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AI Design Assistant

Summary

AI Design Assistant (AI-DA) tools can help you generate content and ideas for your Ultra site, such as discussion prompts and quiz questions.

Ultra's AI tools are powered by Microsoft's Azure OpenAI Service, and underpinned by Anthology's Trustworthy AI approach. They are a core Ultra feature (so are therefore available for use at no additional cost) and have been approved for use in teaching at the University of York.

Use of data

Content within the site and descriptions provided are not shared back to the AI training model. In other words, your data does not leave the site and remains secure in our UoY environment.

In addition to the AI content generator tools in this guide, there is also a standalone AI conversation tool where students can directly interact with an AI persona.

Getting started

AI-DA tools are available in many items within your course, shown by the 'magic'/stars AI icon. On a larger screen, you may also see Auto-generate [tool name].

Discussion showing the small magic icon and also on a larger screen with icon and text

We recommend exploring AI-DA tools in your personal Ultra sandpit site rather than a module site to avoid generating clutter make sure that students won't see any content until it's ready. You can then use the Copy Content tool to insert any materials that you want to use for teaching into your module site. (Contact us if you need a sandpit site.)

Tips for generating appropriate output

Warning

AI-generated content is a starting point for your own content development rather than a finished product. Output must always be carefully checked for accuracy and appropriacy and adapted as necessary.

AI-DA tools generate content based on the site and/or item title, and any additional context that you provide. Generally, the more specific description and information you can provide, the more likely the content is to be relevant and appropriate to your needs.

Ways you can provide context:

  • Enter a title for the item before you use the AI-DA tools.
  • Enter a Description: key words, general task requirements, module information etc.
  • For most features, you can Select course items that contain relevant content, such as Documents or uploaded lecture slides.
    Click Select course items button, then click through site structure to choose the items to include
  • For most AI-DA tools, you can adjust the complexity level of generated content. Levels most relevant to University of York contexts are:
    • 7: Undergraduate (C/I level) [the default setting]
    • 8: Undergraduate (I/H level)
    • 9: Masters
    • 10: PhD
  • For some tools there are additional options such as Cognitive Level or Question Type to select the format of generated content.
  • Not happy with the output? You can further tweak the Description and other settings and generate again, and also edit and adapt content once added to the site.

Further tips on using specific tools effectively are given below.

AI-DA content generation tools

This section summarises key tool features and considerations for applying them in your teaching at UoY. For more detail and video demonstrations, see Blackboard Help's guide to AI-DA

Task prompts

AI-DA can generate prompts for Discussions, Assignments and Journals. The output is very similar for the three task types.

Using the task prompt generators effectively

Task prompts may be most useful for exploring ideas for assessments and project work, as tasks suggested are often more in-depth or time-consuming than appropriate for weekly or formative tasks.

Prompts can be aligned to cognitive levels based on Bloom's Taxonomy:

  • Apply
  • Analyse
  • Evaluate
  • Create

Steps to generate task prompts:

  1. Create a new Discussion, Journal or Assignment, or open an existing one.
  2. Click the magic AI icon in the top right. On a larger screen you'll also see Auto generate [item name].
  3. Define the task:
    • Enter a Description and/or Select course items to help generate more relevant content.
    • Select the Desired cognitive level, or choose Inspire me! for a mix of levels.
    • Adapt other settings to your needs.
  4. Click Generate.
  5. Review the generated content and select which prompt to keep. If you want to keep more than one prompt, copy/paste it into another document.
  6. Click Add to Course.
  7. Check content for appropriacy and edit or adapt as needed.

Discussion prompt interface: described below

Discussion prompts: interface and examples of generated content

Description: choosing and applying navigation techniques

Select course items: 1 selected

Desired cognitive level: Inspire me!

Complexity: level 7/10

Generate discussion title: Yes

Content generated:

  • Navigational Challenges in Fell Running. Reflect on a time when you faced a complex navigational challenge during a fell running expedition. Share your experience with your peers, detailing the techniques you used to overcome the challenge. Encourage responses that include a diagram or a work-related experience to illustrate your scenario and approach for solving it. Cognitive level: Apply
  • Innovative Navigation Approaches. Propose a new, innovative navigation technique that could benefit fell runners facing challenging terrains. Justify the effectiveness of your proposed technique based on your understanding of existing navigation methods. Involve a reference list in your response to support your argument with credible sources. Cognitive level: Evaluate
  • Navigation Decision-Making Process. Describe a scenario where you had to make a critical navigation decision during a fell running race. Discuss the factors that influenced your decision-making process and the outcome of your choice. Include a real-life experience or an interview from a fellow runner to provide diverse perspectives on navigating tough situations. Cognitive level: Create

Test questions

AI-DA can generate questions within a Test or Question Bank (a set of questions that can be used to draw a random subset from and/or in multiple Tests). This could be helpful to efficiently create informal knowledge checks and practice quizzes to supplement weekly module content.

