AI and Peer Review: Enemies or Allies? - Lauren Coffey, Inside Higher Ed

Debate over the use of artificial intelligence, already touching everything from admissions to grading, has reached peer reviewing, as academics balance technological uncertainty and ethical concerns with potential solutions for persistent peer-review problems. “We’re seeing the human peer-review system is really stressed,” said James Zou, an assistant professor of biomedical science data at Stanford University. “The number of papers have increased by several-fold over the last few years, and it’s challenging to find a lot of high-quality reviewers who have the time and expertise to review the paper.”

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/tech-innovation/artificial-intelligence/2023/10/24/ai-can-lessen-peer-review-woes-researchers

What learning model of higher education will prevail? - Tom Striplin, Cumberland Times-News

In 2015, the Carnegie Foundation itself published a document titled “The Carnegie Unit: A Century-Old Standard in a Changing Education Landscape,” recognizing the need for change. The landscape of education is undergoing a profound transformation due to the proliferation of new models and avenues for accessing advanced learning. How the baby-boomer generation learned and the information available to them has undergone significant changes compared to the current generation seeking higher education opportunities. Technological advancements, particularly internet access, search engines like Google, artificial intelligence and the potential for continuous learning are compelling colleges to reinvent themselves to meet consumer needs. The 2015 Carnegie report emphasizes the necessity for “greater flexibility and deeper learning” processes. These models have the potential to revolutionize education delivery on a global scale, unparalleled in history.

https://www.times-news.com/news/tom-striplin-what-learning-model-of-higher-education-will-prevail/article_2525f05e-5c88-11ee-8ee3-cf87c67fddc0.html

Exploring the Realm of Malicious Generative AI: A New Digital Security Challenge - the Hacker News

Recently, the cybersecurity landscape has been confronted with a daunting new reality – the rise of malicious Generative AI, like FraudGPT and WormGPT. These rogue creations, lurking in the dark corners of the internet, pose a distinctive threat to the world of digital security. In this article, we will look at the nature of Generative AI fraud, analyze the messaging surrounding these creations, and evaluate their potential impact on cybersecurity. While it's crucial to maintain a watchful eye, it's equally important to avoid widespread panic, as the situation, though disconcerting, is not yet a cause for alarm.

https://thehackernews.com/2023/10/exploring-realm-of-malicious-generative.html

US accounting degree graduates plunge 7.4% - Jim Tyson, Higher Ed Dive

The number of students who graduated at the end of the 2021-2022 academic year with a degree in accounting plunged 7.4% compared with the prior period, accelerating a six-year trend of declining entrants into the profession. The number of graduates who received a bachelor’s degree fell 7.8% compared with the 2020-2021 period, while those earning a master’s degree declined 6.4%, according to a survey by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. At the conclusion of the 2020-2021 academic year, the number of bachelor’s and master’s degrees awarded fell 2.8% and 4.7%, respectively, compared with the prior period. “We’re still on a downward trajectory for accounting graduates, although it’s worthwhile to note that U.S. university enrollment and earned degrees collectively shrank during this period,” Jan Taylor, the AICPA’s academic in residence, said in a statement.

https://www.highereddive.com/news/us-accounting-degree-graduates-plunge/697021/

Inside HLC’s new effort to vet outside credential providers - Natalie Schwartz, Higher Ed Dive

The accreditor recently launched an initiative called the Credential Lab, which will implement an evaluation model for outside content providers. With a $250,000 grant from the Lumina Foundation to partially support the initiative, HLC’s Credential Lab will develop and implement an evaluation model for vetting the quality of alternative credential providers. “There’s new content providers coming into the picture,” said HLC President Barbara Gellman-Danley. “There’s an overwhelming need to have some group — or multiple groups — say there’s a quality assurance of these particular providers.” 

https://www.highereddive.com/news/hlc-credential-lab-alternative-providers/697225/

A New Transfer Pathway From Prison to the CSU - Sara Weissman, Inside Higher Education

 Students incarcerated at San Quentin State Prison may soon have guaranteed admission to campuses in the California State University system upon release as a part of a new transfer program. The effort is a partnership with Mount Tamalpais College, a private two-year college based at San Quentin, the only accredited, independent liberal arts college in the country with its main campus based at a prison, according to college officials. The program, which is in the planning stages, will guarantee Mount Tamalpais students a spot at one of the system’s 23 campuses upon their release if they meet certain course requirements. 

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/students/academics/2023/10/20/new-transfer-pathway-prison-csu

An algorithm predicts the academic performance of distance education students - Gámez-Granados, J.C., Esteban, A., Rodríguez-Lozano, F.J. et al., AAAS and EurekAlert!

