Last week, as we welcomed faculty back to campus and looked forward to the promise of a new year, we took time to discuss several topics of significant interest in higher education. One of these topics is artificial intelligence (AI) and its effects on learning. At Missouri State, we believe that we are at the front‐end of a sea change and must embrace AI and its various uses in a responsible fashion.

The use of AI has been around for a good length of time and has accelerated in recent months. In May, Missouri State held a think tank session that was attended by many faculty and staff. Since then, we have monitored developments across higher education and reviewed various policies. We are considering implementing a number of approaches, including an AI task force, ongoing campus forums, and methods for gathering student and employer input.

Academic Integrity and Learning Outcomes

Learning outcomes are the cornerstone of our programs and courses and, as always, these should be analyzed and refined as appropriate. Obviously, critical thinking, analytical reasoning and developing individual thoughts surrounding topics are paramount.

That said, we believe that ways to achieve course and learning outcomes and ensure that critical thought processes are enacted is changing due to the availability of generative AI and other technologies. AI can be used to enhance learning experiences, and we know several of our faculty are incorporating it into their assignments and course materials. Further, AI is being used in various fields; our graduates need to be equipped with the ability to understand and apply appropriate uses and citations for AI as they develop tools for everyday settings.

Addressing AI Use on Course Syllabi

The Deans’ Team believes it is critical that faculty’s syllabi statements and course assignments are clear about the allowable use of AI. This will promote greater understanding for students and ensure appropriate academic integrity measures are addressed and maintained.

The Faculty Center for Teaching and Learning (FCTL) has gathered sample syllabi statements that may be of use as you develop and refine your own policies.

Additional Selected Resources

• Our AI think tank has curated a selection of writing about this topic.
• You may also wish to review the presentation of Missouri State alumna Dr. Lisa Blue, who is an instructional specialist in STEM teaching and learning for the Faculty Center for Teaching and Learning at Eastern Kentucky University. Dr. Blue led a statewide symposium on generative AI, and some of our faculty attended the virtual session on August 7. Dr. Blue has graciously given us access to a recording of the symposium. It can be found here in a shared Google drive. Dr. Blue’s colleague, Brad Powell, also posted about this topic in his daily newsletter.
• Keystone Education Group recently assembled a list of possible AI applications for teaching and learning.