Artificial intelligence in higher education

What role should artificial intelligence play in higher education? From ChatGPT to DeepSeek, generative AI (GenAI) tools of all kinds are forcing a rethink of university teaching, assessment, research and administrative work. Find out how to build AI literacy across an institution, use GenAI to support learning, harness AI tools as teaching and research assistants and manage the risks posed by GenAI and other AI technologies.

The imperative for productive struggle

When AI can offer students the illusion of mastery, assessment design that includes ambiguity, choice, context and real-world values can encourage the effort that underpins deep learning

Karsten Mundel, Olivia Murray

University of Alberta

Black female professional working at computer

How to integrate AI-enabled lifelong learning across disciplines

The traditional boundary between a traditional degree and active professional development has permanently dissolved, writes Tim Brown. AI skills need to be taught in a similarly joined-up way

Tim Brown

Georgia Tech’s Center for 21st Century Universities

A student uses a laptop in a lecture hall

I start my lectures by introducing my teaching assistant: GenAI

Artificial intelligence is offering us an opportunity to give every student in the lecture hall the chance to think ideas through and truly understand. Let’s take it

Dan Sarofian-Butin

Merrimack College

A lecturer talking to a student about their work.

What ‘learning verification’ means in practice

When a student’s work sparks concerns over AI use, the best approach is to sit down with them and have a conversation to ascertain if they understand what they submitted, explains B. Jean Mandernach, who shares tips for doing this

B. Jean Mandernach

Grand Canyon University

A group of university students sitting around a table having a discussion

How GenAI can amplify co-creation in higher education

How to make AI-supported co-creation work while ensuring empathy remains at the heart of the process

Bo Kelestyn, Jess Humphreys, Dmytro Chumachenko

The University of Warwick, Kharkiv Aviation Institute

A student and their lecturer in conversation.

Stop investigating, start teaching

Trying to detect whether a student has misused AI in their work is a wasted effort, from which no one benefits, writes B. Jean Mandernach. She proposes a different approach focused on finding out what students truly understand

B. Jean Mandernach

Grand Canyon University

A phone interface with a chatbot conversation open

How to let students fail – so they can bounce back

If we’re preparing students for the outside world, they need to be resilient and agile. Here’s how AI avatars could help

Yvonne Kong-Ho

Singapore Institute of Technology

A programmer reviewing code on her desktop

In programming education, AI does not remove the need for expertise

As GenAI reshapes the way students and professionals work with code, it changes the competencies educators should assess. Here’s what they could look like

Fatema Zaghloul

The University of Bristol

The case for the omnichannel AI assistant

A virtual assistant can make learning seamless, ubiquitous and scalable while addressing common faculty concerns regarding AI integration. Here’s how

Wai Chi Rodney Chu, Charles Woo

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

How agentic AI brings interactivity to STEM learning

When applied thoughtfully, agentic AI has the potential to turn classrooms into environments where students actively explore complex systems rather than passively absorb information

Gerard Joseph Lim

Nanyang Technological University

A robot uses a microscope in a laboratory

A surprising ally in the fight to make chemistry greener – AI

While making chemistry more sustainable is paramount, tiny changes to lab materials and conditions can have significant effects. Can AI’s data-crunching abilities help?

Jonathan Hirst, Joe Heeley

University of Nottingham

The best way to teach students to think critically about AI? Make them argue with it

Educators might treat AI as an integrity problem, but employers don’t. They need graduates who can decide when to trust the machine – and when not to. And that’s why you should design assessment that forces students to argue against AI

Reihaneh Bidar

The University of Queensland

A scientist stands in a greenhouse with a tablet

Environmental researchers know the impact of AI – so why do they still use it?

Academics are increasingly using AI for research, despite being aware of its environmental footprint. But is it their fault – and what can be done?

Sarah Hartley, Emily Robinson, Mayra Rodriguez

The University of Exeter

Young woman wearing virtual reality headset

What virtual reality and AI can do for language learners

Virtual reality and artificial intelligence can support nervous students to progress from silence to speaking confidently in foreign language classes

Alícia Moreno Giménez

Lancaster University

‘AI literacy is everyone’s responsibility’

With higher education navigating rapid technological change, the key to embedding AI literacy in the workforce of tomorrow could be a focus on collaboration over competition

Hans van Oostrom

University of Florida

A teacher addresses a classroom informally

Teacher-directed instruction is dead – long live the future of education

Rather than react with fear to GenAI and attempt to ban it, let’s rethink traditional pedagogy instead, for more meaningful learning

Enrique Darwin Caraballo

Universidad del Caribe (UNICARIBE)

