Ohio State University Launches New AI Fluency Program For Undergrads

Forbes

a day ago

The Ohio State University is updating its undergraduate curriculum to promote AI fluency for all ... More students.
The Ohio State University is introducing a new AI Fluency initiative in which basic AI education will be embedded in core undergraduate requirements and majors.
The aim is to help equip students with the ability to use AI tools, as well as to 'understand, question and innovate with them — no matter their major.'
The project will begin this fall for first-year students. It will focus on developing students' AI literacy, including an understanding of how AI can be responsibly applied in their specialty fields.
'Artificial intelligence is transforming the way we live, work, teach and learn. In the not-so-distant future, every job, in every industry, is going to be impacted in some way by AI,' said Ohio State President Walter 'Ted' Carter Jr., in the university's announcement.
'Ohio State has an opportunity and responsibility to prepare students to not just keep up, but lead in this workforce of the future," added Carter. "I'm so pleased that we are taking this bold step forward to set our students up for success and keep Ohio competitive for the long term. We have a strong foundation on which to build, and the AI Fluency initiative will only accelerate our momentum in mission-driven AI research and education.'
All Ohio State undergraduates, regardless of major, will be expected to develop foundational generative through three curricular components:
'Through AI Fluency, Ohio State students will be 'bilingual' — fluent in both their major field of study and the application of AI in that area,' said Ravi V. Bellamkonda, executive vice president and provost. 'Grounded with a strong sense of responsibility and possibility, we will prepare Ohio State's students to harness the power of AI and to lead in shaping its future of their area of study.'
Individual departments and colleges will expand their existing AI-focused offerings, and they are also expected to infuse AI into graduate and professional programs.
To support the initiative, Ohio State's Michael V. Drake Institute for Teaching and Learning will expand its resources to help faculty integrate AI into their teaching, including the creation of a fund that will provide financial and advisory support. In addition, the Center for Software Innovation along with other university centers will help faculty develop custom AI content across fields of study.
'Ohio State's faculty have long been pioneers in exploring the transformative potential of AI, driving innovation both in research and education,' said Peter Mohler, executive vice president for research, innovation and knowledge. 'Our university is leading the way in a multidisciplinary approach to harnessing AI's benefits, significantly shaping the future of learning and discovery.'
Colleges and universities across the nation are placing a new emphasis on how best to educate students about the best use of artificial intelligence tools. New AI majors and minors are being introduced, interdisciplinary AI centers and institutes are being formed, and faculty and their students are learning how to use AI tools to advance research in a wide range of fields.
Institutions of all kinds are gearing up efforts to ensure that their graduates have acquired basic AI knowledge and skills, reflecting the fact that more and more employers are expecting new hires to have some level of AI competency.
To be sure, colleges remain concerned about the potential abuses of AI, including students using it to write papers and complete other assignments, but their attention to issues of AI-assisted cheating is now being accompanied by another priority — preparing students to meet the demands of a workforce rapidly being transformed by artificial intelligence technologies.