Categories
Opinion

Opinion: Can AI really measure ‘human skills’? Reflections on two recent reports

Two recently published reports – the Youth Employment Commission’s interim report on young people and work and Prospects Luminate’s Early Careers Survey 2026 – have alerted me to unconsidered complexities around the interplay between artificial intelligence and human skills.  The first of these reports is a stark account of how much harder it has become for […]

Categories
Opinion

Coping vs Productivity: A personal reflection on using AI when under pressure

We hear a recurring thread that AI isn’t necessarily improving productivity, but it is helping people cope when under pressure. I’ve been reflecting a lot on this from a personal perspective – over the last few months, I’ve been under additional pressure as my team has been down on numbers for various reasons, some good, […]

Categories
Opinion

Opinion: How I taught myself how AI works (insights from a maths teacher turned AI Specialist)

In my current role, I support universities and colleges as they explore the use of artificial intelligence in education. Much of this work focuses on how AI tools are applied in practice and on how institutions make sense of their opportunities and limitations.  Alongside this applied work, I have been developing a more foundational understanding of how AI systems […]

Categories
Opinion

Comparing and contrasting the US and UK AI Action Plans

The US Government has just published its AI action plan.  Given the UK’s own AI Opportunities Action Plan was published earlier this year, and that both plans touch directly or indirectly on education and research, it’s worth comparing the two. What’s changing in the US? How does it differ from the UK approach? And what […]

Categories
Opinion

Opinion: how generative AI can help us address linguistic inequalities

  In my previous post on the topic of AI and inclusion I highlighted Hull College’s use of Microsoft Translate as a standout example of socially beneficial AI. Without such innovations, the educational progress of displaced students coming to the UK would have to wait until their command of English caught up. With AI, this […]

Categories
Opinion

Why Diversity in AI Matters: Moving towards inclusivity and away from bias

Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming the way we live, work, and interact with the world. From education and healthcare to business and media, AI is now embedded in many of society’s most critical systems. But as its influence grows, so do the ethical questions. Particularly around who are the beneficiaries of the technology? who […]

Categories
Opinion

Opinion: Still Relevant, Still Thought Provoking: What Jisc’s AI and Ethics Module Can Teach Us Today

  Figure 1 – Andrew’s examples of how applications of facial recognition fit into his Creepiness Matrix  When Jisc’s self-paced Artificial Intelligence and Ethics course was first launched back in 2021, ChatGPT hadn’t yet appeared on the scene. OpenAI was still a niche name. Generative AI tools weren’t generating headlines—or policies. So you’d be forgiven […]

Categories
Opinion

Opinion: Writing Under Watch: Reflections on Creativity, Surveillance and Assessment

I had a few spare minutes in the morning before Digifest a couple of weeks ago, before breakfast and the conference start, so I wrote a quick LinkedIn post around writing tracking. It clearly resonated judging by the responses, so I thought I’d share it here, and reflect a little on the responses. My original […]