A taster of our mini course content…

The landscape of AI in education has moved from experimental "chatbots" to deeply integrated institutional systems. While students have achieved near-universal adoption, the focus this month has shifted toward safety standards, regional research hubs, and the "transferability" of AI-assisted skills. 🏛️ Policy & Safety: New UK Standards The Department for Education (DfE) and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) have introduced rigorous new frameworks this month to ensure AI safety in classrooms: • Product Safety Standards: New UK government guidelines now mandate that generative AI tools used in schools must have "age-appropriate" privacy notices, undergo mental health risk assessments, and include a "crisis protocol" to direct students to human help if needed. • The "Online World" Consultation: Launched in March and continuing through May 2026, this national conversation is exploring age-based restrictions for high-risk AI features. The government is also signaling new powers to bring AI chatbots under stricter illegal-content duties. 🎓 Higher Education: Institutional Shifts Universities are beginning to overhaul their "legacy" systems in favour of AI-native platforms: • LMS Modernisation: Rasmussen University recently announced a full transition from Blackboard to D2L Brightspace to deploy D2L Lumi, an AI-native tool providing personalised study recommendations and automated feedback. • Regional Consortia: Four Mid-South universities (Memphis, Arkansas, Mississippi, and Tennessee) have formed a regional AI research consortium. This "living laboratory" aims to pool high-performance computing resources to address workforce development and regional challenges like rural health and agriculture. • The "End of Pretend": Higher education critics are increasingly calling for "universities of formation," arguing that AI has broken traditional "proxy" assessments (like take-home essays), forcing a return to in-person dialogue and oral examinations.

Hi everyone, Just a quick reminder for those who are looking to dive deeper into our core training: the MJR Learning Academy is always open. While we keep the conversation and community updates happening here on Skool, the Academy serves as our dedicated library for fully self-paced, online learning. Why use the Academy portal? - Structured Paths: Unlike the social feed, the Academy is organised into step-by-step modules. - On-Demand Access: No schedules or live sessions to worry about—log in whenever you have a window of time. - Deep Dives: This is where we host our comprehensive content on AI and the future of education. If you’re looking to focus on a specific skill or want to catch up on our established curriculum, you can find everything here: 🔗 https://mjr-learning-academy.getlearnworlds.com/

your SME Interview Co-Pilot — a customized version of ChatGPT (GPT-5) designed specifically to help you prepare for, conduct, and follow up on interviews with Subject Matter Experts. Think of me as your co-facilitator: - I suggest adaptive follow-up questions during SME interviews. - I help you clarify jargon and confirm understanding. - I keep the focus on learning needs, knowledge gaps, and performance outcomes. - I can even role-play as a pretend SME so you can practice interviewing. - After an interview, I help you organise the findings into structured outputs (summaries, gap analyses, checklists). https://chatgpt.com/g/g-68ab37bff8608191ab1fedec260e0ff7-sme-interview-co-pilot

Welcome to your news digest on the latest developments in AI and education as of April 2026. This year marks a significant shift from "experimental" AI to system-wide integration and legal standardisation. 🏛️ Policy & Legislation: The New Standard Governments are moving rapidly to move AI from a classroom "novelty" to a regulated core competency. • Mandatory AI Literacy: Boston Public Schools recently became the first major US district to mandate AI fluency as a graduation requirement, starting in September 2026. Similar legislation is being tracked across 25 states (notably California and New Jersey) to embed AI ethics into the K-12 curriculum. • The "Human-in-the-Loop" Mandate: New regulations in Maryland and Oklahoma now strictly prohibit AI from making "high-stakes" decisions—such as final grading or student placement—without documented human oversight. • Data Privacy Cracks Down: California’s AB 1159 has officially banned the use of student data to train commercial AI models, forcing ed-tech companies to pivot to "closed-loop" educational systems. 🎓 Higher Education: The Persistence of Use Despite institutional hesitation, the latest data shows that AI has become an "invisible" part of the university experience. • Routine Adoption: A recent Gallup study (April 2026) found that over 60% of college students use AI weekly for coursework help, even though roughly half of their institutions officially discourage or prohibit its use. • The "Calculator" Debate: At Idaho State University, recent public forums have seen a shift in rhetoric, with student leaders successfully arguing that "banning AI is the 2020s version of banning the calculator," urging universities to focus on "responsible use" over restriction. 🚀 Tech Trends: Beyond the Chatbot We are seeing a move away from generic chatbots (like early ChatGPT) toward Education-Specific AI Platforms. • Hyper-Personalization at Scale: New "Socratic" AI tutors are now capable of real-time dialogue that doesn't just give answers but uses guided inquiry to help students find the logic themselves.