As both instructional designers and adjunct faculty members at Northeast Iowa Community College, Shannon Brenner and Jordan O'Connell have a close-up view of generative AI from both perspectives. Gen AI tools have both transformed the course-building process and changed the game for interacting with students and assessing their coursework. For this episode of the podcast, we talked about generative AI's impact on instructional design and teaching, navigating acceptable use of AI, strategies for helping faculty make the most of AI, and more. Resource links:  Quality Course Design at NICC Music: Mixkit Duration: 31 minutes Transcript (coming soon)

The United States Department of Education recently released a new report called "Designing for Education with Artificial Intelligence: An Essential Guide for Developers." The guide seeks to inform ed tech developers as they create AI products and services for use in education — and help them work toward AI safety, security, and trust. We spoke with Kevin Johnstun, education program specialist in ED's Office of Educational Technology, about the ins and outs of the report and what it means for education institutions. Resource links: Designing for Education with Artificial Intelligence: An Essential Guide for Developers Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Teaching and Learning: Insights and Recommendations Music: Mixkit Duration: 21 minutes Transcript

Miami Dade College recently announced the launch of a new bachelor's degree in applied artificial intelligence — the first such degree in the state of Florida and one of the first in the country. At the heart of MDC's approach is the conviction that education in artificial intelligence is for everyone — people at all levels need understand how to apply AI in their lives and careers. We spoke with Antonio Delgado, vice president of innovation and technology partnerships at Miami Dade College, about how the degree program was developed, the foundational AI skills that students need to succeed, and creating spaces that bring people together around AI.  Resource links: Miami Dade College Music: Mixkit Duration: 28 minutes Transcript

Touro University has embarked on a system-wide initiative to incorporate artificial intelligence into all of its programs — not only in teaching and learning, but also across research, operations, and policy. The institution has also created a new academic AI position to serve as a dedicated AI leader, facilitate the use of AI across the university, and cultivate AI thinking in students, faculty, and staff. We spoke with Dr. Shlomo Argamon, Touro's recently appointed associate provost for AI, about his role, the importance of AI in higher education, how to prepare students for the new world of AI in the workforce, and whether or not AI opponents could be waiting for their time to attack. Resource links: Touro University Music: Mixkit Duration: 26 minutes Transcript

In January, Arizona State University announced a major partnership with OpenAI to explore the potential of ChatGPT in education. We caught up with ASU CIO Lev Gonick to find out more about that collaboration, how the university is approaching the use of generative AI across campus, and what the key takeaways have been so far. Resource links: Arizona State University Partners with OpenAI to Explore Gen AI Potential in EducationASU Artificial Intelligence Music: Mixkit Duration: 35 minutes Transcript

Recently Educause released its inaugural AI Landscape Study, which polled the higher education community about AI strategic planning and readiness, policies and procedures, impact on the workforce, and the future of AI in higher education. We spoke with report author and Educause Senior Researcher Jenay Robert for a deep dive into some of the thinking behind the study, what the survey findings tell us about institutions' AI journeys, and how "I don't know" might be the theme of the day when it comes to AI. Resource links: Educause AI Landscape Study Educause Innovation Summit National Artificial Intelligence Act of 2020 Educause Workforce Studies Educause Horizon Reports and Horizon Action Plans Music: Mixkit Duration: 29 minutes Transcript

David Wiley is well known as the co-founder and chief academic officer of Lumen Learning and a long-time advocate of open educational resources and access to educational opportunity. But if you follow him on LinkedIn or on his Improving Learning blog, it's clear that he also does a lot of thinking and speaking and writing about generative AI. For this episode of the podcast, we spoke about why generative AI is the logical successor to OER, AI's impact on instructional design, exciting AI developments on the horizon, and why it's too early for universities to write policies for generative AI usage. Resource links: Improving Learning BlogOpenAI Guide to Prompt Engineering How I Won Singapore's GPT-4 Prompt Engineering Competition Arizona State University Partnership with OpenAI  Music: Mixkit Duration: 35 minutes Transcript

Last November, Campus Technology Editor in Chief Rhea Kelly moderated a panel on the state of AI in education at Tech Tactics in Education 2023, a new conference for education IT leaders produced by Campus Technology and its sister publication THE Journal. The conversation ranged from basic definitions, to concerns, limitations, and opportunities, as well as leadership and culture change. In this episode of the podcast, we’re sharing a recording of the discussion — it’s full of insights for anyone grappling with the impact of AI and generative AI on campus. Resource links: Tech Tactics in Education Music: Mixkit Duration: 40 minutes Transcript

