In our most recent Further Education community meetup, we welcomed Ryan Molyneux, Head of Digital Learning at Gloucestershire College. Ryan presented ‘Beyond the hype: Practical AI Strategies for Further Education’, sharing valuable insights into the college’s approach to AI adoption, collaboration, and governance.
During the session, Ryan emphasised the value of building a collaborative network and highlighted some of the AI community groups the college has engaged with. He also discussed their approach to AI governance, incorporating guidance from Ofsted, JCQ, and our Jisc AI Maturity Model to develop their AI policy for staff and students.
Ryan shared Gloucestershire College’s experience with AI pilots and new tools, including their participation in our AI Image Generation Pilot, which assessed tools like Canva and Adobe Firefly, and a pilot of LearnWise, which tested a student support chatbot on their website. In September they will launch a new pilot of an adapted AI Assessment Scale designed to clearly communicate the level of AI assistance allowed in different types of assessments.
The session also emphasised the importance of understanding student perspectives on AI, and shared findings from a recent survey conducted at the college. The findings provided valuable insight into the tools their student’s preferred and what they are using them for which supports the creation of new guidance and training.
A highlight of the session was Gloucestershire College’s AI Literacy Training Programme, which provides staff with regular opportunities to build confidence in AI. The programme includes workshops, learning communities, and tailored training sessions to help staff integrate AI meaningfully into their practice. To further encourage engagement, the college has introduced AI Badges awarded to active members, these act as a visible marker of their involvement, sparking conversations and fostering a culture of shared learning.
Discussion after the presentation touched on the next steps for Gloucestershire College, including expanding their AI Literacy Series, running targeted staff training workshops, and their upcoming assessment scale pilot. Ryan noted that the college is also exploring VR in education, ensuring that any investments align with meaningful educational outcomes.
The full recording and transcript from Ryan’s session are available now on our YouTube channel.
Next session
Our next session takes place on Tuesday 22nd April 12.30-1.30, featuring two brilliant presentations:
The AI Assessment Scale
Bryony Evett Hackfort Director of Teaching, Learning and Education at Coleg Sir Gȃr | Coleg Ceredigion
Feedback on the AI Assessment Scale pilot taking place in Coleg Sir Gar, Coleg Ceredigion. Based on the work of Leon Furze, this session will explore how we have approached its use and how we intend to roll it out in September for all learners.
And:
A is for Autonomy and I is for Involvement – how can students leverage AI independently to actively hone their transferrable skills for the modern workplace?
Klaudia Adamcyk and Emma Wiles – lecturers, and Janice Weir-Germia – EdTech Coordinator at West Thames College
Join us to explore the intersection of AI and Employability. We will share our DIY classroom-based model for harnessing AI in a hassle-free (and cost-free) way to empower learners with diverse aspirations to shape key in-demand soft skills.
Enter our immersive ‘Skills Simulator’ where students receive actionable AI-enabled feedforward on their professional behaviours during vocational roleplay scenarios…
Register to join
If you’ve yet to sign up for the FE community meet-ups, you can do so by completing this form. Sessions are open to all Jisc members.
If you’d like to volunteer to present at one of our future sessions, we’d love to hear from you! Please email us at AI@jisc.ac.uk.
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.
Join our AI in Education communities to stay up to date and engage with other members.
Get in touch with the team directly at AI@jisc.ac.uk