There’s a lot of noise, and my goal is to surface what’s most relevant, actionable, or thought-provoking. Sharing it out because it’s kind of silly to just have it sitting on my scratchpad.
Top of Mind for AI and Education This Week: Rethinking Assessment and OpenAI’s Study Mode
There was a lot of chatter this week that stemmed in part from this video (which seems to demonstrate how a student could create an AI agent to complete assignments within a course management system).
I keep seeing more of these videos and naratives pop up and it makes me wonder when we will start seeing a shift in educational practice. Maybe it’s time to put our energy into big ieas that need to be challenged instead of trying to manage the very raapidly developing tools.
- What do we even mean by assessments?
- What kinds of assessments actually demonstrate learning?
- What do we have time and space (and human captial to assess)?
In the news this week, OpenAI released Study Mode. While reviews are mixed, it will be important for educators to understand what this new mode means for their learners. How will use of study mode be received by teachers? Will students be seen as “cheaters” if they talk about thier use of study mode? Of all the posts and articles and videos I have seen this week, I think Dr. Philippa Hardman’s post was my favorite. (give it a read at https://www.linkedin.com/posts/dr-philippa-hardman-057851120_as-a-member-of-openais-educator-advisor-activity-7356234917770317824-VNDR).
“OpenAI’s Study Mode is a promising start for users who want more than just a hyper-quick answer. However, there’s still a long way to go before it’s capable of supporting substantive learning & development.” — Dr. Hardman
AI in Education updates from the United States: Presidential AI Challenge Opens National Call for Student and Educator Solutions
This week luanched the Presedential AI Challenge (you can read more at https://www.ai.gov/initiatives/presidential-challenge). This challenge is supported by public‑private partnerships with industry, academic, philanthropic, and nonprofit organizations, and is designed to ensure broad geographic and demographic participation across the country. Teams of young people and K12 educators are invited to propose, build, and develop new straetgies and solutions alinged with specific themes.
AI in Education updates from the Netherlands: The new AI Literacy Guide for Parents
The UNICRI Centre for AI and Robotics with support of the Walt Disney Company released the AI Literacy Guide for Parents. This guide presents a practical tipsheet of sorts intended to help families navigate the challenges and opportunities that generative AI present together. This guide is designed to foster responsible, informed, and safe use of AI by children and their caregivers. You can grab the guide and read more at https://unicri.org/topics/AI-Literacy-for-Children-skills-changing-world
AI in Education updates from Africa: Google investments to support AI research and skill development
Google has launched a $37 million investment initiative across Africa, aiming to accelerate artificial intelligence research, skills development, infrastructure enhancement, and local innovation. The investment coincided with the opening of the AI Community Centre in Accra, Ghana, designed as a hub for learning, experimentation, and interdisciplinary collaboration. The Centre will host workshops, research events, and forums involving developers, researchers, policymakers, artists, and civil society. 25 million will focus on developing AI tools for hunger forecasting, crop resilience, and farmer guidance, 2 million will support advancing NLP tools for over 40 African languages (datasets, translation models, speech systems), and 9 million will provide support to AfriDSAI at the University of Pretoria and Wits MIND Institute to boost graduate and postdoctoral AI research. Read more at https://urbangeekz.com/2025/07/google-announces-37-million-to-drive-ai-development-in-africa/
AI in Education updates from Asia: China’s AI Action Plan
China released an “AI plus” action plan that called for international cooperation on tech development and regulation. As part of this action plan, China proposed the establishment of a global AI cooperation organization. The plan emphasizes that AI as a pivotal agent for global socioeconomic advancement, while spotlighting the need to mitigate associated risks through cooperative governance. There were 13 strategic areas that were included with common themes including, (1) Utilziing AI for public benefit and human wellbeing, (2) Respecting national sovereignty and development contexts, (3) Focusing on innovation and inclusive development, (4). Ensuring AI systems are safe, fair, open, and controllable, and (5) Promoting cross-border collaboration and shared benefits. Read the action plan at https://www.gov.cn/yaowen/liebiao/202507/content_7033929.htm.
AI in Education updates from Latin America: Advancing AI Regulation and a UNESCO Roundtable in Ecuador
This week UNESCO’s Quito office, in partnership with academic and civil society institutions organized a multisectoral roundtable titled “Human Rights‑based Innovation: Ethical Governance of Artificial Intelligence.” The event examined ethical, social, and legal implications of AI in Ecuador and Latin America, and to support development of AI regulation grounded in international human rights standards. The UNESCO Readiness Assessment Matrix (RAM) was one of the topics discussed during the event. This diagnostic tool for identifying strengths and gaps in governance, infrastructure, inclusion, capacity, and international cooperation. You can see the RAM at https://www.unesco.org/ethics-ai/en/ram. Read more about the UNESCO roudtable at https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/unesco-fosters-ethical-dialogue-artificial-intelligence-ecuador
Remember that the future of education is being shaped now and we need more voices that are informed, thoughtful, and equity-driven. Subscribe to Jody’s newsletter to get weekly updates delivered right to your in-box at https://jodybritten.medium.com/subscribe.
