AI's influence on educational authority requires careful consideration of user roles.
Category: User-Centred Design · Effect: Moderate effect · Year: 2022
The integration of Artificial Intelligence in higher education is reshaping traditional authority structures, necessitating a deeper understanding of how these changes impact students, educators, and institutions.
Design Takeaway
When designing AI-powered educational tools, actively consider how the technology will influence the distribution of authority and accountability among students, instructors, and the system itself, ensuring a clear and equitable framework.
Why It Matters
Designers and researchers must recognize that AI is not merely a technological tool but a force that alters social dynamics within educational settings. Understanding these shifts in authority and accountability is crucial for developing AI-driven educational solutions that are equitable, effective, and user-centred.
Key Finding
The research found that discussions about AI in higher education lack clear definitions and tend to frame AI as either an unavoidable change or as a technology that redistributes power away from educators towards a wider network of actors.
Key Findings
- Definitions of AI in higher education literature are often vague and inconsistent.
- Two dominant discourses were identified: 'imperative change' (AI as an inevitable force) and 'altering authority' (AI decentralizing traditional teacher-led authority).
Research Evidence
Aim: How do current academic discourses frame the role and impact of Artificial Intelligence in higher education, particularly concerning shifts in authority and accountability?
Method: Critical Literature Review and Discourse Analysis
Procedure: A systematic search of top higher education journals was conducted for references to 'artificial intelligence'. The identified texts were then subjected to a discourse analysis to understand the prevailing narratives and underlying assumptions about AI's role and its impact on authority structures.
Context: Higher Education
Design Principle
Design AI systems for education with explicit attention to the evolving roles and power dynamics between users and the technology.
How to Apply
When developing AI educational platforms, conduct user research that specifically probes perceptions of control, autonomy, and responsibility in relation to the AI's functions.
Limitations
The review focused on specific journals, potentially missing relevant discourses from other fields or publications. The analysis is based on textual representation, which may not fully capture real-world implementation nuances.
Student Guide (IB Design Technology)
Simple Explanation: When we talk about AI in schools, people aren't always clear what they mean, and they often describe it as something that's going to change everything or take some power away from teachers.
Why This Matters: Understanding how AI is discussed helps you design solutions that are more aware of the social and power dynamics involved, making them more likely to be accepted and used effectively.
Critical Thinking: How can designers proactively shape the 'discourse' around their AI products to promote a more balanced and user-empowering narrative, rather than passively accepting existing framings?
IA-Ready Paragraph: The integration of Artificial Intelligence into educational settings is often discussed through specific discourses that highlight its transformative potential and its impact on established authority structures. Research indicates that definitions of AI are frequently ambiguous, and its role is framed either as an 'imperative change' that necessitates adaptation or as a force that 'alters authority' by decentralizing traditional power dynamics among educators, students, and institutions. This suggests that any design project involving AI in education must critically examine how the technology will influence user roles, decision-making processes, and accountability frameworks to ensure a user-centred and equitable outcome.
Project Tips
- When researching AI in your design project, look for how different sources talk about its impact on people's roles.
- Consider how your design might shift who has control or makes decisions in a given situation.
How to Use in IA
- Reference this study when discussing the broader context of AI implementation and its potential impact on user roles and institutional structures in your design project.
Examiner Tips
- Demonstrate an awareness of the socio-political implications of technology, not just its technical functionality.
Independent Variable: Framing of AI in academic literature
Dependent Variable: Perceived shifts in authority and accountability
Controlled Variables: Journal type, publication date
Strengths
- Systematic literature search methodology.
- Application of critical discourse analysis to a relevant topic.
Critical Questions
- To what extent do these identified discourses reflect the actual experiences of students and educators?
- How can design interventions actively counter negative or disempowering framings of AI in education?
Extended Essay Application
- Investigate the discourse surrounding a specific emerging technology within a chosen field, analyzing how it frames user roles and societal impact.
- Propose a design solution that addresses the identified power imbalances or accountability gaps highlighted by the discourse analysis.
Source
Discourses of artificial intelligence in higher education: a critical literature review · Higher Education · 2022 · 10.1007/s10734-022-00937-2