How students use generative AI for research: A new study by Marc Vinyard and Mark Roosa

The Harvard experiment with AI in the classroom works. But: does it works because it’s Harvard?!? https://lnkd.in/eVxv3ghu Maybe it’s time to shift the question: not whether to bring AI into education, but which AI, for which learners. Children, teenagers, and university students don’t learn the same way. AI can become a powerful ally only if it grows with the students, from collective exploration in primary school, to supervised freedom in high school, to autonomous self-regulation at university. Education shouldn’t adapt to technology. Technology should adapt to education. I explored this idea in my new Substack article: Not Yet: Rethinking AI Through the Lens of Learning https://lnkd.in/egNNAb4R H-FARM International School H-FARM #Education #AI

The latest piece in The Conversation UK argues universities should turn AI from a threat into an opportunity, by teaching critical thinking rather than competing with machines. That’s exactly our practice at Group Partners: we pair the speed and reach of AI with the sharpness of human judgment, using structured visual frameworks that strip away noise and bring hard truths to the surface. For us, AI is a partner, not a replacement, it’s human imagination and critical thinking that unlock real value, whether in the classroom or the boardroom https://lnkd.in/eyXxPN5f #strategy #structuredvisualthinking #business #ai #criticalthinking #ceos

“Show Your Workings”: An old idea that might help solve new problems AI is creating in the classroom. New research from Oxford University Press adds to the growing drumbeat about how students are using AI for schoolwork. 📊 80% of UK students aged 13–18 use AI regularly 📊 Only 2% say they never use it 📊 Yet 62% believe it’s having a negative impact on their skills One in four admit AI “makes it too easy to find the answers without doing the work,” and 12% say it “limits my creative thinking.” What’s striking is that the students themselves are the ones worried. They sense that something essential about learning is being lost — and many wonder whether this new ease is quietly harming them. Some researchers say it already is, calling the effect “metacognitive laziness” — a tendency to offload thought onto the machine instead of developing understanding through struggle and synthesis. In my latest Context Maker post, I argue that the solution isn’t to ban AI tools, but to change what we assess. We should be asking students to show their AI workings — to share how they used AI to explore, question, and build understanding. Grade the process, not just the polished product. Because the real skill for the AI era isn’t producing satisfactory, expected outputs. It’s learning how to think with the machine — critically, creatively, and consciously. It’s about a process that leads to intelligently researched, original, and individual work. Read the full piece on The Context Maker 👉 Link in comments. #AIinEducation #Teaching #Learning #EdTech #Assessment #CriticalThinking #AILiteracy #OxfordUniversityPress

AI nails the basics; it stalls on judgment and synthesis. Somehow, our tests still reward the easy stuff. As a recent Computer Science graduate, I've seen this disconnect firsthand. Universities rush to ban AI tools instead of asking a better question: What should we actually be teaching? The research is clear. AI excels at memorization and basic tasks. But it struggles with critical thinking, evaluation, and creative synthesis. Yet our education system still rewards the exact skills AI does best. Time for a reality check: •Stop testing what machines can do better •Start developing what makes humans irreplaceable •Use AI as a learning partner, not an enemy •Focus on analysis, judgment, and meaning-making The goal isn't to compete with machines. It's to cultivate independent thinkers who can do what AI cannot. Reflect. Judge. Create meaning. Instead of policing plagiarism, universities should teach students to critique AI-generated content. To question. To synthesize. To think beyond the algorithm. The workplace needs graduates who can work alongside AI. Not graduates who memorize facts AI can generate in seconds. What skills do you think universities should prioritize in the AI age? #HigherEducation #ArtificialIntelligence #CriticalThinking 𝐒𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐞: https://lnkd.in/eYkaKu2R