Female designer working with AI chat bot and an editing software - stock photo

AI use tailored to creative-industry programmes requires institution-wide support

Students working towards creative careers have mixed feelings about AI and its potential effects on their job prospects. So education must consider the best practice in the application of tools but also teach students design fundamentals

Shushma Patel

De Montfort University

An illustration of a robot teaching a class about the human brain

Five tips for using AI in university assessment

Instead of trying to detect students using AI for their work, we need to think differently. Here’s where to start

Tom Oliver

University of Westminster

Three levels of AI proficiency for university educators

To become proficient in GenAI, educators must move beyond one-off interactions to create workflows that increase efficiency and deepen learning. Learn how

Patrice Seuwou

University of Northampton

Building blocks with student, books and an AI chip

An augmented reality tool for accessible learning

Combining GenAI with simple augmented reality tools offers a practical way to support accessible, adaptable and interdisciplinary learning

Cindy Lam, Sai Kit Yeung, Kenichiro Takei

Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

How useful are smart glasses in improving accessibility in higher education?

Smart glasses have the potential to support learning for disabled students, but this technology also comes with significant privacy concerns. Helen Nicholson-Benn looks at how to balance functional benefits with data security and safeguarding

Helen Nicholson-Benn

Jisc

Black man working at computer using AI chatbot

A framework for ensuring student AI proficiency

The question is no longer whether students will use AI after graduation but to what extent. So, how can universities best ensure that students are workforce-ready?

Margaret Ellis

Virginia Tech

A robot and a man in a business suit arm wrestle

‘If we make AI the enemy then surely it must become one’

How do we use GenAI without letting it use us? By mastering the tool, and helping students do so too, its much-feared effects on the humanities cannot come to pass, writes Stuart Christie

Stuart Christie

Hong Kong Baptist University

A biology teacher standing next to a demo human body with its organs exposed

Banning AI won’t make students care about learning

When students don’t see the point of an activity, they often turn to AI for a shortcut. Here’s how to make learning meaningful and relevant

Mariana Elizondo, Nelly Ramirez Vásquez

Tecnológico de Monterrey

A group of students writing and talking together

Writing workshops v algorithms: what we should be teaching in the age of AI

How a simple classroom writing exercise provided an avenue for sharing and connection that moved students beyond AI-style ‘content generation’ towards human understanding

Julia Bell

Birkbeck, University of London

GrimmGPT? Use AI to rewrite fairy tales – and get your students thinking

A simple strategy to help your students question AI tools from a familiar starting point

India Lawton

Southampton Solent University

Hans van Oostrom talks about building institution-wide AI expertise on the Campus Talks podcast

Campus Talks: What does ‘AI across the curriculum’ look like in practice?

We find out how one US institution has led the way in embedding AI across all its majors and what has been learned in the process

Hans van Oostrom, Miranda Prynne

University of Florida

A university lecturer explaining a concept while sitting amongst students

Five words and a GenAI prompt to spark deeper online learning

A five-stage framework, enhanced by GenAI, can help educators create more interactive, inclusive and responsive online learning experiences that boost student engagement and learning online

María Robertha Leal Isida, Dania Arriola Arteaga

Tecnológico de Monterrey

When it comes to AI, faculty are from Mars and students are from Venus

Students and academics are on different planets in terms of AI use, creating a culture of distrust and secrecy. Dina Kamel offers three ways to close the gap

Dina Kamel

The University of Portsmouth

Illustration of robot and man on either side of ball of scribble

Faculty must embrace the ‘messy middle’ to guide AI proficiency

The primary source of institutional AI proficiency must be universities themselves, not the technology companies who offer training for their platforms. Without that agency, we risk surrendering educational practice to commercial interests, write Amy Allen and David Hicks

Amy Allen, David Hicks

Virginia Tech

A student looks up from a book to check his smartphone

Equip students to champion human creativity over machine outputs

Publishing educators are ideally placed to encourage students to see through the GenAI hype and recognise the value of human creativity. Explore and reflect on the tools with these tips

Simon Rowberry

UCL

A laptop with a padlocked chain around it

Why AI adoption in universities is really a question of trust

To encourage AI use that aligns with institutional policies, university governance must prioritise transparency, usability and academic autonomy. Learn how

Isabel Fischer , Susanne Beck, Joe Nandhakumar

The University of Warwick

A student uses a laptop in a lecture hall

How do we teach AI literacy when students already think they’re experts?

