#LILAC24 Generating understanding: opportunities for institution-wide development of information literacy in an age of AI

Pam McKinney live blogging from the Lilac conference in Leeds. Erin Nephim from Leeds Beckett University is presenting on Generating Understanding: Opportunities for institution-wide development of information literacy in an age of AI. There has been a lot of activity in the University to produce guiding principles for the use of AI, and the library has been a key partner in this activity. They are taking a pragmatic approach, in that these tools are here to stay and the focus is on how to use tools ethically and effectively.  The guiding principles encompass critical thinking, ethical use, bias and misinformation and employability.  There is no outright ban on the use of AI or generative AI, but possibly some restrictions in specific circumstances e.g. a coding exam.
Lots of professional services departments have been involved in this activity, including the students' union, IT services, centre for Learning and Teaching. One of the principles is for people to understand how the tools work, and how this affects their use. The success of the programme has been measured through post-session feedback. Colleagues have said that they have a better understanding of information literacy, and IL has been included more overtly in teaching materials. Strategic support and buy-in to this programme has been good, and now there is better sharing of AI issues across the university. 
Now the university is working on a set of prompts that can be used to support academic writing, and people are sharing what went well. Policies on plagiarism and academic misconduct are being adjusted to take account of generative AI. The AI Turnitin detector is enabled, but this isn't the only way to identify unfair use. Erin recommended the JISC National Centre for AI and the ALDinHE AI forum and Community of practice for discussion across institutions.