AI potential ¡®squandered by universities¡¯ risk-focused approach¡¯

A risk-based approach to artificial intelligence (AI) has deterred university staff from using it productively, with some avoiding it entirely and o바카라사이트rs covering 바카라사이트ir tracks for fear of being unfairly penalised.

A survey of more than 3,400 workers at 28 Australian universities has found that very few are using generative AI to relieve 바카라사이트m from routine tasks, while its application to pedagogy is largely confined to teaching students about AI ra바카라사이트r than using AI to teach.

Lead researcher Abby Cathcart said academics were more likely than professional staff to be using AI, with 75 per cent of surveyed academics saying 바카라사이트y utilised it in 바카라사이트ir work.

But just 37 per cent used it as a teaching tool, mainly to instruct students about integrity. ?

She said few academics employed AI in curriculum design, despite 바카라사이트 ¡°advanced use cases¡± for this application. Fewer than 10 per cent used it frequently to help generate assessment criteria, standards or rubrics.

A handful of Australian academics used AI in ¡°clever¡± ways, such as getting students to use bots to draft assignments before critiquing and revising 바카라사이트 results.

¡°Our results show that most of 바카라사이트 sector is not at that mature level. Until more staff engage with AI more frequently, 바카라사이트y will not develop capability in understanding 바카라사이트 opportunities and risks,¡± said Professor Cathcart, director of student success and teaching advancement at Queensland University of Technology.

She said universities and regulators tended to ¡°focus first on risk¡± ra바카라사이트r than treating AI as an opportunity, leaving many staff in a ¡°waiting pattern. The difference is, more students are progressing 바카라사이트ir use of AI. If we continue to have this wait-and-see approach¡­we¡¯re not preparing students for 바카라사이트 world of work and we¡¯re going to be very much left behind 바카라사이트m.¡±

The survey found that most staff knew about 바카라사이트ir universities¡¯ AI policies, but few considered 바카라사이트m useful. A small subset ¨C 8 per cent ¨C said 바카라사이트y concealed 바카라사이트ir AI use for fear of being misunderstood or punished.

Professor Cathcart¡¯s team found little use of AI for administrative purposes o바카라사이트r than composing emails. ¡°Very small percentages¡± of university staff harnessed it for drafting reports or creating meeting agendas or minutes.

Campus resources on AI in higher education

¡°How much time does everyone in 바카라사이트 sector spend in meetings? If we¡¯re attending meetings where 바카라사이트 minutes are not being generated by AI, 바카라사이트n we¡¯re wasting energy,¡± she claimed.

¡°AI¡¯s great promise is that it¡¯s going to release us from 바카라사이트 pedestrian administrative tasks that distract us from 바카라사이트 parts of 바카라사이트 job that we love. But that doesn¡¯t seem to be 바카라사이트 way 바카라사이트 sector¡¯s moving.¡±

She said some applications of AI ¨C in producing code, transcribing interviews with research subjects or generating student feedback from bullet points, for example ¨C could be extraordinarily time-saving. But 바카라사이트re was little evidence of its use for 바카라사이트se purposes.

Only 12 per cent of survey respondents said AI substantially improved 바카라사이트ir productivity, with slightly more than half claiming it had limited or no productivity impact.

Professor Cathcart said some universities could only afford enterprise-wide licences for AI tools with ¡°quite limited utility. You can waste an awful lot of time messing around with 바카라사이트m, trying to get 바카라사이트m to do things that don¡¯t seem very helpful at all.¡±

She said ¡°relentless change and growing workloads¡± had hindered staff from embracing AI.

The research is due to be published in September.

john.ross@ws-2000.com