Stanford University developed an AI literacy framework to illuminate and organize AI skill development opportunities for students and instructors. These four literacy domains—functional, ethical, rhetorical, and pedagogical—are equally important to fostering responsible teaching and learning in today’s higher ed landscape. This list doesn’t suggest that these domains be learned in a particular order. Instead, learners and educators should see these domains as connected and informing each other. Faculty might use such a framework, and the objectives within each domain, to generate AI-focused learning goals relevant to their discipline, while students can use the framework to see gaps in their understanding and recognize multiple types of AI expertise. Explore Stanford’s full resource here: https://lnkd.in/emkZ3CBp To dive deeper into frameworks like this and strengthen your AI literacy, join our AI at Night workshop series, running each Thursday evening from October 23 to November 13. View our workshop calendar and register below! https://lnkd.in/esEChV9V #facultydevelopment #ai #wilmu

Prof Anné Verhoef writes that universities can turn AI from a threat to an opportunity by teaching critical thinking. #AIinTeaching #CriticalThinking https://lnkd.in/dVbQdjEC

😓 “Some students admit AI makes things ‘too easy’ and they worry it’s hurting their skills.” A recent Oxford University Press study revealed something striking: while 80% of students regularly use AI, 62% feel it’s eroding their ability to think independently. One student said, “AI makes some assignments too easy. I’m not sure if I’m still learning.” It’s a powerful reminder that GenAI isn’t just a tool; it’s a teaching challenge. At Genue, we believe the answer lies in visibility and guidance. Educators shouldn’t guess how AI shapes learning; they should see it happen. With Genue, teachers can: ✅ View how students engage with AI prompts ✅ Track creativity and reasoning ✅ Intervene when shortcuts replace thinking Because the real goal isn’t to ban AI — it’s to help students use it to think better, not less. 👉 How do you design your lessons so AI deepens — not replaces — learning? #AIinEducation #TeachingWithAI #GenAI #EdTech #StudentVoice #Genue

#EdTech #HigherEducation #AI #UniversityStudents #AIandwriting Part 2. Below is additional feedback from students regarding how they use AI: A couple of students raised the intriguing idea of having a class that was run without allowing students to use any AI and with a lot more class discussion. The focus would be purely on  confronting and analyzing complex information and problem solving. They were not sure whether that kind of a class should be required for all students or just offered as an elective. I mentioned to the students that we were engaged in a Pilot study with an AI tool that allows faculty to track the evolution of a student’s paper and provides information on authorship. By using this documentation, faculty can see the student’s progress from a first draft to the final submission. Faculty can also identify what the student wrote, what was taken from another source and what was contributed by an AI tool. This tool would enable them to be totally transparent and it would be up to the professor to inform them if they needed to be more careful in their reliance on AI. Students were intrigued by the idea that this tool would actually help them circumscribe their concern with accidentally overstepping the boundary of AI academic integrity. Listening to the students made me feel more optimistic about education and more concerned with our ability to keep up with the rapid evolution of AI. 

Driven by faculty innovation and supported by the Gabelli Center for Teaching & Learning, Iona University is setting a new standard for AI-integrated education. 💥 Iona hosted over 200 K–12 educators from across four states to explore how artificial intelligence can both transform and revitalize enduring educational values. Learn more: https://bit.ly/3WMkteZ #IonaUniversity #AI #HigherEducation #Teaching #Learning #NewYork #Westchester

Sharing as a think piece only. What happens when a generation grows up thinking synthetically: Fast, fluent, but shallow? Oxford University Press’s new study warns that while AI is helping teens learn faster and handle complex tasks with ease, it’s also reshaping how they think. Over 80% of UK teens use AI for schoolwork, yet more than half admit it’s making learning “too easy” and reducing creativity and critical thought. Researchers call this emerging pattern “synthetic cognition”, thinking alongside machines that accelerates output but risks hollowing out independent reflection. The challenge for educators and leaders isn’t to slow progress, but to design learning that deepens understanding while embracing AI’s efficiency. The future of education will hinge not on speed alone, but on how well we balance fast and fluent with deep and discerning. #SyntheticCognition