How are our universities dealing with the rapid rise of AI?

In today’s Martin Center article, Shannon Watkins interviews Jeffrey Bardzell, who has been appointed to the position of chief AI officer at the University of North Carolina.

He states:

Insofar as we’re preparing students for the workforce, I would say a couple of things. One is that AI is ubiquitous. Every profession is not only likely to be shaped by AI, but actually quite a few professions are likely to disappear because of AI, and other ones are going to be created. I think we’re headed towards a very volatile time, and I think it’s really important that everybody, as a result, not only has skill with AI but also has the agility to deal with the fact that they’re likely going to go into professions [that will] face a considerable amount of disruption.

Bardzell wants to see at least a course devoted to the uses and limits of AI. For one thing, AI isn’t always truthful and can operate with built-in biases. Students and users of AI need to understand that. He also wants to establish guidelines for when AI use is permissible and when it isn’t.

Asked about the potential upsides for AI, he replied:

I think learning agents have really high potential. I think the idea that a student might have an AI agent to support them in an individual way [where], over time, AI starts to learn what that student is good at, or where they consistently make mistakes, or where they consistently struggle to focus, at a minimum, can help the students with their own metacognition.

Read the whole thing.