California State University at Sacramento has started a new institute devoted to the use of artificial intelligence in education.
The university has announced that the National Institute for Artificial Intelligence in Education will offer training to faculty members and students studying to become teachers. Another big focus for the institute will be teaching the ethical use of the technology.
University officials said the institute is one of the first in the nation to focus on AI and education and will begin offering programs in the spring semester.
Sacramento State President Luke Wood appointed Alexander M. “Sasha” Sidorkin, the dean of Sacramento State’s College of Education, to head the new institute. Sidorkin said the institute is needed because of AI’s quick rise.
“Artificial intelligence technology is here and advancing rapidly, so we have the responsibility as educators to prepare students for the world they live in, not one from the past,” Sidorkin said.
He said that the university will hire seven faculty members in the Department of Computer Science, focusing on AI and quantum computing as part of the new initiative. While the faculty isn’t expected to start until the fall, Sidorkin said existing university staff would conduct seminars on AI next semester, educating both students and faculty.
He said that once the faculty starts, the immediate emphasis will be on research and educational programs for the university. Formal AI courses for students will be started at some point, but no timetable has been established. Sidorkin said the institute will not be granting degrees.
Sidorkin is the author of the forthcoming book “Embracing Chatbots in Higher Education: The Use of Artificial Intelligence in Teaching, Administration and Scholarship.” The book is scheduled to be released in 2024.
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