A team from the University of Cordoba has designed a model, based on fuzzy logic, that predicts the performance of online education students, dividing them into 4 categories and helping professors give more personalized assistance to each student, tailored to their situations. Distance education has democratized access to knowledge, overcoming problems of time and space. The flexibility and accessibility of this type of system has increased the number of people educated via online platforms. However, due to its large numbers of students, and the lack of the kind of close interaction that classrooms make possible, professors face a big problem: the difficulty of monitoring and adapting learning to their students. Tools based on Artificial Intelligence can help professors predict their students' performance so that they can adapt their educational strategies to their different learning situations.

https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1005392

ChatGPT and generative AI: 25 applications to support student engagement - Seb Dianati, Suman Laudari - Times Higher Ed

To help higher education professionals understand, in practical terms, how generative AI could support their work, we are presenting 100 applications of ChatGPT over a five-part series. We have already shared an introduction to prompting generative AI for teaching and learning, followed by 25 prompts relating to teaching and assessment and a further 25 to support administrative tasks. Here, we focus on the AI tool’s potential to enhance student engagement. Below, you will find 25 examples of prompts that show how generative AI can help keep students interested, connected and motivated.

https://www.timeshighereducation.com/campus/chatgpt-and-generative-ai-25-applications-support-student-engagement 

Smarter than humans in 5 years? The breakneck pace of AI - Gary Grossman Edelman, Venture Beat

“By 2029, computers will have human-level intelligence,” Ray Kurzweil said in an interview several years ago. He further predicted that by 2045, AI will have achieved the “Singularity,” the point when “we will multiply our effective intelligence a billion-fold by merging with the intelligence we have created.”  In a recent 60 Minutes interview, Geoffrey Hinton asserted that current leading AI models, like those developed by OpenAI and Google, already possess genuine intelligence and reasoning abilities. Notably, he added that those models can have experiences of their own in the same sense that humans do. While he does not believe they are conscious now (in our general sense of the concept), Hinton said that in time the AI systems will have consciousness.

https://venturebeat.com/ai/smarter-than-humans-in-5-years-the-breakneck-pace-of-ai/

Higher education cornerstone of workforce - Muskogee Phoenix Editorial Board

Oklahoma needs a qualified workforce to compete in today’s economy. The chancellor of the Oklahoma State System of Higher Education presented an encouraging portrait of how the state’s colleges and universities help meet that need. Allison D. Garrett told those gathered at the State of Education luncheon this week that colleges keep finding new ways to support Oklahoma’s workforce. Garrett said career-focused credentials — micro-credentials — are one way colleges help Oklahoma businesses and industries. Employees can pursue micro-credentials online to boost their careers and the micro-credentials will count toward an associate’s or bachelor’s degree. This is one way to improve career advancement while on the job. Micro-credentials will provide additional skills to anyone who needs them.

https://www.muskogeephoenix.com/news/our-view-higher-education-cornerstone-of-workforce/article_8af31068-6a04-11ee-ae1a-633cfa588890.html

AI at the heart of the professional future: How is higher education responding to the growing demand for AI skills? - Alain Goudey, Innovation News Network

Of course, in order for AI to become a seamless part of the higher education community, faculty, as well as students, must be given sufficient ongoing training on the topic. This can be achieved in a number of ways, such as providing workshops and additional training programmes. In fact, at NEOMA, we have recently introduced mandatory training sessions on generative AI, and have also created an open course online for our entire community. We believe it is vital that entire business school communities are informed and well-trained with generative AI as it continues to infiltrate across sectors.

https://www.innovationnewsnetwork.com/how-is-higher-education-responding-to-the-growing-demand-for-ai-skills/38183/

The Power of Micro-Credentials, Certificates, and Degrees - Sheila Boysen-Rotelli, TD

In today’s rapidly evolving professional landscape, the quest for continuous learning and skill development is essential for career success. Nowhere is this more evident than in the training and development field. Professionals dedicated to enhancing the workforce’s skills and knowledge must continually upskill themselves to meet the ever-changing demands of their roles. One effective way to do this is by pursuing a higher education graduate degree, graduate certificate, or micro-credential, which can significantly support your journey toward career advancement in the training and development sector. Here are six ways these options can benefit you.

https://www.td.org/atd-blog/the-power-of-micro-credentials-certificates-and-degrees

Reducing AI Anxiety Starts by Talking with Students - Demian Hommel and Bradley Cohen, Faculty Focus

Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) is consuming a growing share of our collective consciousness. Like many educators, we’ve spent months processing the media coverage and pondering AI’s potential impact on the future: Is AI “an absolute systems-level threat to education” as some argue? Will it spell the end of countless jobs or create new horizons for teaching, research, and meaningful work? Will AI save or enslave us?  It’s equal parts exciting and exhausting. But as educators, it’s important to remember we aren’t the only ones struggling to find our footing.  

https://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/teaching-with-technology-articles/reducing-ai-anxiety-starts-by-talking-with-students/

Mastering generative AI: crafting reusable prompts for effective learning design - Richard McInnes, Ajay Kulkarni, Times Higher Ed

The generative AI-enabled era of learning design, where gen-AI tools are reshaping the way we teach and learn, has ushered in a new era of possibilities for course design. However, as with any new tool, there is a learning curve, and one aspect of gen-AI that requires careful consideration is how we write effective prompts. So, how can we maximise the efficacy of gen-AI outputs? When we first start using generative AI tools, we often find ourselves engaged in a back-and-forth conversation, fine-tuning prompts until we elicit the desired response. But using gen-AI through trial and error is a time-consuming process that may yield inconsistent outcomes. There exists a more efficient approach to prompt interaction – one that involves deliberate experimentation with various prompt combinations to create reusable prompts.

https://www.timeshighereducation.com/campus/mastering-generative-ai-crafting-reusable-prompts-effective-learning-design

"Godfather of Artificial Intelligence" Geoffrey Hinton on the promise, risks of advanced AI - Scott Pelley, 60-minutes

Whether you think artificial intelligence will save the world or end it, you have Geoffrey Hinton to thank. Hinton has been called "the Godfather of AI," a British computer scientist whose controversial ideas helped make advanced artificial intelligence possible and, so, changed the world. Hinton believes that AI will do enormous good but, tonight, he has a warning. He says that AI systems may be more intelligent than we know and there's a chance the machines could take over. Which made us ask the question:

"Does humanity know what it's doing?" Geoffrey Hinton: No. I think we're moving into a period when for the first time ever we may have things more intelligent than us.  "You believe they can understand?" Geoffrey Hinton: Yes.

 

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/geoffrey-hinton-ai-dangers-60-minutes-transcript/

Lawmakers press state leaders on land-grant HBCU funding gaps - Laura Spitalniak, Higher Ed Dive

 Here’s how legislators are reacting after the Biden administration accused 16 states of underfunding historically Black land-grants by over $12 billion. Lawmakers press state leaders on land-grant HBCU funding gaps Here’s how legislators are reacting after the Biden administration accused 16 states of underfunding historically Black land-grants by over $12 billion. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona and Agriculture Secretary Thomas Vilsack sent states individual letters detailing their land-grant HBCUs’ level of underfunding. Tennessee and North Carolina had the largest deficits of more than $2 billion.

https://www.highereddive.com/news/lawmakers-react-hbcu-funding-disparities-biden/696035/

Aging states to college graduates: We’ll pay you to stay - Jon Marcus, Hechinger Report

 Some states with aging populations and worker shortages are dangling incentives of as much as $100,000 toward paying off the student loan debt of college graduates if they agree to stay. “Generally, there is a massive shortage of talent, particularly in certain skilled talent areas,” said Jamie Kohn, senior research director for the human resources practice of the Gartner consulting firm, who said competition for college graduates is fierce. “Student loan repayment may be a way for states to mitigate some of the loss of wage growth that people are feeling” so they not only stay, but can afford to start families and buy houses.

https://hechingerreport.org/aging-states-to-college-graduates-well-pay-you-to-stay/

North Carolina Forces Changes to Accreditation - Josh Moody, Inside Higher Ed

 North Carolina colleges and universities will be required to change accreditors every cycle, according to a new bill that was passed amid a flurry of other legislation and signed into law last week. Lawmakers slipped the requirement to change accreditors—which follows similar legislation passed in Florida in 2022—into a bill that made a series of statutory changes, such as requiring the state’s high school students to pass a computer science course to graduate and requiring pornographic websites to verify the ages of users. Tucked among the changes was a new rule barring state colleges and universities from using the same accreditor for consecutive cycles.