Using the question generator effectively

If course items are selected to provide context, questions may be based on procedural instructions within an item. If this occurs, you may find it more effective to instead provide a detailed description of the desired content.

All questions must be checked very carefully to ensure they are correct.

There are a range of question types available:

  • Essay (free text response of any length)
  • Fill in the Blank
  • Matching
  • Multiple Choice
  • True/False

Steps to generate questions in a Test or Question Bank

  1. Create a Test or open an existing Test or Question Bank. To generate a new Question Bank, select Auto generate and skip step 2.
  2. Click the plus icon where you would like the question(s) to appear, and select Auto-generate question.
  3. Define the questions:
    • Enter a Description and/or Select course items to help generate more relevant questions.
    • Select the Question type to generate. Inspire me! will generate a mix of question types.
    • Set the Complexity level and choose how many questions to create.
  4. Click Generate.
  5. Review the questions. Select which question(s) to include, or repeat steps 3 and 4 to generate new questions.
  6. Click Add to Assessment.
  7. Carefully check the questions for accuracy and appropriacy and edit as needed.

Test question interface: described below

Test questions: interface and examples of generated content

Description: focus on navigation techniques and appropriate ways to use them

Select course items: none selected

Question type: Multiple choice

Complexity: level 7/10

Number of question: 4 (maximum 10)

Content generated:

Question 1. Which of the following is an advisable way to navigate safely in poor visibility?

  • A. Pacing and timing to estimate distance travelled [Correct answer]
  • B. Relying solely on GPS for directions
  • C. Running at full speed to get through the fog quickly
  • D. Following random sheep tracks

Further questions are not visible on this screen, scroll to reveal.

Learning Modules

Learning Modules are containers for organising site content. AI-DA can generate Learning Module titles, descriptions and images.

Using the Learning Module generator effectively

Your departmental template has a pre-built structure, so in most cases you will not need to generate further Learning Modules. Make sure to use your provided template structure.

Steps to generate Learning Modules:

  1. In a relevant location in the Course Content Area, click the plus icon, then Auto-Generate Modules. In an empty site, just click Auto-Generate Modules.
  2. Define the Learning Modules:
    • Provide module information in the Description box (eg. description copy/pasted from Module Catalogue) and/or Select course items (eg. a Module Overview page).
    • Choose a Complexity level and adapt other settings to your needs.
  3. Click Generate
  4. Review the generated content and select which Learning Modules to keep (you can edit them later).
  5. Click Add to Course.
  6. Check content for appropriacy and edit or adapt as needed.

Learning module interface: described below

Learning Modules: interface and examples of generated content

Description: Topics to include: history, fell racing, training, navigation

Select course items: none selected

Title prefix: Week

Include images: Yes

Complexity: level 7/10

Number of Learning Modules: 4 (maximum 20)

Content generated:

  • Week 1: Introduction to Fell Running History. Discover the rich history of fell running, from its origins in the Lake District to the establishment of iconic fell races. Explore key moments and figures that have shaped the sport over the years.
  • Week 2: Exploring Fell Racing Events. Dive into the thrilling world of fell racing, where athletes tackle rugged terrain and towering peaks. Learn about the different race formats, challenges faced, and the spirit of competition in fell running.
  • Week 3: Fell Running Training Fundamentals. Master the essential training techniques for fell running, including strength, endurance, and hill skills. Understand how to develop a training plan tailored to the demands of fell running courses.
  • Week 4: Navigating in Fell Running. Develop crucial navigation skills for fell running adventures. Learn to read maps, use compasses, and navigate challenging terrains with confidence. Enhance your ability to stay on course in any fell running event.

Each Learning Module also has a generated decorative image relevant to the content.

Images

AI-DA can generate images and automatically search for copyright-compliant photographs on Unsplash. You can use this feature wherever you can add an image via the text editor.

You can also generate images in Copilot and upload them to the site directly.

Using the image generator effectively

AIDA uses the item title to generate or search for images. These may not fit the image you want, so enter your own description to return more relevant images.

