Everything and nothing – Global campus

December 8, 2023December 8, 2023

Pushing the boundaries

Imaginative landscape from Abbott's Flatlands. Image generated in Midjourney

When an intriguing call for papers appeared exploring AI co-creation, I felt compelled to test boundaries despite having slim to none academic publishing credentials. The concept resonated instantly, though self-doubt crept in studying full details. Could conversational technology collaborate on speculative scholarly work? Curiosity won out over uncertainty’s paralysis. If nothing else, illuminating ethical application merits investigation.

It was a Special Issue Call by the Irish Journal of Technology Enhanced Learning (IJTEL) with the title: The Games People Play: Exploring Technology Enhanced Learning Scholarship & Generative Artificial Intelligence.

I chose Claude, an AI assistant from Anthropic, entering an intensive weekend iteration. There were three options to choose from 1. Position Paper, 2. Short Report or 3. Book Review. I went with the book review. I fed Claude an 1884 novel called Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions by Edwin Abbott. Claude rapidly generated an abstract and book review excerpt about Flatland’s dimensional metaphors. However, hurried passes produced explanations minus critical analysis to create cohesion. Through clear prompting, I pushed Claude to incorporate additional theories, doubling the length of certain passages. It relied completely on my explicit redirects to shape fragments into cogent framing. After ten iterations I felt confident we had a useful book review.

Our accepted article examined generative AI’s promise and pitfalls, affirming Claude’s usefulness accelerating drafting under firm direction. But truly comprehending nuance and context without significant human oversight appears premature. Still, well-defined augmentation roles provide productivity upside versus total autonomy today. In other words, the current sweet spot for AI writing tools involves utilising their ability to rapidly generate content under a researcher’s close direction and oversight, rather than granting them high levels of autonomy to complete complex tasks alone start to finish.

More pressingly, this collaboration underscored ethical questions arising as generative models gain sophistication. If AI meaningfully impacts literature reviews, translation works or even initial thesis drafting one day, how can scholars utilise those productivity benefits responsibly? Tools excelling at prose introduce complex attribution and usage monitoring challenges threatening integrity.

Rather than reactively restricting technology based on risks, proactive pedagogical probes enlighten wise integration guardrails. Insights from transparent experiments clarifying current versus aspirational capabilities inform ethical development ahead.

Forward-thinking educators can guide this age of invention toward positive ends by spearheading ethical explorations today. Our thoughtful efforts now, probing human-AI collaboration’s realities versus ambitions, construct vital foundations upholding academic integrity as new tools progress from speculative potential to educational reality.

We have the power to shape what comes through asking tough questions in times of uncertainty. As educators we shoulder the responsibility to model how inquiry protects core values even amidst rapid change. And through ethical leadership, we just might uncover new sustainable and inclusive ways to progress.

Want further reading on this topic?

Ethics of Artificial Intelligence – UNESCO

Ethics of AI – a MOOC by the University of Helsinki

If you are interested in reading my more personal account about this project you can do so here.

February 10, 2023February 10, 2023

ThingLink basics, tags

Greetings, avid reader! Allow me to introduce you to the delightful world of ThingLink. Where the only limit is your own imagination! If you’re looking to add a touch of finesse to your images and videos, look no further than the humble tag. These interactive buttons bring your multimedia content to life and they’re the secret ingredient of ThingLink. In this blog post, I’ll give you a quick rundown of ThingLink in the form of a video.
BTW we used ThingLink for our very first project. You can read about it in our blog entry called Message from the future.

First of all, let’s define what ThingLink is. Simply put, ThingLink is an online platform that allows you to add interactive tags to your images and videos. These tags can include text, images, audio, and video, making your multimedia content much more engaging and interactive. Whether you’re a teacher, a student, or simply someone looking to add a touch of sophistication to your social media posts, ThingLink is the tool for you. Check out the following Miro board where I have put together a very simply yet effective sequence of slides to highlight what ThinLink is.

