Major and Career Exploration in People and Technology (CPBL 104/FNDS 104)
This is a practice-based learning course. Practice-Based Learning (PBL) focuses on applying what is being learned and learning by doing. In this course, students will work in teams to address an applied problem within the theme of People and Technology.
Course Project:
AI Goes to College: Learning in a Digital World
What does it mean to learn in a world with artificial intelligence? AI bids to transform the human cognitive process in ways we’ve never encountered before. When information is no longer scarce how do we measure knowledge in contrast to understanding? This FNDS course will explore the implications and expectations of learning in a digital world that includes the growing advancements of artificial intelligence.
The transition from high school to university is challenging: socially, financially, and academically. But the goal is still the same: learning. Right?
We will have a lot of questions to consider. What happens to learning when AIBots enter our classrooms? How does artificial intelligence alter the methods and responsibilities of students? How do we know what AI gives us is correct? How do we think for ourselves and not become slaves to what we’re told?
Our discussions and research will explore what it means to learn in a digital environment. This course will cover topics related to technology, sociology, learning science, and ethics. We have a lot to explore in the digital future.
"In times of change, learners inherit the earth, while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists"... Eric Hoffer
More about this course
This course takes an interdisciplinary approach. This means that you will be exposed to perspectives from multiple academic areas. A major goal of the course is to help students explore different majors and careers and to develop connections in the College of Arts, Sciences, and Letters and across campus.
Course number: CPBL 104
Number of Credits: 4
Format: Hybrid. Meeting in person on Tuesdays (Fall 23) 2:00-3:45 p.m. and online work.
Search UM-Dearborn Class Schedule to find out more.
Dearborn Discovery Core requirements met: Critical and Creative Thinking
Meet your faculty members: Pamela Todoroff, Lecturer in Composition and Rhetoric and Autumm Caines, Instructional Designer
One of the benefits of taking a Practice-Based Learning course is gaining faculty mentors that can support you throughout your college career. Get to know Pamela Todoroff and Autumm Caines, faculty members for Major and Career Exploration in People and Technology.
Autumm Caines: Hi there, I’m Autumm Caines, and yes those are 2 M’s at the end of my first name which is a bit different than the spelling you are probably used to for the season. I’ve been working with students and faculty in higher education for over fifteen years thinking about the places where education and technology meet.
I’ve taught classes in web portfolio and digital citizenship as well as a research based capstone course. I was a first generation college student myself, so I love teaching first year courses because we get to explore questions centered around what college is for and how it is different from other learning experiences.
I love writing and building websites so a tool that writes English and code for you definitely caught my eye. I have spoken and written about AI in education in several forums (podcasts, blog posts, presentations, etc.) since the launch of ChatGPT in November of 2022. You can learn more about my work in AI as well as other topics on my web portfolio.
Pamela Todoroff: Why would a Writer & Writing faculty be focused on AI in the classroom?? Writing is more about learning and discovery than merely expressing oneself. Being a curious person makes me a “learner.” And I know that writing about something helps me to realize what I already know, think I know, and when I need to know more. That process of learning has been a focus for me because I’ve been teaching college students who want to succeed for a long time. That's why I believe that writing is important to learning.
My primary focus of teaching for some years has been professional writing–the writing students will do in their future workplaces. I teach engineering and computing students; business, marketing, finance students; education, communication, physics, anthropology majors; and especially students who are still trying to figure out what type of future workplace they want. All of us will face AI. So I’m eager to learn more about how AI could impact our future workplaces.