AI Commons Bulletin 1/22/2025
Human-curated news about generative AI for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education.

📷 AI for Photographic Course Materials
Instructors using photos in course materials can explore AI tools that extend images into panoramic or 360-degree views. Currently based on a single photo, these tools may soon evolve to include context, offering more accurate and dynamic results.

Learn More: https://people.engr.tamu.edu/nimak/Papers/PanoDreamer/index.html

👍 Policies at German Universities Generally Positive Toward AI
A content analysis of AI guidelines at 67 universities in Germany can be summed up as: use it if you wish, just be open and transparent.

Learn More: https://doi.org/10.1111/ejed.12891

💬 Word of the Day: Agentic Era
Google sees the future as agentic. To them, this means AI that can “understand more about the world around you, think multiple steps ahead, and take action on your behalf”. In other words, AI that makes decisions and adapts to its surroundings.

Learn More: https://blog.google/technology/google-deepmind/google-gemini-ai-update-december-2024/

🏫 Learning Needs in the Age of AI is Different
The rise of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) sparks important discussions regarding learner independence and self-direction:
1. How to use AI productively for one’s learning needs
2. How to evaluate AI responses
3. How to maintain one’s own voice

Learn More: https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci14121369

Bulletin items compiled by MJ Jackson and Sarah Freye with production assistance from Lisa Batchelder. Get the AI-Commons Bulletin on our Microsoft Teams channel, at aicommons.commons.msu.edu, or by email (send an email to aicommons@msu.edu with the word “subscribe”).