Since 2016, the Changing Landscape of Online Education Project, also known as CHLOE, has been surveying chief online officers at colleges and universities across the country about the current state of online learning in higher ed as well as institutions’ strategic vision for the future. A joint effort between Quality Matters and Encoura Eduventures research, the project recently released its eight survey report. Among the core themes: Growing student demand for online and hybrid learning is moving higher education toward a multi-modal future. We spoke with Dr. Bethany Simunich, co-director of the CHLOE Project and one of the principal authors of the CHLOE 8 report, about key takeaways from the survey and why institutions that aren’t examining their online strategy may be putting themselves at a competitive disadvantage. Resource links: Changing Landscape of Online Education Project CHLOE 8 report Music: Mixkit Duration: 35 minutes Transcript

What skills will students need for the workforce of the future in an age dominated by artificial intelligence? In addition to basic computer science, data competencies, and the mathematics and statistics behind AI and machine learning, there are a range of social impacts to consider: AI risk, ethics, privacy, questions of bias, etc. All of the above are part of the curriculum at Dakota State University, a STEM-oriented institution with a focus on computer science, cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence. We spoke with DSU President José-Marie Griffiths about how her institution is preparing students for careers in AI. In addition to her experience in research, teaching, and higher education administration, Griffiths was a member of the National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence, part of the 2019 John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act. She has also served in presidential appointments to the National Science Board, the U.S. President's Information Technology Advisory Committee, and the U.S. National Commission on Libraries and Information Science.  Resource links: Dakota State University Music: Mixkit Duration: 27 minutes Transcript

At National University, the role of the data officer has shifted from the capture and analysis of data to a broader focus on digital transformation. As the institution's chief digital officer, Alex Chimon leads both the digital and the data realms, with the strategic goal of improving student outcomes and the student experience. Chimon comes from a diverse background, driving digital strategy in industries such as healthcare, marketing, and food service before joining NU last year. We talked about NU's key digital transformation goals, how the worrisome capabilities of artificial intelligence will impact Dx efforts, overcoming fear of change, and more. Resource links: National University  Music: Mixkit Duration: 30 minutes Transcript

Growth in the cybersecurity industry is quickly outpacing the number of skilled workers available to fill the need, with estimates putting the global cybersecurity workforce gap at more than 3 million people. That shortage of IT talent is particularly acute in higher education, where salaries and benefits often can’t compete with the corporate sector. In light of those issues, the University of South Carolina Aiken recently found a creative way to staff a new security operations center — and give students hands-on cybersecurity training at the same time. We spoke with Ernest Pringle, vice chancellor for Information Technology and CIO at USC Aiken, about creating a student-led SOC, helping students put cybersecurity theory into practice, forging regional cybersecurity partnerships, and more. Resource links: How USC Aiken's CIO Used Regional Cybersecurity 'Buzz' to Launch a Student-Staffed Security Operations Center Music: Mixkit Duration: 29 minutes Transcript

Imagine a learning environment that, much like a Star Trek Holodeck, changes based on a user’s individual requirements. It understands the learner’s strengths and weaknesses, anticipates next steps, recommends the best learning content, moves at the learner’s pace, and removes unnecessary friction within the mechanics of learning. With today’s advancements in generative AI, that vision of personalized learning may not be far off from reality. We spoke with Dr. Kim Round, associate dean of the Western Governors University School of Education, about the potential of technologies like ChatGPT for learning, the need for AI literacy skills, why learning experience designers have a leg up on AI prompt engineering, and more. And get ready for more Star Trek references, because the parallels between AI and Sci Fi are futile to resist. Resource links: AI in Education: Will We Need Humans Anymore? (Campus Technology Insider podcast with Mark Schneider) Jill Watson at Georgia TechNational AI Institute for Adult Learning and Online EducationGlobal Research Alliance for AI in Learning and Education Western Governors University Masters in Learning Experience Design and Educational Technology Music: Mixkit Duration: 31 minutes Transcript

Much has been made of plagiarism concerns around the use of ChatGPT in education, and there’s no doubt that generative AI technology will impact the role of writing both in higher education and in society in general. But as our guest Mark Warschauer points out, the use of AI for writing and communication presents an inherent contradiction: Those who can best write with AI will be those who can best write without it, because they’ll need to be able to write good prompts, evaluate the AI output, and edit the resulting text into a usable final product. Warschauer is a professor of education and informatics at the University of California, Irvine, and founder of UCI’s Digital Learning Lab. We talked about the potential of AI for teaching and learning, overcoming faculty skepticism about AI tools, research questions that should be asked about AI in education, and more. Resource links: ·      University of California, Irvine, Digital Learning Lab ·      Pens and Pixels  ·      Online Learning Research Center Music: Mixkit Duration: 26 minutes Transcript

