI in FE sessions monthly, in April we’ll be running two sessions to better accommodate our member’s availability:
- April 25th 4-5pm
- April 30th 12.30-1.30pm
To receive invitations for these sessions please fill in registration form here.
Find out more by visiting our Artificial Intelligence page to view publications and resources, join us for events and discover what AI has to offer through our range of interactive online demos.
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Get in touch with the team directly at ai@jisc.ac.uk