English Australia’s Ed-Tech Special Interest Group recently hosted a webinar on how ELICOS colleges are navigating the use of Generative AI tools.
ELICOS (English Language Intensive Courses for Overseas Students) course providers are currently faced with a significant challenge: how to harness the potential of Generative AI without compromising the integrity of language education and the authentic evaluation of students on academic pathways with English language entry requirements.
The EA webinar featured case studies from member colleges – the University of Adelaide ELC, Phoenix Academy in Perth, and UNSW College – sparking positive and explorative discussions around these key areas:
Evolution of AI: AI is an evolving space, with the recognition that current actions are a stepping stone to future expectations. Brooke Donnelly from UNSW said, “where we are currently is not where we expect to be in 12 months’ time.”
Assessment Redesign: A particular challenge exists around ensuring authentic contributions, student accountability, and assessment integrity. Centres discussed how they are redesigning assessments with an AI lens, including a return to supervised in-class assessments, more emphasis on spontaneous speaking tasks, like Q & A sections of presentations, and a focus on assessing writing processes over product.
AI Detectors: Phoenix Academy’s Conrad Teper raised the ongoing challenge of detecting unauthorised AI use in assessments and the lack of reliability in available detection tools, like Turnitin. He highlighted the pertinence of the role of ELICOS providers in student pathways and OpenAI’s own statement that AI detectors aren’t reliable enough “given that educators could be making judgments about students with potentially lasting consequences” (OpenAI, 2023).
Policy and Procedure: Explicit guidelines regarding the ethical and acceptable use of Generative AI were seen as essential, and many centres are developing policies for teacher and student use. Gabriel Azpilcueta from the University of Adelaide (ELC) noted, “the diversity in use and exploration amongst teachers and students made it evident there needed to be some consistency in the approach across the centre.”
Teacher Engagement: While many teachers are conducting their own exploratory practices, some have not yet used GenAI tools themselves. Opportunities to learn about, use, and experiment with new teaching and learning tools should therefore be a priority for professional development programs in ELICOS centres.
Student Engagement: Surveys and informal discussions reveal many ELICOS students have a positive and advantageous interest in AI and want to use these tools in combination with teacher assistance to improve their language skills. Concerns regarding security risks, equity issues, and academic integrity were also acknowledged in student discussions.
While many colleges are actively navigating the integration of generative AI tools, it’s clear that further exploration and collaboration will support ELICOS providers in addressing the unique challenges Generative AI use brings to language learning contexts.
English Australia’s Ed-Tech SIG is calling for teachers to contribute to their blog on Generative AI use in language learning. Expressions of interest HERE.
Watch the full Enhancing Ethical AI Engagement Webinar HERE
