When we launched the third cohort for the Integrating AI Literacy into the Curricula project in September, we wanted to learn about the fast evolving AI literacy landscape in higher education. In our first workshop in October, we began to see a clear pattern: across institutions types and sizes, AI literacy development in higher education is happening almost always from the ground up.

The bottom up model

In the workshop, participants examined five AI literacy frameworks from Educause, UNESCO, the Digital Education Council, Stanford, and Digital Promise to identify the various dimensions these frameworks address. We then asked participants to reflect on their own campus efforts. Did they have an institutional AI literacy framework? If not, what practices were already underway? The goal was to identify both strengths and areas of growth in their current approaches against the backdrop of the common AI literacy dimensions. What became clear through discussions is that higher education has shifted from passive reaction to proactive engagement with AI.

Nearly every participating institution shared that different units on their campuses including libraries, centers for teaching and learning, individual departments, and various AI committees are working independently toward improving AI literacy, often without a clear strategic plan from leadership. The staff working on the AI initiatives are increasingly aware of this fragmentation and many have realized the importance of making their efforts more collaborative, better marketed, and understood across campus. Librarians are emerging as leaders in this space, seeking to move beyond one-shot instructional sessions toward more sustained support for AI literacy.

Practical and technical instruction stands out

When participants reflected on which dimensions of AI literacy they were addressing on campus—including technical skills, ethical considerations, critical judgement, creativity, privacy and security, and human centricity—practical and technical instruction dwarfed all others. This is not surprising given that higher education is catching up with AI adoption. However, it does raise questions about what dimensions of AI literacy are being left out. Many institutions acknowledged that they need to strengthen their efforts on privacy and security. More notably, the human centricity of AI literacy has barely entered the conversation at most institutions. Why we engage with AI and how to develop socio-emotional intelligence with AI is a question most participating institutions have not touched yet.

Several participants noted that they haven’t addressed domain-specific applications of AI at all. Among the few who said they had, most admitted this work was implicit rather than intentional.

The student gap

Participants agreed that students are most at risk with AI but have the least background knowledge to navigate those risks. Current programming on their campuses mainly targets faculty. The logic seems to be that faculty will then integrate AI literacy into their teaching, but this approach depends on finding faculty who are willing to develop, teach, and assess AI literacy within their courses. It is an indirect path to improving student AI literacy, and its efficacy is unclear.

What’s next?

The current state of AI literacy in higher education reflects broader patterns in how institutions respond to rapid technological change. Policy lags behind practice. Coordination struggles to keep pace with innovation. Motivated individuals and units carry the torch because they need to, even without a clear institutional plan.

As more institutions work through these challenges, they need to consider how to build on the grassroots efforts while providing the resources, coordination, and strategic vision that only the leadership can offer.

Interested in joining the conversation? Ithaka S+R is organizing an additional cohort of this project that will launch in the spring. Several spots are still available. If you’re interested in participating, please contact Mark McBride (mark.mcbride@ithaka.org).