{"id":10467,"date":"2026-03-27T13:32:23","date_gmt":"2026-03-27T13:32:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.sussex.ac.uk\/tel\/?p=10467"},"modified":"2026-03-30T10:49:39","modified_gmt":"2026-03-30T09:49:39","slug":"spotlight-on-ai-in-education-march-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.sussex.ac.uk\/tel\/2026\/03\/27\/spotlight-on-ai-in-education-march-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Spotlight on AI in Education: March 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Welcome to March 2026\u2019s<\/em> Spotlight on AI in Education bulletin. With how fast things are moving, this will help you cut through the noise and catch what\u2019s important. The bulletin highlights on-the-ground practice, institutional perspectives and trends in generative AI use across the sector and beyond. We hope you find this useful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you have anything you\u2019d like to contribute or see in this bulletin please email EE@sussex.ac.uk<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What’s been happening at Sussex?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Educational Enhancement hosted the fifth in-person meeting of The University of Sussex\u2019s Teaching with AI Community of Practice on Monday 16th<\/sup> March.  Our focus was Critical AI Literacy, aligned with the university\u2019s second AI principle (see our principles here<\/a>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"AI<\/figure>
\n

We welcomed Dr Gabriella Cagliesi<\/a> (USBS), who provided an update on her work using GenAI bots to replicate the role of a teaching assistant with her Macroeconomics class, and Nick Heavey<\/a> (Teaching and Learning Librarian) who shared how students are being supported to develop their Information Literacy at Sussex.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

AI generated image by Adobe Firefly 25th<\/sup> March 2026 using HM\u2019s prompt \u201ca room with groups of people at tables, discussing ideas\u201d with settings art and doodle selected.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Gabriella offered valuable insights into how working with Microsoft CoPilot has been different to her previous investigations using ChatGPT.  CoPilot is a supported and secure platform available for all Sussex staff and students so Gabriella\u2019s work exploring its efficacy is particularly useful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nick reported on the interesting work the Library Teaching team have been doing to expand the Information Literacy offer to include AI Literacy, considering UNESCO\u2019s AI competency framework for students<\/a>, and the collaborative work he has done with other colleagues at Sussex to support students.  Nick\u2019s presentation sparked a very interesting discussion about the varying perspectives and experiences of students and staff at the university.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The slides for both presentations are available to Sussex staff via the Teams channel.  Click here to request to join<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Following the presentations, we worked in groups to evaluate some attributes of critical AI Literacy.  Taking the idea of a Diamond 9<\/em> but adapting the expectation so people could create whichever form of hierarchy suited them, each group ranked what they considered to be important markers of critical literacy when it comes to using AI in their subject area or their practice.  Some groups considered this in terms of student attributes, staff or in general.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Microsoft<\/figure>
\n

The results varied and were representative of how broad a topic Critical AI Literacy is.  Photographs and notes from the final 9s, and the nine suggested attributes, are available to view here<\/a>, and for your entertainment I\u2019ll share a CoPilot rendering of one of them:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Microsoft CoPilot rendering of a photograph of nine cards with text on.<\/em> The position of the cards is accurate.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The Teaching with AI Community of Practice will meet again 8th June<\/strong> when we look forward to hosting a salon-style event with opportunities to reflect on 25\/26 and discuss your ideas, experiences and questions with each other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We will meet in-person on the University Campus, exact venue tbc. Please register to attend here: Register to attend Teaching with AI Community of Practice – 8th June 2026 (in person)<\/a>. Completing the form is particularly useful for us to accommodate any access requirements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read more about our previous AI CoPs on the blog<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Upcoming Training and Events:<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Training:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n