The theme of this year’s conference is ‘Setting tertiary education learners up for success in a world profoundly impacted by artificial intelligence.’

The first day began with haka pōwhiri for the more than 120 senior tertiary education decision makers and thought leaders at Te Noho Kotahitanga Marae. 

“I think we can agree that Gen AI isn’t a normal change,” Conference Chair, Prof Martin Carroll, Deputy Chief Executive – Academic, MIT & Unitec told delegates in his welcome address. 

“It is a once in a millennia tidal wave of change.”

The increasing adoption of generative artificial intelligence in the workplace has been liken to another industrial revolution which will lead to the automation of many jobs and processes, as well as and the creation of new areas of employment. 

 
University of Sydney’s Prof Adam Bridgeman gives his keynote on Generative AI essentials 

Currently, educators worldwide are confronting the question of how to develop AI literacy in their learners while also protecting the integrity of assessments and qualifications. 

“We as a higher education sector have a responsibility to ensure our students are graduating as leaders, not to be replaced by this technology, but to make sure it is ethically used and we pass on to the next generation a world in which humanity is the most valuable thing,” University of Sydney Pro Vice-Chancellor, Educational Innovation, Adam Bridgeman said in his keynote speech to the symposium. 

To achieve this, the university developed platform Cogniti to help lecturers enhance their teaching and assessment practices. It is specially designed to allow teachers to create AI chatbots using plain English which are given specific instructions and resources to support student learning.  

“We need to get educators to trust AI. That involves letting them control it,” Prof Bridgeman said advocating for a two-lane approach to assessments which allowed for the use of AI tools in project work while also introducing increased opportunities to prove assurance of learning through face-to-face oral exams or conversations. 
 
Te Hiku Media’s Peter-Lucas Jones talks about innovations his organisation has led in AI development for Indigenous language

Develop new technologies to support learner success for all communities in Aotearoa, while also ensuring data is collected ethically is another key theme of the conference. 

“I appreciate the advances AI is making in the communities we are part of,” Te Hiku Media Chief Executive Peter-Lucas Jones (Te Aupōuri, Ngāti Kahu, Te Rārawa, Ngāi Takoto) said in his keynote describing big tech approaches. 

“But what troubles my team is it is unclear where the data comes from and what rights they have to use our data.”
Te Hiku is recognised internationally as a leader in AI development for Indigenous languages and has developed a suite of voice technologies to enhance the learning and use of te reo Māori. 

The media hub’s speech-to-text model transcribes with 92% accuracy, significantly outperforming attempts by major international tech companies in the same space. 

Recently, Mr Jones was named in the 2024 TIME100 AI list for his contributions to language preservation through technological innovation. 

“It was an honour to be named. It wasn’t me alone. It’s taken a community,” he said. 

“Our language is the key to our culture. When you think of the hundreds if not thousands of years of traditional knowledge which is contained within our whakapapa and our karakia and knowledge of our oceans which our people have called home for thousands of years, we literally could have the answers to significant problems on the tips of our tongues.”

Professor Jessica Vanderlelie, Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice President (Academic) La Trobe University will deliver an address on the work her institution is doing to evolve its student advising model to meet the needs of diverse cohorts, improving student retention and success. 

Unitec wishes to thank Te Pūkenga, Tertiary Education Commission, Ako Aotearoa, Anthology, Echo360 and Studiosity for their support of Tūwhitia.