Date: Friday,21st June 2024
Dr. Edna Chebet Too, a senior lecturer in Computer Science and an expert in Artificial Intelligence (AI), participated in a workshop convened by the Commission for University Education (CUE) at Sawela Hotel, Naivasha, on Friday, June 21, 2024. The workshop aimed to raise awareness about the opportunities and disruptions resulting from AI.
The workshop highlighted several challenges associated with the advent of AI, including the AI literacy gap between senior staff (lecturers) and students. It was noted that many staff members are not well-informed about AI. Additionally, there is anxiety among staff and students regarding the use of AI, skepticism, ethical concerns, privacy issues, assessment challenges, and plagiarism involving AI tools. Other issues discussed were the potential marginalization resulting from AI, inaccuracies or misinformation from AI tools, and the ethical and privacy implications of AI.
The CUE recommended leveraging AI across various university activities, including innovation, start-ups, research, management, policies, teaching, and examinations. Institutions were advised to develop guidelines and policies for AI use. Integrating AI into all university curricula and identifying AI champions in each department were also recommended. Additionally, forming committees within institutions to promote AI usage and encouraging inter-university consortia were suggested.
Collaborations and partnerships in the AI domain were encouraged, as was the utilization of data centers set up through the Konza technopolis. The need to establish AI innovation and incubation labs for capacity building within institutions was highlighted and highly encouraged.
Overall, the workshop emphasized the need to enhance understanding of AI and increase its momentum in academia. Recommendations included training all academic staff to ensure they can use AI ethically, capacity building, and creating platforms to showcase work generated by staff and students.
