In the beginning of March, IAU held a workshop on Leveraging AI for Higher Education during the UNESCO’s flagship event “Mobile Learning Week” (MLW). IAU’s Members from Spain, Malaysia and South Africa described distinct opportunities and research to use AI for the benefit of higher education. The main aim of the workshop was to explore how to leverage AI for good— augmenting human intelligence through the support provided by machines and artificial intelligence.
Agata Lapedriza, Professor at the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC), Spain and Visiting Researcher at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Medialab, introduced the state of the art in Emotional Artificial Intelligence. She explained the role of emotional recognition in analyzing students’ experiences in the learning process. This tool has the potential to support student-centered learning and to tailor the learning process to the specific needs of individual students.

Ram Gopal Raj, Deputy Director of the Centre for Academic Strategic Planning at the University of Malaya, spoke about its challenge to ensure employability of students. The university is therefore developing a Virtual Assistant Teacher service with a view to tracking the progress of student learning and competences and then linking this to the needs of employers. It thus hopes to ensure a more seamless transition from university to the world of work. Raj also underlined the necessity to continuously update the syllabus to reflect the rapid changes in technology and fluctuations of the labor market.

Mandla Makhanya, Vice-Chancellor of the University of South Africa (UNISA), shared his experience at the largest online and distance learning university in Africa, with 800,000 students enrolled (75 % in Africa and 25 % in other regions). UNISA uses AI to process student applications in order to match the necessary requirements for enrollment with the information provided in the application form. Furthermore, they are testing how to better use this technology to assess when students are underperforming, so that university can offer them greater support.

Daniel Burgos, Director of the Research Institute for Innovation & Technology in Education at the International University of Rioja (UNIR), Spain introduced the potential of learning analytics using big data to enhance learning. He made a case for the use of OERs as a tool to make higher education more accessible and for more openness in education at large. He explained that 40 % of UNIR’s modules and support material is freely available whereas the remaining 60 % is fee-paying in order to sustain the work of the university.

The session was well received by the audience and IAU was also pleased to ensure that the MLW included considerations specifically related to higher education. In effect, AI concerns society as a whole and will have an impact all fields, but the education sector, including higher education, plays a particularly important role as it plays a key role in shaping minds and preparing students for the life of work.