Torrun Gjelsvik, Secretary General of the International Council for Distance Education (ICDE), presented the challenges and future directions of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in online education during the third Plenary Session of the International Conference on Open and Distance eLearning (ICODeL) held last 14 October 2021.
Citing several initiatives by ICDE members, Secretary-General Gjelsvik elaborated the potentials of AI technology in solving fundamental challenges within education, innovating pedagogies, personalizing learning and enabling scalability, promoting student autonomy and knowledge production, as well as contributing to the development of Open and Educational Resources (OERs).
ICDE takes pride in the development of several initiatives, engagements and programs, such as the degree programs and courses on AI offered by the University of CAECE and University of China, the Norwegian Open AI Lab, the Nordic Probabilistic AI School 2021, SLATE’s OXALIC, University of Lorraine’s loria, and the X5-GON project.
As stated by UNESCO Director General Audrey Auzolay, “Artificial intelligence can be a great opportunity to accelerate the achievement of sustainable development goals. But any technological revolution leads to new imbalances that we anticipate.” Such challenges in data ownership, algorithm discrimination, use of intrusive AI powered tools, skills and competencies development in different levels are being faced and continually addressed by UNESCO through policy formulation and the realization of a human-centered approach to AI.
Mr. Colin de la Higuera, UNESCO Chair on Open Education Resources; and Ms. Barbara Wasson, Director of SLATE (Center for the Science of Learning and Technology) also graced the event to share insights and answer questions on the topic. Serving as the moderator of the session was Asst. Prof. Dr. Diego Maranan, Program Chair of Bachelor of Arts in Media Studies (BAMS), University of the Philippines Open University (UPOU) and co-founder of Space Ecologies Art and Design (SEADS).
ICODeL 2021 is a biennial conference sponsored by Panopto and organized by the UPOU, University of the Philippines Foundation Inc. (UPOUFI), and the Philippine Society for Distance Learning. To know more about the event, visit: ICODeL 2021
Written by the ICODeL 2021 Publicity Committee
Edited by Joane V. Serrano, Anna Cañas-Llamas and Alessa Shainne Hostalero