The Ohio State University is launching a sweeping initiative to educate all students – regardless of their major – on artificial intelligence starting this fall.
Dubbed “AI Fluency,” the initiative will integrate AI into the core curriculum for all first-year students through required seminars and workshops with an aim to educate students on how “to not only use AI tools, but to understand, question and innovate with them.”
“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.”
AI learning will be integrated into classrooms in three ways, according to the university:
- Through a required generative AI (GenAI) basics class included in the university’s General Education Launch Seminar.
- GenAI workshops and other AI-focused workshops that will be held under the university’s First year Success Series which is a required survey course to adapt students to college life.
- A new “Unlocking Generative AI” course that will teach students how to interact with AI, craft creative prompts, and explore AI’s impact on society.
Additional colleges at Ohio State will also expand their course offerings in AI and will “have opportunities to infuse AI into courses and programs serving graduate and professional students.”
Extracurricular opportunities for students include AI-driven hackathons, programs to gain work experience, and hands-on workshops for building and prototyping tools.
“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, in a statement.
Faculty will also have expanded resources made available to them through Ohio State’s Michael V. Drake Institute for Teaching and Learning which will create a fund to provide financial and advisory support for those integrating AI into their teaching. The Center for Software Innovation along with other university centers will additionally 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.”