At the time this MOOC is being designed (across 2023 and 2024), the debate around the so-called “Artificial Intelligence” and Large Language Model tools and the experimentation with them is full of interesting facets for those who are involved in education: it is extremely important to continue this dialogue and to understand how to support learners develop critical skills while they acquire the technical and skills needed to use new tools effectively and ethically. We are all learning throughout our lives, and these tools are producing a disruptive change in our ways of designing, creating, producing, and implementing texts and visual resources.

Tools can definitely support authors in creating quality resources by offering alternatives and suggestions, but at present, we still rely on authors and experts to validate the content and for legal liability, together with recognition of authorship.

The European Parliament has been discussing the opportunities and threats of AI and revisiting them at different stages to update them according to new discoveries and progressively offered services. In 2023, the EU's first governmental document about AI, the EU AI Act, was published. It is the first political document worldwide. It aims to ensure better conditions for the development and use of this innovative technology and that “AI systems used in the EU are safe, transparent, traceable, non-discriminatory and environmentally friendly. AI systems should be overseen by people, rather than by automation, to prevent harmful outcomes.”

It is an ongoing process, and the context changes as fast as a new tool is available and new features are here to be tested. In the context of this MOOC, what interests us is the relationship between these tools, OER and OEP. In the middle of this historical moment, full of excitement and questions at the same time, we invite you to explore this relationship with a critical approach. Here is a (far from exhaustive) list of resources you might want to explore (last retrieved October 2024).

Bozkurt, A. (2023). Generative AI, Synthetic Contents, Open Educational Resources (OER), and Open Educational Practices (OEP): A New Front in the Openness Landscape. Open Praxis, 15(3), pp. 178–184. DOI: Generative AI, Synthetic Contents, Open Educational Resources (OER), and Open Educational Practices (OEP): A New Front in the Openness Landscape | Open Praxis

Mills, Anna & Bali, Maha & Eaton, Lance. (2023). How do we respond to generative AI in education? Open educational practices give us a framework for an ongoing process. Journal of Applied Learning and Teaching. 6. 16-30. How do we respond to generative AI in education? Open educational practices give us a framework for an ongoing process | Journal of Applied Learning and Teaching

Ossiannilsson, E., Cazarez, R. L. U., Goode, C., Mansour, C., & Martins Gomes de Gusmão, C. (2024). Artificial Intelligence Use to Empower the Implementation of OER and the UNESCO OER Recommendation. Open Praxis, 16(2), pp. 237–257. DOI: Artificial Intelligence Use to Empower the Implementation of OER and the UNESCO OER Recommendation | Open Praxis

Panke, Stefanie. 2024. “Open Educational Resources and Artificial Intelligence for Future Open Education”. Mousaion: South African Journal of Information Studies 42 (1):23 pages. Open Educational Resources and Artificial Intelligence for Future Open Education | Mousaion: South African Journal of Information Studies

Tila, D. and Levy, D. (2023) Curating OER Content through AI and ChatGPT. Open Journal of Social Sciences, 11, 510-527. doi: Curating OER Content through AI and ChatGPT