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UTampa’s Digital Literacy course, required in the Spartan Studies general education program, will have a new focus this academic year: generative AI.   

The course will use a “notice, test, verify, explain and defend” framework. This exposes students to AI tools and large language models and gives them an opportunity to try them and make the case for when to use them. And while the course will touch on academic honesty and prompt engineering, that’s not the focus. 

Instead, the online course will largely address what students who participated in focus groups earlier this year said they wanted to learn about AI. “Students recognize AI as a tool they need to understand. They want guidance on how to use it the right way, when not to use it, and how to make decisions about it,” said Jessica O’Brien, coordinator of Spartan Studies online learning and digital literacy.

Students also want to understand how AI is used in the fields they are majoring in. So they will be encouraged to focus their assignments on their career interests. Plus, more than half of the 20-plus sections of the course this fall will be taught by faculty across UTampa’s colleges, creating opportunities for students to study with a professor in their area or have an interdisciplinary experience.  

Some students in the focus groups expressed concerns about the environmental impacts of AI use or worry about being accused of misusing AI in their academic work.  Understanding how generative AI works and exploring the ethical implications can help, O’Brien said. 

“Students have to be accountable for their work, and they have to be able to say where they used AI. By equipping them with the right skills, we can prevent them from facing consequences in school or work.”

Ethics will be emphasized throughout the course. “Ethics is not just a single module you cover at the beginning; it’s how we address moments — we call them “everyday ethics” — when we’re using AI or any emerging technology,” O’Brien said. One way students will do this is through learning about real-world case studies involving Netflix and Tik Tok. 

The course concludes with a “judgment portfolio” that serves as a capstone. It’s a way for students to reflect on what they’ve learned, form educated opinions and use new vocabulary to discuss it. 

“The ethical reasoning and societal impact are important because we want to make sure that as part of a liberal arts education, we’re teaching skills that develop critical thinking and help students be good citizens of the world,” said Cheri Etling-Paulsen, associate dean for the Center for Teaching and Learning.

At the end of the day, O’Brien’s guidance for students is to “listen to what their faculty tell them.” Professors often include their AI policy on the course syllabus, and they might have assignment-specific requirements, she noted. “If it’s not clear, ask.”

So, was AI used in developing the course? Yes, O’Brien said, and she discloses that for students. (AI was not used in writing this article.)