Current Trends

Higher education is constantly evolving to meet the demands of an ever-changing world, and staying on top of current trends is crucial for both institutions and students. From technological advancements to social and economic shifts, today's higher education landscape is shaped by a myriad of factors. This section will provide information about current trends for meeting the needs of faculty to effectively shift instruction to meet evolving institutional and student needs.

New Digital Resource for Aligning OER and DEI

Adopting open educational resources, or OER, can be an effective strategy for meeting campus equity goals. In addition to saving students (and institutions) money, making free educational materials available for faculty and students to use, customize, and share can level the academic playing field, narrow performance gaps, and reduce failure and withdrawal rates.

Yet, intentional connections are seldom made between OER initiatives and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, despite the similar outcomes sought by both.

Leveraging Open Educational Resources to Advance Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion: A Guide for Campus Change Agents provides evidence-based guidance and best practices that support the sustainability and broad adoption of OER by making strategic connections to DEI goals, strategies, policies, initiatives, and offices.

For further information see the Library's OER Lib Guides or contact your department's library liaison for assistance.
ChatGPT and AI Tools
Seemingly overnight there has been an explosion in the area of artificial intelligence (AI) tools that automate tasks like writing papers ( ChatGPT), creating graphics ( GPT DALL-E), or paraphrasing text ( Quillbot). While there are a lot of promising aspects of these evolving technologies, the potential impact on academic integrity is concerning. While AI detectors are also emerging rapidly, the accuracy of them is not foolproof. Please see the following resources for more information:
- ChatGPT and AI Tools Overview
- Join the 2023 Teaching & Learning Conference MyClasses site and watch the panel session on ChatGPT implications for higher education.
- Accessing and Interpreting Turnitin Artificial Intelligence (AI) Detection Reports (SU Login Required)
- July 13, 2023 Pens & Pixels: Generative AI in Education National Online Conference (Free)