Event

Using AI to make students smarter

This event hosted by UK think tank HEPI discusses how higher education institutions could respond to AI in ways that prioritise learning.

Join HEPI and Studiosity for a webinar on Tuesday 17 November on ‘Using AI to make students smarter‘.

The Student Generative AI Survey 2026 (HEPI Report 199) found that 94% of students use generative AI to help with assessed work and that 65% think that assessment has changed significantly in response to AI, with some expressing anxiety about the possibility of false accusations of misconduct. At the same time, while 68% of students believe AI skills are essential in today’s world, only 48% feel supported by their teaching staff to develop these skills. 

Universities around the world are grappling with how best to respond to the rapid development of AI: supporting students to use AI ethically, critically and transparently, while at the same time, mitigating the risks of inappropriate use and trying to address inequalities in access to the latest tech. Recent HEPI research, What UK university AI policies actually do: A study of 96 institutions (HEPI Policy Note 71), by Professor Sam Illingworth, found that the majority of publicly-available university AI policies reflect a model of conditional trust, in which students are trusted only if they declare their use of AI, retain evidence and submit their work to verification. This complements a previous article by Professor Rose Luckin, published in AI and the Future of Universities (HEPI Report 193), which argues that universities should shift from concerns about cheating to a broader reconsideration of how to increase students’ human intelligence in order that they might thrive in a world of increasingly sophisticated tools.

How should higher education institutions and their partners respond to AI in ways that prioritise learning over detection, building trust at scale, and developing students’ skills, while addressing the risks of misuse?

Speakers

Professor Sam Illingworth – Professor of Critical AI Literacy, Edinburgh Napier University

Professor Kelly Coate – Provost, Richmond American University London

Graeme Kirk – Partnership Development Lead, Studiosity

Nick Hillman OBE – Chief Executive, HEPI (Chair)