AI Essentials for Educators Course

Overview

As Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools become widespread, educators must learn how to make the best use of AI in their teaching and learning, to boost effectiveness and efficiencies – and keep up with their students!

There’s a lot to get to grips with, which is why our University of Canterbury academic experts are here to help you demystify the use of AI. In this short course, you’ll learn the fundamentals of how AI works and explore how you can harness the latest innovations in AI and generative AI to support you in your teaching practice.

This course is designed to be hands-on, giving you a starting point to explore a range of AI tools, learn how to use them and implement appropriate safety measures, and to explore how generative AI can be used in your own context. 

Explore the essentials of AI for educators and build your confidence in using generative AI tools in your teaching in just 20 hours. 

This course is part of a new collection of short courses on AI for teachers. Other courses planned in this collection will focus on using generative AI to support ākonga | student assessment and testing, and how academic integrity and generative AI can combine to empower student achievement. If you’re interested in learning more about this collection, sign up for updates. Visit our website to find more options if you wish to extend your learning on AI with us. 

This course is ideal for

• Primary and pre-primary teachers
• Intermediate and secondary teachers
• Tertiary lecturers and educators
• Leaders in education

What you'll learn

• Fundamental AI concepts for educators
• Types of AI tools and examples of common generative AI tools that are useful for educators 
• How to evaluate the implications of using large language models (LLMs) in education 

Course outline

Our courses are flexible, enabling you to plan your study around your other commitments. You can choose to study when it suits you during the learning period (3 February – 2 March 2025).

This short course will require around 20 hours of study during the learning period – you can view the course overview here for more details including assessments. 

Module 1: Introduction to AI concepts

Learn about fundamental AI concepts and critically evaluate the implications of using large language models (LLMs) in educational settings.

Module 2: Integrating AI into teaching

Identify a range of AI tools that could be used in your classroom for teaching and research. Practise designing effective prompts to support some common activities that educators may engage in when using generative AI.

Module 3: Ethical implications of GenAI for teaching

Understand and analyse ethical issues related to the use of generative AI in education and propose policies for its responsible use in teaching and assessment. 

Assessments  

All assessments are self-assessments and completion of the course is determined by completion of all the learning modules and the self-assessment activities. 

Upon successful completion of the course you will be issued a digital badge to recognise your learning achievements.

Requirements

There are no prerequisites for this course – it is open to anyone who has confidence listening, reading, and writing in English. 

This course is designed for teachers, educators and academics – if you're not a teacher, please contact us via info@uconline.ac.nz to check if this course is right for you. 

Technology requirements

We recommend a laptop or desktop computer and a reliable internet connection. For most courses you'll need to download and populate assignments. These are usually available as Microsoft Word documents.

Course fees

Course fees must be paid before learning can begin, either via online credit-card payment, or by contacting info@uconline.ac.nz to request an invoice. Please note: fixed invoice payment dates apply, so we recommend getting in touch with us as soon as possible to request an invoice, as this option is subject to availability.

Group discounts

Get your colleagues together to take advantage of our group discounts: 

• 10% for 3 - 6 learners
• 15% for 7+ learners

Contact our Partnerships Manager to learn more and enquire now.

Cap & minimum enrolment threshold

A minimum number of learners is needed for effective interaction and feedback, while a maximum cap of learners ensures high quality learning and support. If the minimum number of enrolments required for a course isn’t met, or the maximum cap is exceeded, learners will be given the option to defer their study or receive a refund.

Our people

Please note: our academic team develop and present video content within their courses, but are not always available to answer queries. Our learner experience team will be available to answer queries via support@uconline.ac.nz