Maintaining Student Engagement

Introduction

If there is anything we know about the learning process, it is that active engagement is necessary to build new knowledge. Whether students are learning new concepts or developing a new skill, they must actively work to secure meaningful development and growth.

In higher education, where instructors only spend a few hours a week with students, the assumption is that they will complete most of this work–and by extension most of their learning–on their own time. While some instructors expect students to develop their own plan for learning the material before exams, most develop structured activities to guide student engagement. Among other things, we ask students to read, to reflect, to collaborate, to solve, and to write.

In this context, we are rightly worried about what the development of artificial intelligence might mean for student engagement. Now that tools exist that can do much of the work we ask students to do, it is entirely possible that students might–intentionally or unintentionally–bypass the engagement that is necessary for learning.

Tools that allow us to create more efficiently are a great benefit when creation is the goal. But when we are learning, it is the process of creation that matters most, and efficiency can actually work against this goal.

We might think this means we should discourage, or even ban, the use of artificial intelligence in education. Yet, as with most things related to AI, matters are not so simple. While there are many scenarios in which the use of AI would undermine the work that is necessary for learning, there are also numerous ways AI might actually deepen or extend that engagement.

As instructors, we must reflect on our goals, the kinds of work that is necessary to achieve those goals, and what that means for various uses of AI. This page pulls together resources and activities to guide that reflection.

AI Can Do Homework. Now What?

AI Expectations Worksheet

To help you explore your initial intuitions, the CAT has created a worksheet that asks you to reflect on the appropriateness of a variety of potential uses of AI. You can make a copy of this worksheet by clicking the image or the “Make a Copy” button. Once you’ve completed the worksheet, reflect on how you made your decisions and share your thoughts in the accompanying form.

Make A Copy

Reflection on Expectations

Were there common patterns in what you considered appropriate or inappropriate? What principles guided your decisions, if any? Would you have different answers for different courses?

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Drafting a Rationale

Our students are, like all of us, still learning about the benefits and risks of artificial intelligence. To help them see what we see, and motivate them to engage where they need to, we should be prepared to explain why we’ve taken the approach we have.

Reflecting on what you’ve learned thus far, take a moment to draft a rationale for your approach that you could share with students. If you need inspiration, we’ve shared Executive Director Betsy Barre’s FYS policy, as well as national and WFU-specific policy archives, below.

Using AI to Increase Student Engagement

Assignment Ideas

Below you will find concrete examples of the prompts discussed in the previous video, as well as links to collections of hundreds of activities. We also invite you to share any activities you’ve developed.

Examples

External Collections

Share Your Ideas

Drafting an Assignment

Reflecting on what you’ve learned so far, develop one AI activity you would like to use in your courses to supplement your instruction and share it below.