LAB42 is the new centre for Digital Innovation and AI of the University of Amsterdam. Here, students, researchers, and companies work together under one roof with and on the technology of the future. To share knowledge and foster innovation. In a building where first-class students, the latest research, and other AI companies are within reach. During this tour, you will take a look into The Intelligent Robotics Lab and meet AI researchers who can tell you more about the future possibilities of AI for education.

LAB42, Science Park 900

Chairs of the day Lela Mosemghvdlishvili & Ivar Kolvoort ​will first welcome you. Followed by a speech by our Rector Magnificus Peter-Paul Verbeek focussing on a technical-philosophical perspective on generative AI in university education: where do we stand?

In February 2024, the Teaching & Learning Centre Science initiated a pilot project to integrate GenAI, specifically ChatGPT, into the educational process. In 12 pilots within the Faculty of Science, various applications of GenAI in higher education are being explored and their added value evaluated. The aim is to effectively utilise ChatGPT in education to enhance student learning within a secure cloud environment that guarantees user safety and privacy. Today, Koen van Elsen, AI expert and lecturer in Computer Science, presents the key findings from the evaluations of these pilots and the implications for the academic skills of students and staff.

Koen van Elsen is a lecturer in the Bachelor’s programme in Computer Science at the University of Amsterdam. He is passionate about researching ways to support education with the help of modern technologies. His primary focus is always on improving the learning process for students, while keeping the practical aspects for the lecturer in mind. Over the past year, Koen has played an active role in the AI Pilot of the Faculty of Science, where he assists his colleagues in the mindful application of GenAI in their teaching.

Get yourself a drink and take the opportunity to have a quick glance at the most innovative projects and ideas about genAI within UvA during the poster sessions. Engage in conversations with UvA colleagues who have already integrated generative AI into their teaching practice. Hear from recipients of the Responsible Use of AI grant and the AI pilot coordinators of the Science Faculty about their AI projects and their insights on the skills needed to incorporate generative AI into education. In addition, you can speak with several Honours students who will share their vision for the future of ‘AIducation.’ Are you curious about the FNWI pilots or the Visible Learning Pathways Programme and AI? They will also be present and eager to discuss their experiences with you.

In this session, Dora uses the AUC as a case study, serving as an inspiring example of how an undergraduate programme sought to react to GenAI and anticipate its development. What makes this case distinct from other university initiatives is the implementation of a bottom-up approach that seeks to empower teachers, giving them autonomy to propose how to modify their course assessments. Using this short presentation as a starting point, Dora will introduce an interactive process for the attendees to discuss how the various functionalities of GenAI interfere with learning goals. The discussion will return to the key question of the UvA Trends conference: how learning goals (“eindtermen”) can or should be revised, and what intermediary changes in learning outcomes at the course level and assessment forms will be necessary.

Dora Achourioti is Head of Studies for the Academic Core at Amsterdam University College and also serves as the chair of the ‘AUC Taskforce on Generative AI in Education’. Additionally, she participates in the TLC Educational Fellowship program, where her research focuses on identifying the foundational skills students need to effectively engage with generative AI tools. She has led the organisation of several faculty activities and events on the subject, including the ‘AI Week’, an event during which the AUC community paused teaching for a week at the beginning of the academic year, to collaboratively reflect on recent developments and the future of higher education in the context of generative AI. Her research expertise is in Logic and Philosophy.

In 2024, the UvA AI Chat was launched, a secure environment within the UvA interface that safeguards user privacy. Several UvA professors are already actively using this innovative tool in their courses. One of the features of the UvA AI Chat is the ability to create a persona, such as a tutor, an expert on a specific subject, or a planning assistant. In this workshop, you will step into the shoes of a professor: you’ll create your own persona and test those of your colleagues. We will then engage in discussions about what is needed to effectively and responsibly integrate this technology into our teaching practices. This hands-on session combines theory and practice, with the underlying idea that both students and professors need skills for responsible use. Join us to discover how AI can enhance our educational practices!

Rik Jager works at ICTS with a background in sociology. As the Product Owner of Digital Collaboration at UvA and HvA, he leads a team of 13 professionals in the field of digital innovation. He combines technical knowledge with sociological insight to build effective teams and guide complex change processes. In his current role, he is also working for the National Growth Fund program Npuls, where he contributes to the digital transformation of Dutch education.

How do you ensure that students develop the necessary AI literacy throughout the curriculum, across subjects, and at the learning trajectory level, and how can you strengthen the learning process with AI? The Visible Learning Trajectories Programme supports programmes in a tailored and co-creative manner with lecturers in systematically setting up an AI learning trajectory. We focus not only on students but also on the development of lecturers. By working together on concrete learning objectives, effective didactic methods, and targeted assessments, we simultaneously enhance AI literacy, the learning process of students, and the didactic skills of lecturers. In this way, both students and lecturers are prepared within the context of their programme for a future in which AI plays a crucial role.

In this breakout session, you will gain hands-on experience with co-creating (parts of) a learning trajectory according to the learning trajectory methodology, specifically developed for the Visible Learning Trajectories Programme.

Ilja Boor is an education innovator and co-programme leader of the university-wide Visible Learning Trajectories Programme at the University of Amsterdam (UvA), where curriculum renewal is combined with the professional development of teaching teams. She is also co-head of the Teaching & Learning Centre at the Faculty of Science. Additionally, she developed the Transition Makers Toolbox, which includes educational materials to support affective learning, and authored the handbook “Meaningful Assessment in Interdisciplinary Education.” Ilja, along with the Institute for Interdisciplinary Studies, received a Comenius Leadership grant for the project “Empowered Minds,” which focuses on implementing affective learning within the UvA.

The UvA Trends conference finishes at 17:30.