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.
Thursday, October 12, 2023
Wednesday, October 11, 2023
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.
Tuesday, October 10, 2023
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.
Monday, October 9, 2023
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.
Sunday, October 8, 2023
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.
Saturday, October 7, 2023
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/
Friday, October 6, 2023
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.
Thursday, October 5, 2023
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.’”
Wednesday, October 4, 2023
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.
Tuesday, October 3, 2023
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.
Monday, October 2, 2023
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
Sunday, October 1, 2023
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.
Saturday, September 30, 2023
Is ChatGPT a Better Entrepreneur Than Most? - Christian Terwiesch & Karl Ulrich, Knowledge at Wharton
In January, Wharton professor Christian Terwiesch gave his MBA final exam to ChatGPT. It passed with flying colors. Now, he’s at it again with a new experiment to determine whether ChatGPT can come up with product ideas better and faster than his students. It can. And cheaper, too. “I was really blown away by the quality of the results,” Terwiesch, a professor in the operations, information and decisions department, said in an interview with Wharton Business Daily. (Listen to the podcast.) “I had naively believed that creative work would be the last area in which we humans would be superior at solving problems … so we set up this horse race of man versus machine.”
Friday, September 29, 2023
Why one community college outsourced its adjunct faculty - Jeremy Bauer-Wolf, Higher Ed Dive
Higher education for decades has consistently drifted away from employing full-time faculty in favor of part-time, or adjunct, instructors. But one Michigan community college is shaking up the sector’s employment model in a different way. As of July, Northwestern Michigan College’s new adjuncts aren’t even institution staff — they work for Edustaff, a staffing firm. It’s one of several Michigan community colleges, like North Central Michigan College, to adopt this approach.
Thursday, September 28, 2023
UK’s competition watchdog drafts principles for ‘responsible’ generative AI - Natasha Lomas, Tech Crunch
The principles the competition watchdog has come up with for consideration, as it kicks off another round of stakeholder engagement on AI’s potential impacts on markets, are:
Accountability: “FM developers and deployers are accountable for outputs provided to consumers”
Access: “ongoing ready access to key inputs, without unnecessary restrictions”
Diversity: “sustained diversity of business models, including both open and closed”
Choice: “sufficient choice for businesses so they can decide how to use FMs”
Flexibility: “having the flexibility to switch and/or use multiple FMs according to need”
Fair dealing: “no anti-competitive conduct including anti-competitive self-preferencing, tying or bundling”
Transparency: “consumers and businesses are given information about the risks and limitations of FM-generated content so they can make informed choices”
Wednesday, September 27, 2023
Will ChatGPT transform research? It already has, say Nobelists - Jack Grove, Times Higher Education
Nobel-winning scientists are now using large language models, but experts say their impact on research is only just starting. “I think ChatGPT can make anyone 30 per cent smarter – that’s impressive,” reflected Michael Levitt, the South Africa-born biophysicist who took the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2013. “It’s a conversational partner that makes you think outside the box or a research team who have read a million books and many million journal papers.” A pioneer of the computer modelling of molecules, Professor Levitt is not easily dazzled by technological wizardry but admits he has been impressed by the large language models (LLMs) that have emerged over the past year. “I didn’t expect to this kind of stuff in my lifetime – they’re a very powerful tool. I still write code every day but ChatGPT also writes programmes very well,” he said.
Tuesday, September 26, 2023
How AI could advance computer-based tutors—and student success - David Wiley, eCampus News
The recent development of large language models like ChatGPT has opened new possibilities for the design and implementation of computer-based tutors. Education has long struggled to help all students achieve concept mastery. With advances in AI, computer-based tutors could be one of the solutions educators have long sought.
Monday, September 25, 2023
ChatGPT and chatbots: The Learning Transformation Catalyst Educators Have Been Waiting For - Editah Patrick, Cryptopolitan
In the ever-evolving landscape of education, artificial intelligence is proving to be a transformative force. Higher education, in particular, is experiencing significant changes due to technologies like ChatGPT. While these advancements hold the potential for positive change, they also raise questions about the traditional modes of assessment and knowledge demonstration, such as essays and tests. As an educator myself, I have grappled with these issues and have come to realize that AI offers numerous benefits for both teachers and students. AI, including ChatGPT, is reshaping education, offering transformative potential for both teachers and students. The shift from memorization to critical thinking is essential for preparing students for the modern workforce. Embracing AI as a complementary tool, not a replacement, is crucial for educational success.
Sunday, September 24, 2023
How Students Use Unofficial Online Backchannels for Classes - Jeffrey R. Young, EdSurge
Many professors worry that online systems like Discord and GroupMe are used for cheating, but they can also help build community. Students increasingly turn to private systems to create online groups around individual college classes. It’s a practice that has gone on for years, but teaching experts say it intensified during pandemic campus shut-downs, when students were looking for ways to connect. Platforms used for these groups include Discord, a discussion service popular with video gamers; GroupMe, a text-message platform; and Slack, the messaging system popular in many professional workplaces.
Saturday, September 23, 2023
Survey: College Students Both Excited and Concerned about AI Tools - Kristal Kuykendall, Campus Technology
For the “Generative AI Through the Eyes of Gen Z” study, Touchstone Research surveyed 931 students from middle school to college age, the firm said in a news release. The sample included equal numbers of male and female students and “representative proportions” of various ethnic groups, Touchstone said. Fewer than two-thirds of respondents said they were “aware” of any generative AI tool. Among students who indicated they have used generative AI tools, 75% said they’d used them to create art, images, videos and music.
49% said they’d used the tools to “get information about something.”
43% said they’d used generative AI tools to “help with schoolwork.”
College students: 51%
Friday, September 22, 2023
Meet generative AI's 'super users': 70% of Gen Z use GenAI - Sabrina Ortiz, ZD Net
On Thursday, Salesforce released its Generative AI Snapshot Research: The AI Divide, which surveyed more than 4,041 people 18 or older across the US, UK, Australia, and India regarding their AI usage. The survey found that although half (49%) of overall respondents have used generative AI, the numbers differ greatly between different age groups. Specifically, generative AI users are concentrated among younger users, with 65% of generative AI users being Millennials or Gen Z, people born between 1981 and 2012, according to the Pew Research Center.
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