ChatGPT is groundbreaking, but it’s also merely the first in what will likely be a series of innovations built on foundational developments in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and natural language processing that are going to change the world. Higher education is already feeling the impact of generative AI technology in terms of plagiarism and instructional design concerns, but these challenges also come with immense opportunities to personalize learning and streamline time-consuming tasks. We spoke with Mark Schneider, director of the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences, about how AI is transforming education and the evolving role of humans in an AI-powered future. Resource links: U.S. Department of Education Institute of Education Sciences Blog post: Do We Need Humans Anymore? Meet MathGPT: a Chatbot Tutor Built Specific to a Math Textbook Music: Mixkit Duration: 26 minutes Transcript

Campus Technology recently published 14 technology predictions for the coming year, based on input from higher education and ed tech industry experts across the country. A key statement on that list was this: Digital accessibility will be central to an inclusive campus culture. As Brian Fodrey, assistant vice president for Business Innovation at Carnegie Mellon University, put it, “Campus leaders must be thinking about how we are preparing our respective communities to take a more proactive and comprehensive approach to removing barriers and promoting all aspects of digital equity…. Prioritizing digital accessibility practices in all aspects of campus operations and life creates a more supportive community and inclusive culture for all.” That focus on digital accessibility is central to instructional design practice at Colorado State University Global. As the nation’s first fully online, accredited nonprofit state university, CSU Global strives to achieve universal design standards in all of its programs, and to make courses accessible to a wide range of learners. We spoke with Associate Vice President of Digital Learning Andrea Butler and Director of Instructional Design Diona Hartwig about the importance of designing for accessibility from the start, ways to engage students in the online environment, and how inclusive design ultimately serves all students. Resource links: 14 Technology Predictions for Higher Education in 20232023 Tech Tactics in Education: Data and IT Security in the New NowColorado State University Global Music: Mixkit Duration: 28 minutes Transcript

Earlier this year, Lumen Learning announced a partnership with Howard University to help develop equity-centered learning solutions for a new statistics course and platform. The goal: to develop more effective and culturally relevant courseware for minority and low-income students and improve outcomes in gateway courses. Howard faculty and students are providing feedback throughout the courseware development process, such as how specific courseware features might be used and best practices for supporting faculty in their courseware implementation. For this episode of the podcast, we spoke with Dr. Morris Thomas, assistant provost for digital and online learning and director of the Center for Excellence in Teaching, Learning & Assessment at Howard, and Kim Thanos, founder and CEO of Lumen Learning, about developing courseware with an equity-first perspective, giving students multiple pathways to success, building in support for faculty, and more. Resource links: Lumen Learning Partners with Howard U for Equitable Courseware Music: Mixkit Duration: 38 minutes Transcript

Ravi Pendse is passionate about data privacy. As vice president for information technology and chief information officer at the University of Michigan, he has worked to ensure that privacy is a part of every technology decision on campus. At the same time, he is committed to fostering a robust data culture that democratizes the use of data to inform decision-making. At the center of that culture is transparency: making sure students, faculty, and staff know exactly what types of data are collected, and how that data is stored, accessed, managed, and shared. In this episode of the podcast, we talk about creating a data-aware, privacy-aware ecosystem, data governance challenges, making data visible to students, and more. Resource links: University of Michigan ViziBLUE portal Educause 2020 Student Technology Report Music: Mixkit Duration: 33 minutes Transcript

As a predominately online institution geared toward serving adult students, University of Massachusetts Global is rethinking traditional models of education to embrace the flexibility and career relevance that working learners need. That means getting granular: unbundling courses or curricula into smaller modules that can be more accessible to busy students but also stack into credentials that will be meaningful to employers. We spoke with Dr. David Andrews, chancellor of UMass Global, about developing a new credentialing ecosystem, listening to student and industry needs, and the data infrastructure that can really support student success. Resource links: University of Massachusetts GlobalNational Laboratory for Education Transformation Music: Mixkit Duration: 32 minutes Transcript

With higher education enrollment in decline, it’s more important than ever to break down barriers to student success — and for those who stop out, create clear pathways to re-entry and completion. What does that look like in practice? At Arizona State University Online, student success coaches cultivate deep relationships with students as individuals, get to know their unique life experiences and challenges, and leverage data to better understand the multitude of factors that can impact retention. For this episode of the podcast, we spoke with Nicolette Miller, senior director of student success initiatives at ASU Online, about her team’s student-centered approach and what institutions should be doing to help students reach the finish line of their education. Here’s our chat. Resource links: Arizona State University Online Music: Mixkit Duration: 25 minutes Transcript