This project is developing a ‘ground up’ model for AI in education based on direct teaching need, as a alternative to enterprise-level, ‘top down’ AI services. It puts capacity in the hands of academic teams to create AI apps for their discipline and their courses.
It asks: How might generative AI help us develop new and interesting ways to teach differently?
The project aims to develop our capacity as an institution to think widely and creatively about human/machine partnerships in education, while supporting staff skills development and capacity for working with AI in their teaching and assessment.
It’s a partnership between the Edinburgh Futures Institute (EFI) and the Moray House School of Education and Sport.
The project is led by Prof Sian Bayne (Assistant Principal Education Futures) and Javier Tejera (Senior Learning Design and Technology Advisor in EFI).
The project is working with eighteen groups across many disciplines in order to create and research custom apps for use in live teaching contexts.
Our app developers are Anna Kapron-King, Yvonne Ding and Kokulan Thangasuthan.
Phase 1:
EnviroForum – Valentina Erastova, School of Chemistry
Simulating interviews with stakeholders in environmental projects, eg land managers, government advisors, environmental protection officers and engineers working on critical issues such as nuclear waste management, peatland restoration and plastic recycling.
Entrepreneurial Personas – Augusto Rocha, Business School
Developing investor personas for students to simulate and explore investor perspectives, including contexts, values and concerns.
Sura Suwriter – Nana Barker, Centre for Open Learning
Developing a fun, AI-powered storytelling app that enhances learners' writing skills in Japanese, tailored to different proficiency levels.
The Virtual Ward – Steven McCarthy, Edinburgh Medical School
Using AI to generate realistic case scenarios that stimulate clinical decision-making by students, then provide appropriate, evidence-based feedback.
Try This – Jane Alexander and Jane McKie, Creative Writing
Offering students unexpected ways of developing their creative work by prompting them to challenge their default habits as writers.
CaseConnect AI – Chris McKenzie, Medicine and Veterinary Medicine
Generative AI for creating interactive, customisable environments in which staff can design discipline-specific scenarios tailored to their courses.
Voices from the Past – Marc Di Tommasi, History
Using the entire writing corpus of renowned historians to create virtual personas allowing students to engage in dynamic conversation with historians of the past.
Co-Mod: the Feedback Moderation Coordinator – Pavlos Andreadis, Informatics
AI to assist with coordination of marking, moderation and feedback for assessment among a large group.
Consult-Ed – Lin Watson, School of Medicine
Developing AI chatbots for students to gain a realistic idea of patient context, and to help training for holistic assessment, diagnosis and case management.
ClientConnectEd – Hermione Hague, Law
AI to enhance the training of law students in professional skills and responsibility, particularly in the interviewing techniques required in legal practice.
Phase 2:
Radge – Jamie Auld Smith, Education
The AI Resilient Assessment Design Generator
Patient World – Alix Rolfe, Medicine
Chatbot for teaching socioeconomic determinants of health.
Reflect-Teach – Serdar Abaci, Education
Scenario-based reflection tool for teaching.
FormEd – Madeleine Campbell, Education
Training AI to give formative feedback on reflective blogs for continuous learning.
Infectious Banter – Rob Kelly, Vet School
Identifying and justifying evidence-based interventions for veterinary infectious diseases.
ChildVoiceAI – Andrew Manches, Education
Young voice simulation for design-based research with children.
Public Health Pro – Evgenia Plotnikova, Public Health
Adaptive scenarios for public health education.
Rubrify Smart – Aurora Constantin, Informatics
AI-assisted rubrics for fair, efficient and inclusive assessment
Currently apps can only be used if you have a University of Edinburgh staff or student login. We are working on options for opening up so please keep an eye out for this.
