Information and digital literacy in education via the digital path

Video is the medium of the age and AI is the technology of the age. Combine the two and you have a potent mixture. I’ve been involved with both, working in a video production company, using video on all sorts of media, from interactive videotape machines, laserdiscs, compact discs, CDi to streaming, even making a feature film called The Killer Tongue (you really donl;t want to know). 

A growing number of academics are experimenting with new technologies powered by artificial intelligence, but many of the technologies aren't yet ready for prime time.

Chatbots and computer assessments will change the university experience, giving lecturers more time for face-to-face interaction and student support. However, it’s crucial that issues of trust around personal data are tackled

The number of robots around the world is increasing rapidly. And it’s said that automation will threatening more than 800m jobs worldwide by 2030. In the UK, it’s claimed robots will replace 3.6m workers by this date, which means one in five British jobs would be performed by an intelligent machine.

Jobs in higher education are no exception – with recent studies showing a rapid advancement in the use of these technologies in universities. The full potential of these disruptive technologies is yet to be discovered, but their impact on teaching and learning is expected to be huge. This means that higher education might be affected by these technologies earlier than other sectors.

Machines have become part of our daily lives.

Many homemakers use a Roomba or a iRobot to sweep their floors daily. Talk robot companions like Tapiaserve as useful companions who alert, remind, encourage and support their owners in domestic capacities.

Interactive robots are making their way into schools, as well. Finland and other countries, for example, have already experimented with instructional robots. These machines ask questions, listen for responses, and read facial expressions as they interact with students.

Educators have found five interactive robots particularly useful for academic and social learning.

AI is arguably the number one driving technological force of the first half of this century, and will transform virtually every industry, if not human endeavors at large,” said Charles Fadel.

Fadel is the founder of the Center for Curriculum Redesign and has a new book on Artificial Intelligence in Education. He wrote it with his research manager Maya Bialik and Dr. Wayne Holmes, Open University.

“We have tried addressing the impact of AI on both the What and the How of education,” said Fadel.