Steps to generate or search for images:

  1. Open a Document or other item with a text editor and click the Image icon.
  2. Click Upload from Device to open the source selection menu.
  3. To create images, click Generate images. The tool automatically generates images based on the item title, or you can Describe an image then click Generate.
  4. To search for photographs, click Stock images from Unsplash. The tool automatically enters search terms based on the item title, or you can enter your own terms then click Search.
  5. Select an image to include and click Next.
  6. Set the zoom or aspect ratio as needed and click Next.
  7. Adjust the Display name (ie. file name) as needed. Provide appropriate ALT text or mark the image as decorative. Leave the File Options as View and download.
  8. Click Save.

Images interface: described below

Images: interface and examples of generated content

Option 1. Generate images

Describe an image: runner on a mountain holding map

Images generated: four square images in a hyper-realistic style, all clearly AI generated but relevant to the description. Each has a single runner in Lake District-esque mountain terrain holding a map. One runner has an elongated arm and one has a very large map, but all could reasonably be used.

Option 2. Stock images from Unsplash

Search terms: mountain running compass

Search results: 9 images shown on first page (of 10,000 results). None are particularly relevant to the combined search terms: one shows a compass held up in front of pine trees, five show mountain scenes but no people, and three show other types of runners.

Marking rubrics

A marking rubric is a grid of criteria aligned to different performance levels. They can be attached to Ultra Assignments to promote consistency and streamline marking and feedback. You can create a marking rubric yourself, or AI-DA can generate one as a starting point or to speed up your rubric development.

Using the Marking Rubric generator effectively

This tool is best used to generate broadly the content you need, which you can tweak manually in the rubric editor. The more detailed the description provided, the less manual editing will be needed.

Steps to generate a marking rubric:

  1. Create or open an exising Assignment.
  2. Click Settings/cog icon to open teh full settings panel, then scroll down and click Add marking rubric.
  3. Under Course Rubrics, click Generate.
    decorative
  4. Define the rubric:
    • Enter a suitable Description, eg. which assessment type and the criteria to include. You can't select course items for this feature.
    • Select a suitable Rubric type (usually Percentage range is most appropriate)
    • Set the Complexity level and adjust the number of Columns and Rows as needed (default is 4x4).
  5. Click Generate.
  6. Review the generated rubric content. If needed, repeat steps 4-7 to refine the output.
  7. Click Continue.
  8. Check and edit content or settings as necessary (eg. rubric title, criteria weighting, performance level labels and cutoffs, descriptor wording).

Marking rubric interface: described below

Marking rubrics: interface and examples of generated content

Description: Presentation about applying a navigation technique. Criteria to include: Understanding of technique, quality of explanation, presentation materials, presentation skills

Rubric type: Percentage range

Complexity: level 7/10

Columns: 5 (possible range: 2-5)

Rows: 4 (possible range: 2-7)

Content generated:

Only some of the rubric is visible on this screen, but the user can scroll to review the rest of the content.

  • Criteria: Understanding of technique. 30% of total mark.
    • Exceptional (80-100%): Demonstrates an exceptional understanding of the navigation technique by applying advanced methods.
    • Highly Competent (60-80%): Shows a highly competent understanding of the navigation technique with clear application.
    • other levels not visible
  • Criteria: Quality of explanation. 25% of total mark.
    • Exceptional (80-100%): Provides an in-depth and insightful explanation of the technique, covering advanced aspects thoroughly.
    • Highly Competent (60-80%): Gives a clear and detailed explanation of the technique, addressing key aspects effectively.
    • other levels not visible
  • Criteria: Presentation materials. % of total mark not visible
    • Exceptional (80-100%): description not visible
    • Highly Competent (60-80%): description not visible
    • other levels not visible

You can also combine the AI-DA rubric generator with a more iterative AI text generation tool to bring further efficiencies to the process of rubric development. For example, in this webinar exert, guest speaker Anne-Gaelle Colom from the University of Westminster describes how she combined the rubric generator and ChatGPT to efficiently produce a bespoke rubric for a specialised assessment task.

Webinar extract: Streamlining rubric creation with AI, Anne-Gaelle Colom (11 mins 12 secs, UoY log-in required)

Automating repetitive tasks

AI-DA doesn't automate repetitive tasks such as updating multiple due dates. However, there are other Ultra features that may be useful:

  • Batch Edit: change due dates, set release conditions and delete items in bulk
  • Copy Content: copy items from within the current site or from another site
  • Upload Test questions: upload existing Test questions from a .csv file