Now, why is this relevant for our context which is higher education and Edtech and at the end of the day the learners? Well, for one, it is a very intuitive tool and it gives students control over their own learning journey. No more dull lectures or tedious presentations. With ThingLink, students can interact with the material in multiple ways, truly grasping and internalising the information. And let’s be honest, who doesn’t love a bit of control? According to Yarbrough (2019) “more visuals are not only learner preferred, training and educational professionals have identified that visuals support efficient teaching.”

A ThingLink can be considered a version of an infographic. There are ample studies supporting the claim that infographics are very powerful tools. What makes infographics and in an extended way ThingLink too, so useful? Visuals tend to stick in long-term memory, they transmit messages faster and improve comprehension to name a few (Shiftlearning).

Here is a roughly 7 min video walking you through all the tags and how to create them. In Edit mode tags can can be dragged around the base image – you can even pull a line from under a tag and anchor it to a specific point.

In a next tutorial blog post with video we’ll have a look the settings and dive into the immersive world of 360° images and videos in ThingLink.

In conclusion, ThingLink is the tool you didn’t know you needed. With its interactive tags and multimedia-rich approach, ThingLink empowers students to take charge of their studies and reach their full potential. So what are you waiting for? Give it a go and see the magic unfold!

BTW when storyboarding the video I had a clear vision of how to implement text to speech (TTS) with an AI voice – little did I know how NOT easy this was Stay tuned as at some point I will write a how to post about the process of producing the above video.

Source:

Yarbrough, J. R. (2019). Infographics: In support of online visual learning. Academy of Educational Leadership Journal, 23(2), 1–15.

Shiftlearning. Blog post: Studies confirm the Power of Visuals in eLearning.

January 19, 2023January 20, 2023

Exploring the Potential of VR in Group Work

Virtual avatars sitting in a virtual meeting room

The multi-disciplinary sustainability course at the University of Helsinki tested an alternative way of completing the project work using virtual reality (VR) technology. Students were given the opportunity to use Oculus2 virtual glasses in Meta’s Horizon Workroom application for group meetings where they planned their own course presentation. The goal of the experiment was to evaluate the usability and ease of use of the devices and the efficiency of working in virtual space.

The experiment was part of the University of Helsinki’s Global Campus project, led by EdTech Expert Jussi Wright. The teacher responsible for the course was the university lecturer Rami Ratvio from HELSUS. From the tested alternatives, Meta’s Horizon Workroom application was chosen for the actual use test. The program was chosen in part because of the features and its more limited ability to move, which helped to focus on meeting work instead of moving around in free space.

The students who participated in the experiment generally enjoyed the experience and found working in VR mode to be beneficial. The feeling of presence in the virtual meeting was considered to be better than in traditional video meetings, and the meeting atmosphere was felt to be more intense. However, the use of the VR glasses and the program were considered challenging at first, and it was suggested that there should be more time allocated for practice before the course begins.

The Horizon Workroom application also allows for recording meetings, sharing text and image files, and even has the option for one student to act as the organizer and update the agenda on the virtual meeting room’s wall. It’s the perfect blend of technology and organization to enhance the learning experience.

Overall, this experiment demonstrated the potential of VR technology in group work and highlighted the importance of preparing students before using such technology in class. With the right tools and training, VR technology can be a powerful tool to enhance the learning experience, collaboration and improve group work outcomes.

January 16, 2023

Welcome to the Global Campus blog!

In this blog we will share what´s going on in the EdTech development at the University of Helsinki. We´ll tell what we have done – what we tested and what we learned.

The Global campus project was launched by the rector of the University of Helsinki in 2022 to work for two goals: expanding international online learning opportunities and creating a platform for innovative EdTech experiments. The project is said to be a startup inside the university, and it is being given the freedom to do “risky” EdTech pilots. This is an opportunity to think big and boldly about how the online learning can look like in the future. For this work, the team is taking the best out of the newest technologies like extended reality (XR) and artificial intelligence (AI) and combining them with the latest research on digital learning.

The rector Sari Lindblom encouraged the team by saying:

“We realize that not all experiments succeed, but if we never dare to try bold things and take risks, we will never learn as an organization.”

This inspires us every day to think big, and to challenge the way we think about learning. We welcome all teachers and students to join us in redefining online learning at the University of Helsinki!