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/governance/accreditation/2023/10/10/new-north-carolina-law-forces-changes-accreditation

Flexibility is key to the student experience - Laura Ascione, eCampus News

Flexibility, choice, and equity are all critical components of the student experience on–and off–campus, according to the 2023 Students and Technology Report from EDUCAUSE. The report asks the following: “What does it mean to be a student now in 2023, on the fading tail of a global pandemic and in the midst of lingering uncertainty about the world, our leaders, our economy, and our own futures within all of it? What do students still need from a postsecondary education now and in that uncertain future, and how can they best go about meeting that need? And, finally, where does technology serve as a fulcrum, for better and for worse, both opening and closing students’ paths forward through their educational journeys?”

https://www.ecampusnews.com/student-wellbeing/2023/10/02/flexibility-student-experience/

Citing Significant Budget Deficits, Several Colleges Face Cuts - Doug Lederman, Inside Higher Ed

The affected institutions include Christian Brothers, Delta State, Lane Community College, Miami University, St. Norbert and Shepherd. Numerous colleges and universities, public and private, announced in recent days that they face significant budget deficits that will require cuts to programs and employees. Many of the institutions appear to have been motivated by fall enrollment numbers that did not meet their expectations, in most cases representing a failure to recover from record low enrollments during the pandemic. Others cited the lingering effects on enrollment and budgets from COVID-19, exacerbated by the end of federal relief funds.

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/business/cost-cutting/2023/10/02/several-colleges-plan-cuts-address-significant-financial-woes

Some universities ditch AI detectors amid accuracy fears - Business Insider

Universities in the United States are going back to the drawing board to figure out how to stop their students using ChatGPT to write essays, after giving up on AI detectors over accuracy concerns, writes Tom Carter for Business Insider. Several major universities have stopped using AI detection tools provided by anti-plagiarism company Turnitin over fears that the technology could lead to students being falsely accused of cheating, according to a report from Bloomberg. The decisions come despite the soaring popularity of ChatGPT with students and the increasing concerns among educators that it is fuelling a cheating epidemic. 

https://www.universityworldnews.com/post.php?story=2023092614025680

First all-remote, full-time law degree with ABA blessing set to start next fall - Karen Sloan, Reuters

Southwestern Law School in Los Angeles is launching the nation’s first fully online, full-time J.D. program accredited by the American Bar Association. The ABA approved the program in August and Southwestern said this week that it will begin accepting applications in October for the program’s start in the fall of 2024. The classes will be entirely online and asynchronous, meaning students can complete them whenever is convenient for them, though professors will offer optional real-time sessions on Zoom, said Amy McLellan, Southwestern’s associate dean of online education.

https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/first-all-remote-full-time-law-degree-with-aba-blessing-set-start-next-fall-2023-09-29/

Plan would boost GI Bill payouts for students in online summer classes - Leo Shane III, Military Times

 Students using Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits to attend college classes online during the summer would be eligible for larger housing stipends under a bipartisan plan unveiled in the House this week. If approved, the measure would result in a significant financial boost to students working through summer months to accelerate their degree programs. The measure faces an uncertain path to becoming law, however, given a host of other legislative priorities Congress is presently facing.

https://www.militarytimes.com/education-transition/2023/09/29/plan-would-boost-gi-bill-payouts-for-students-in-online-summer-classes/

OpenAI Turns ChatGPT into a Voice Assistant That Can See and Understand Images and Speech - ERIC HAL SCHWARTZ, Voicebot

The most notable change to ChatGPT is its new ability to understand speech and respond in kind. A new text-to-speech model that mimics human voices after hearing just seconds of sample audio lets users hear ChatGPT’s ‘voice’ respond to their input. OpenAI’s speech recognition system Whisper transcribes users’ spoken words. The conversation, as seen above, essentially turns ChatGPT into a voice assistant like Alexa or Google Assistant, albeit one with the benefits and limits of the generative AI chatbot. ChatGPT can converse using any of five available voices, synthesized from professional voice actors into models like the one heard in the video.

https://voicebot.ai/2023/09/26/openai-turns-chatgpt-into-a-voice-assistant-that-can-see-and-understand-images-and-speech/

How to upskill developers in the wake of AI - Emma Chervek , SDX Central

 Active demand for generative artificial intelligence (genAI) skills increased 20-fold this year, and research suggests that upskilling and reskilling are part of the answer for many IT organizations. And despite the useful capabilities of AI in software development, it’s only exacerbating the need for skilled developers. Talent shortages represent the main roadblock to successful data and analytics initiatives, according to Gartner’s 2023 survey of chief data officers (CDOs). The obvious solution is to “get more people into software development,” OutSystems VP of developers Miguel Baltazar told SDxCentral. “The needs are just insane."

https://www.sdxcentral.com/articles/analysis/how-to-upskill-developers-in-the-wake-of-ai/2023/09/

