Our last community meetup session of the year took place on the 4th July with around 30 members taking part. We engaged in some excellent discussions around the way approaches and perceptions to AI have changed over this academic year in FE, and considered priorities for the new year.
We kicked off the meetup by taking a look at the results from Jisc’s annual Leadership Survey which this year contained five questions around AI use. We’ve explored these results in more depth in a previous blog post.
Reflecting on AI this year
Attendees shared their thoughts on how their perceptions of AI had changed over this year. Responses varied widely, with many noting increased confidence in using AI tools and a deeper understanding of the field. Others felt their overall opinions of AI hadn’t changed much but that new challenges and opportunities continue to emerge.
Members shared some of the ways they’d effectively utilised AI this year. Several had made use of tools like Microsoft Copilot, TeacherMatic and Quizzizz to create resources, quizzes, schemes of work and lesson plans. It was noted that these tools can be particularly supportive for new educators.
Discussions turned to the continuing challenges of adopting AI tools in FE. Primarily the issues around age restrictions of generative AI tools and the lack of educational licenses available for many services. We continue to encounter this issue as most major generative AI tools have hard age limits of 18+ or require parental consent for users younger than this. These generally pertain to individual (non-licensed) accounts but in the absence of educational licenses for many tools, this is often the primary way users will access these platforms. We’ve explored the variation in age requirements in our blog terms and conditions of generative AI and are continuing to explore options for the FE sector.
Members also discussed different approaches to providing guidance to learners on AI use and obtaining informed consent from parents/carers. As well as considering alternative ways to access generative AI besides commercial tools, including the potential to develop in-house bespoke AI systems which could offer institutions more control over data privacy and content while potentially being lower in cost than licensing existing tools.
This year in the AI in FE Community
We then took a look at some of the key topics that were discussed at this year’s community meetups, if you missed any sessions then all of the recaps can be accessed through the community category.
These valuable discussions have led to the creation of several working groups this year that are focusing on specific issues.
During the meeting, we heard updates from our three AI in FE working groups:
AI Literacy
The working group has now completed and published the fundamental level of generative AI literacy definitions for FE staff.
They are now looking to create a generative AI literacy definition for learners.
AI detection and assessment
The working group has been exploring the use of AI detection tools and processes to mitigate the misuse of AI in assessment. The group aims to develop new guidance in this area to support FE members with managing the use of AI in assessment without reliance on AI detectors. The group has shared ideas and discussed alternatives including assessment redesign, as well as analysing current policies and guidance.
AI resources for learners
This group aims to develop a set of resources on generative AI literacy for learners.
The group has outlined four key topic areas:
- AI fundamentals
- Responsible use, security, and safeguarding
- Practical usage & educational applications
- Use in assessment
The group is currently finalising the topics list and will begin building the resources over the Summer for use in the 24/25 academic year.
Looking toward next year
To wrap up our meeting, we split into smaller group discussions to consider the key priorities for the next academic year. Members were at different stages across their AI journey but for many the key priority remains improving AI literacy among staff and students and supporting them with effective, consistent guidance.
In the Jisc AI team and with our working groups, we will continue to develop more resources and guidance to support the sector into the new academic year. Below are some of the key resources developed this year:
Resources
- AI Literacy Webinar Series: Access the Recordings and Presentations
- AI maturity toolkit for tertiary education
- Generative AI literacy for FE staff
- Staff guidance for FE
- Learner guidance for FE
- How to support students/learners with generative AI
Next year
Our community sessions will also resume in September 2024, if you aren’t signed up to receive invitations yet please complete the form: AI in Education FE community meetup registration form
We are keen to give community space to FE members next year to share best practice and ideas – if you would like to speak at a session please get in touch at AI@Jisc.ac.uk