This issue is sponsored by

Many professors are spending time this summer experimenting with AI tools to help make their slide presentations for class, craft tests and homework questions, and more. That’s partly thanks to a huge batch of tools and features that companies have released in recent weeks that incorporate ChatGPT and other tools.

Which raises a somewhat awkward question: When instructors use AI to make teaching materials, should they disclose that to students? 

After all, concern continues across higher education about students having bots do their homework for them. So what about when professors essentially do the same thing?

When Marc Watkins heads back into the classroom this fall to teach a digital media studies course, he plans to make clear to students how he’s now using AI behind the scenes in preparing for classes. Watkins is a lecturer of writing and rhetoric at the University of Mississippi and director of the university’s AI Summer Institute for Teachers of Writing.

“We need to be open and honest and transparent if we’re using AI,” he told me this week. “I think it’s important to show them how to do this, and how to model this behavior going forward.”

While it may seem logical for professors to make clear disclaimers when they use AI just as they are asking students to do in assignments, Watkins points out that there’s a culture in teaching of grabbing materials from the web or other sources without always citing them.

He says that when he saw a demo a few months ago of a new feature in the learning management system that uses AI to help make materials, he asked a company official whether they could add a button that would automatically watermark when AI is used to make that clear to students. 

The company wasn’t receptive, though, he says: “The impression I've gotten from the developers — and this is what's so maddening about this whole situation — is they basically are like, well, ‘Who cares about that?’”

What do you think? If you’re using AI to prep your courses and have a view on whether (or how) to disclose that to students, drop me a quick email at jeff@edsurge.com

— Jeff Young, editorial director, reporter and editor at EdSurge

👂EAR TO THE GROUND

OPT OUT OR OPT IN: There’s a new battle raging in the long-running war over costly college textbooks, one that may strike a serious blow to the textbook subscription programs promoted by publishers and criticized by student advocates. Here’s how a possible proposed federal rule change could shake up “inclusive access” programs that have spread to many colleges.   

STICKER SHOCK: More high schoolers say they’re unsure about college, in part because of the huge tuition price tags. But there’s a difference between the cost of attendance and what students actually pay on average, an EdSurge analysis finds. Find out how students can get a more accurate estimate for tuition.  

LEARNING FROM A FAILED CHATBOT: The Los Angeles Unified School District said its ambitious new AI chatbot was a new kind of personal assistant that would boost learning. Then the company behind the bot abruptly halted operations and furloughed most of its staff, leaving the project’s future in doubt. 

Sponsored by ISTE

SUPPORT FOR JOB SEEKERS: Most job seekers recognize the value of skills-based hiring technologies that can help them navigate college and career pathway programs successfully. Many of these same job seekers, according to research, have expressed a desire for more support with these digital tools. This infographic spells out how these findings can inform the design of effective training programs and supportive resources to meet this need.

The following is a message from our sponsor

ISTE helps educators provide transformative learning experiences for learners of all ages, sparking their imaginations and preparing them to thrive in learning and life. Learn more today!

🎧 ON THE PODCAST

WHO SHOULD GET IN?: What a debate about the admissions process at one of the best public high schools in the country says about who should get what in education. This first ran in 2021.

📈 STAT-O-MATIC

Down 7 percent

That’s how many fewer completed federal student aid requests have been filed this year compared to last year, after the botched rollout of a new Free Application for Federal Student Aid form from the U.S. Education Department. Last week lawmakers in the House education committee debated whether they should legally mandate that the department open the application on time this year to avoid a repeat of delays. (The 74)

😆 BACK OF THE CLASS

THE POETRY OF PH.D. THESES: Tabitha Carvan looked at the acknowledgement pages of Ph.D. theses at Australian National University and found what she calls “unexpected poetry.” In what can be jargony tomes, these few paragraphs of thanks offer moments of frankness, vulnerability and a behind-the-scenes look at research. (One scholar thanked a professor for donating a tooth for the research; another “for purchasing a roll of fishing line and a pair of gloves for the parrot project, and for which I never paid his money back.”) 

📣 SPOKEN WORD

“The Department is considering a series of steps to further protect students and taxpayers, including textbook costs, accreditation, State oversight of colleges, and public-private partnerships.” 

— James Kvaal, U.S. Under Secretary of Education, in a blog post this week announcing a host of proposed guidelines, including new rules regarding online college courses.

💼 BYTE-SIZE BRIEFS

Universities don’t want AI research to leave them behind. (Wall Street Journal)

Biden announces more investments in workforce development, apprenticeships. (HR Dive)

Women don’t have equal access to college in prison. Here’s why. (NPR)

📆 GOINGS ON

Look for the next issue of EdSurge Higher Ed on August 2. 

Post a job | See all jobs

Higher Ed Sales Rep | Vista Higher Learning | Multiple or Remote

VHL is expanding the Central Region Higher Ed Sales Team! As the Field Sales Representative for our Higher Education team, you will be a key member of our dedicated and experienced team.

Senior Learning Technology Administrator | Stanford University | Palo Alto, California

We are looking for a Senior Learning Technology Administrator to provide educational technology expertise and support in the design, development, implementation, and evaluation of face-to-face, blended, and online learning experiences.

Sales Representative | Swivl | Remote

You will develop and close new sales opportunities within a specific territory. This includes full sales life cycle development to existing customers and prospects. This role qualifies and develops inbound and outbound sales and outbound outreach.

Associate Dean, Learning Experience | Calbright College | Sacramento, CA or Remote

The Associate Dean of Learning Experience, in collaboration with the Dean of Learning Innovation, is responsible for overseeing the design, development, and relentless improvement of Calbright’s competency-based education learning experience.

Director of Higher Education | The Hunt Institute | Cary, NC

The DHE will provide strategic leadership and subject matter expertise to a growing national portfolio of postsecondary programs and partnerships.

Events

Post an event   •   See all events and meetups 

2024 DTL and SOLA+R Conference | July 22 - 24 | Minneapolis, MN

The 2024 Distance Teaching and Learning conference (co-hosted by UPCEA and the University of Wisconsin-Madison) and the UPCEA Summit for Online Leadership and Administration is being held July 22-24, 2024 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.