Cornell Reaches $3 Million Settlement Over Online Classes During Pandemic - Gabriel Muñoz, Cornell Sun

Students who were enrolled at Cornell during the Spring 2020 semester may be eligible to receive a sizable settlement from the University. On Sept. 21, the University reached a $3 million settlement in a class-action lawsuit that alleged Cornell breached its contract with students when the institution moved classes online due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The lawsuit was filed in April 2020 by Alec Faber ’20 and argued that students did not agree to pay equivalent tuition and fees for online learning. The lawsuit blamed the University for refusing to reimburse or not adequately returning money to students for tuition, fees and other costs they paid for when typical operations were disrupted by Cornell’s in-person shutdown. Faber declined to comment.  

https://cornellsun.com/2023/09/28/cornell-reaches-3-million-settlement-over-online-classes-during-pandemic/

Internships are key to success for students who seek a career in museums - Stacey Edison, JagWire, Augusta University

“Before I got this internship, I really thought that working in museums was more of like an abstract thing. I thought, ‘Oh, that would be really cool. But there is no way. That’s never going to happen,’” Phillips said. “But by getting into the museum studies program here at Augusta University, I realized like, ‘No, you actually can go out and do this. It’s not just something that would be a nice thing. You can actually do it and make this a career.’”

https://jagwire.augusta.edu/internships-are-key-to-success-for-students-who-seek-a-career-in-museums/

IT leaders all in on AI for their daily work: report - Roberto Torres, CIODive

Top leaders in the IT organization outpace their lower ranking peers when it comes to adoption of AI, according to a report published Tuesday by software company Freshworks. The company polled 2,000 IT professionals globally. More than 9 in 10 IT directors and other upper management respondents said they currently use AI to support their work, compared to just two-thirds of team leaders or managers, and about one-third of individual contributors. Nearly half of IT pros agree using AI cuts repetitive tasks from their workloads. Respondents estimate the technology will save more than five hours of work per week.

https://www.ciodive.com/news/IT-leadership-AI-adoption/694834/

AI Meets Med School - Lauren Coffey, Inside Higher Ed

Adding to academia’s AI embrace, two institutions in the University of Texas system are jointly offering a medical degree paired with a master’s in artificial intelligence. Beyond the bustle of med school classes and socializing, Aaron Fanous spent his free time reading up on artificial intelligence and computer science. Balancing it all was an undertaking, but in addition to medicine, he’s always had an interest in technology. Fanous is one of the first students enrolled in a new dual-degree AI-focused medical program, which launched last week. The program, jointly offered by UT Health San Antonio and University of Texas at San Antonio, is among the first in the nation to combine artificial intelligence with medicine.

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/tech-innovation/artificial-intelligence/2023/09/25/ai-meets-med-school-new-dual-degree-program

The organization of the future: Enabled by gen AI, driven by people - Sandra Durth, Bryan Hancock, Dana Maor, and Alex Sukharevsky - McKinsey

The technology is accessible, ubiquitous, and promises to have a significant impact on organizations and the economy over the next decade. Anyone can use gen AI, with little or no formal training or technical know-how. It is being embedded in everyday tools, like email, word processing applications, and meeting software, which means the technology is already positioned to radically transform how people work. And McKinsey research shows that gen AI could enable automation of up to 70 percent of business activities, across almost all occupations, between now and 2030, adding trillions of dollars in value to the global economy.2 Meanwhile, technologists keep reminding us that gen AI is only in its nascent stages of development and usage. This smart technology is only going to get more intelligent—and those who don’t learn to work with it, starting now, will be left behind.3

https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/the-organization-of-the-future-enabled-by-gen-ai-driven-by-people

MU, other universities explore how artificial intelligence can help learning - EGAN WARD, Columbia Missourian

MU has joined national trends of bringing the new wave of artificial intelligence into the classroom. With generative AI tools like ChatGPT launching publicly in the winter of 2022, MU faculty are engaging with AI through help from the Teaching for Learning Center. Professors at MU are using AI in research to accelerate work in a number of different fields. One of these professors is Chi-Ren Shyu, director of the MU Institute for Data Science and Informatics and professor of electrical engineering and computer science. In March 2022, Shyu led the AI approach of an MU study using data to explore Type 1 diabetes diagnoses. He now leads the effort to help faculty across departments use AI and similar tools in their own lessons and research.

https://www.columbiamissourian.com/news/higher_education/mu-other-universities-explore-how-artificial-intelligence-can-help-learning/article_ea84a2ee-51c7-11ee-8366-9f3da8d31c37.html