Students don’t need help from their educators to keep up with AI. But what we can do is encourage them to question it more. Here’s how

Abderrahim Agnaou

Al Akhawayn University

Two students using a map to navigate a digital world

Boosting AI literacy across your institution

AI literacy goes far beyond basic prompt writing. Learn strategies for building understanding of how AI tools work, how to use them effectively to support teaching, learning and research, where their limitations lie and the ethical implications surrounding their use

Campus contributors, Laura Duckett

Campus

Defining and developing students’ critical AI literacy

By the time they arrive at university, most students are using AI. So, with the lines between AI use and original work increasingly blurred, academia now needs to teach them how to use the tools critically

Amy Allen, David Hicks

Virginia Tech

A group of students sitting at a table in the library

Build AI and information literacy through targeted library support

How student-centred AI literacy programmmes can build confidence, critical thinking and playful learning

Amy McEwan, Isobel Eddyshaw, Jenny McGarvey

The University of Exeter

A doctor uses a chatbot on a desktop screen

In AI-enabled healthcare education, critical thinking comes first

As technology shapes the future of healthcare, how can we embed the skills tomorrow’s medical staff will need? Find out how here

Dara Cassidy

RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences

A woman opening a package with a surprised expression on her face

How to choose the right AI tools for teaching

Educators are not always aware of the implications of using the latest shiny AI tool. Laura Milne offers guidance on balancing educational value with institutional priorities

Laura Milne

University of Chester

Concept of levelling up university assessment in response to GenAI

Assessing critical thinking in critical times

The advent of generative AI plus questions about the relevance of higher education call for a closer look at how critical thinking skills are taught and measured. Kate Williams offers ways to level up traditional assessment formats

Kate Williams

Georgia Tech’s Center for 21st Century Universities

AI literacy is the bridge between fear and the graduates we need

We need to meet the digital revolution with curiosity, rather than fear, and AI literacy is the way forward. Here’s how

Phil Laufenberg

La Trobe University

David Boud shares insights on feedback, assessment and learning

Campus Talks: How to create university assessments that serve learning

Learn what constitutes good feedback and how to get students actively engaged in learning from their assessments

David Boud, Miranda Prynne

Deakin University

Students and a professor in class discussing AI

Why AI literacy must be discipline specific

A one-size-fits-all approach to AI training risks leaving students unprepared for the discipline-specific demands of their future careers. Rose Luckin explores what field-specific AI literacy looks like in practice

Rose Luckin

UCL

Two students sitting at a table discussing a GenAI prompt

A research-led approach to teaching GenAI prompt design

Strategies to transform student interactions with GenAI from one-line questions to robust prompts that yield reliable results and improve critical thinking skills

Mogeeb A. A. Mosleh

University of Science and Technology (Yemen)

An AI expert presenting in front of room full of staff

Why your AI training programme won’t create an AI-literate university

Five system-level strategies for building AI literacy with guidance for both early-stage adopters and digitally mature institutions

Pavana Kiranmai Chepuri

Woxsen University

A student eats pizza in front of a laptop

Reaching for the pizza? How to help students make informed choices with GenAI

How intentional are your students being in their GenAI use? Instead of letting choice architecture make using the tools the default option, guide them to be more mindful with these strategies

Jenny Moffett

RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences

A female professor at her laptop in the library

Safeguards against GenAI hallucination in literature reviews

Generative AI can speed up literature reviews, but it can also produce convincing false references. Learn practical strategies to help researchers use AI tools while keeping their work anchored in real, verifiable research

Jie Zhang, Lili Jiu, Yi Luo

Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University

Young black woman and older woman working on logistics

Assessing students when artificial intelligence is ubiquitous

If we continue to prioritise memorisation in an age of wall-to-wall information, we send the wrong message to our students and employers. Michelle Seref offers advice on assessment that builds critical thinking skills

Michelle Seref

Virginia Tech

92 year-old Jewish Holocaust survivor, Larry Heimlich of Chicago, reading a dedication plaque at a Holocaust Monument

The gap between facts and understanding: helping students confront AI’s failings

Students often accept AI output without questioning it. Designing assignments where the tool fails – visibly and meaningfully – can change that, as Jan Burzlaff explains

Jan Burzlaff

Cornell University

People hold up a picture frame to a classroom

Reframe assessment as part of learning

How to model assessment as a tool for learning as well as a method of evaluation, in a GenAI-enabled world

Campus contributors, Kiera O’Brien

Campus

Male students presents to his classmates

Think again: reclaiming our ‘cognitive debt’ from AI

GenAI’s insidious impact on human intellectual development calls for a return to the foundations of education – reading, writing and debating, writes Shahriar Akter

Shahriar Akter

University of Wollongong

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