In this seminar, Dr Matt Offord delivered an engaging talk on artificial intelligence (AI) and its implications for higher education and leadership. Drawing on his rich professional background, including roles in business and the Navy, he provided historical insights into AI’s evolution, emphasising the cyclic nature of AI development.
Offord challenged misconceptions about AI, clarifying that current models like ChatGPT lack critical thinking, true intelligence, and contextual understanding. He highlighted issues such as the environmental costs of AI, potential model collapse due to reliance on prevalent data, and risks of data breaches. He also critiqued AI’s limitations in addressing complex problems, framing these constraints as barriers to achieving artificial general intelligence (AGI).
In the context of higher education, Offord argued that assessments overly focused on data retrieval are outdated, advocating for reflective, experience-based, and collaborative learning approaches. He detailed his innovative teaching methods, such as campus field trips and journaling, which emphasise human-centric skills like observation, reflection, and critical thinking. These strategies aim to prepare students for leadership roles by fostering authentic learning experiences.
The talk concluded with principles for assessing in an AI-driven era, encouraging educators to align teaching practices with authentic learning and urging caution in using generative AI platforms.
[This summary was generated by AI and checked for accuracy and edited by a human.]
Abstract
The ChatGPT breakthrough of 2023 brought on a severe bout of hand-wringing in Higher Education. An assessment crisis soon followed and a wave of scholarship followed this, making hasty suggestions as to how to engage with this new technology before it could be used against us. But what if AI is not the problem with assessment? What if assessment is actually the problem? In my talk I will suggest that artificial learning will generate artificial assignment submissions. I have headed in a different direction, outdoors. I will argue that authentic experience leads to richer learning and assessment while also reconnecting learners with the world.
In this talk I will briefly discuss how Large Language Models (LLM) actually work and why they can never live up to our inflated expectations. I will argue that decontextualising knowledge and making it searchable, is de-enriching learning. I will propose an alternative: authentic encounters with the real world supported by reflective observation. I will explain how I use short and easy ‘campus field trips’ and create assessments which cannot be ‘hacked’ with modern technology. This approach was described as ‘teaching and care giving’ by one student, I will show how breaking out of the classroom supports wellbeing. Participants should be able to come away from my talk with some concrete ideas about using ecopedagogy in their practice, if they wish to.
About the speaker
Dr Matt Offord (he/him) teaches leadership and management through experiential methods, in short learning by doing. The main method of doing this is through ‘ecopedagogy’ which focuses on sustainable and responsible leadership by experiencing the impact of business decisions in the real world. Matt’s lectures often involve an element of outdoor learning where students are encouraged to look again at familiar spaces and the built environment. Additionally, Matt is a business simulation instructor using various simulations and educational escape rooms to bring management and leadership theory to life. Follow his work on LinkedIn.
