2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Since the arrival of ChatGPT, generative AI has continued to shake up higher education institutions. Many institutions have scrambled to identify strategies and set policies for teaching and learning for the faculty and students. One important fact to pay attention to is that generative AI impacts everyone in higher education in how we teach and do research as faculty—not only those who do “technical” research on generative AI, machine learning, or data science but also those who work in the humanities. Hence, it is essential to include a broader range of interdisciplinary voices when investigating the impact of generative AI in higher education.

Last year, the authors, with expertise from four different disciplines—engineering, computer science, communication, and philosophy—came together to design and host a campus-wide workshop to facilitate conversations around generative AI and its impact on society at a Jesuit university. This workshop, designed for faculty across different disciplines, explored the multifaceted implications of generative AI in higher education. This workshop was designed to emphasize the importance of critical thinking in AI education, referencing religious and philosophical perspectives on technology's societal impact, and it aimed to equip faculty with a foundational understanding of generative AI, fostering discussions on its ethical implementation in higher education.

Key topics discussed in this workshop included:
Technology and its Impact on Society: Drawing parallels between the rapid evolution of social media and the current AI revolution, emphasizing the importance of proactive, interdisciplinary approaches to emerging technologies such as social media and generative AI.
Historical Perspective: Examining past misconceptions about AI capabilities, highlighting the need for a nuanced understanding of AI's potential and limitations.
Demystifying AI: An accessible overview of large language models, their functionality, and resource requirements. Discussing critical issues such as bias, misinformation, plagiarism, and the need for transparency and governance in AI development and use.
Practical Applications and Curriculum Integration: Introduction to various generative AI tools and their potential applications in academic settings and suggested strategies for incorporating AI literacy across disciplines, including developing program-specific learning outcomes and identifying courses for AI skill development.
By blending technical knowledge with broader societal considerations, the workshop encourages faculty participants from various disciplines to address the challenges and opportunities presented by generative AI. Through a short survey, the workshop participants highlighted several key themes, including considering interdisciplinary opportunities for AI integration in curriculum design, fostering AI literacy and critical thinking, and ensuring ethical use and awareness. Participants also stressed that AI should be used as a tool rather than a replacement for human skills, and they discussed the need for course-specific integration and adaptability to rapid technological changes. Additionally, they underscored the significance of information literacy, balancing AI use with traditional skills, and understanding the technical aspects of AI.

The authors will present details on how they designed and delivered this workshop and their reflections in a poster.