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Macquarie University

Artificial Intelligence (AI) Education for Teachers

Macquarie University and IBM via Coursera

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Overview

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Generative AI is transforming education — but before you can harness it effectively, you need to understand the foundations it's built on. This course is where that journey begins. Developed before the rise of Generative AI, this course is designed by teachers, for teachers, and answers the questions that matter most: What is AI, really? How has it evolved over the last 70 years, and how does it relate to human intelligence? What skills — design thinking, critical and creative thinking, computational thinking — do learners need to engage with it meaningfully? And how do we ensure it works for the good of society, not against it? By working through these foundations, you'll build the AI literacy and the critical lens that today's educators need, not just to understand AI, but to teach it across all areas of the curriculum with confidence and purpose. There is also a unique opportunity to implement a Capstone Project with your students alongside your own professional learning. Developed through a collaboration between Macquarie School of Education at Macquarie University and IBM Australia, this course is aligned to AITSL 'Proficient Level' Australian Professional Standards at AQF Level 8. This course sets you up for the next step in the specialisation, where you'll move from understanding AI to actively working with Generative AI tools which teaches how to prompt effectively, design AI-enhanced lessons, and integrate AI into your teaching practice while maintaining your professional expertise and judgement.

Syllabus

  • Welcome to AI Education for Teachers
    • Welcome to Artificial Intelligence (AI) Education for Teachers. This module introduces you to the course and sets you up for success. You'll discover why developing a real understanding of artificial intelligence, before and beyond the Generative AI era, matters for you and your students, and you'll find a curated set of additional resources to support your learning throughout. By the end of this module, you'll have a clear sense of what to expect from the course and how to get the most out of it.
  • AI Fundamentals: History and Applications
    • Before Generative AI captured the world's attention, AI had already been quietly reshaping society for decades. This module builds the foundational understanding that sits beneath all the AI conversation happening today. You'll explore how AI is defined, particularly in relation to human intelligence, and trace its evolution over the last 70 years. You'll also examine the breadth of applications in which AI has shown real promise, developing the conceptual grounding you'll need for every module that follows. By the end of this module, you'll be able to explain what AI is, how it relates to human intelligence, and why it matters for your curriculum.
  • Design and Critical Thinking for AI
    • This module explores two powerful frameworks for developing the thinking skills that AI education demands: design thinking and critical and creative thinking (CCT). These skills matter whether you're working with traditional AI systems or the Generative AI tools reshaping classrooms today. You'll learn the key principles and stages of the design thinking process, and explore CCT through the lenses of convergent and divergent thinking, de Bono's Six Hats, and ACARA's four quadrant model. You'll also examine examples of "creative AI" to consider what they reveal about the uniquely human dimensions of learning. By the end of this module, you'll be able to apply these frameworks to both AI problem-solving and your own teaching practice.
  • Data Fluency and Computational Thinking
    • This module introduces you to computational thinking, a skill set that predates the Generative AI era and is more relevant now than ever. You'll explore what data is, how it takes different forms, and why data quality is critical to both human and AI decision-making. Using Machine Learning for Kids, you'll investigate a classic AI image recognition challenge: teaching a machine to tell cats from dogs. You'll also discover what computational thinking looks like in the Australian Curriculum and how it can be developed through both unplugged and computer-based classroom activities. By the end of this module, you'll understand computational thinking and be ready to bring it into your classroom in practical, accessible ways.
  • Ethical AI and Bias Awareness
    • The need to ensure AI works for the good of society is one of the most pressing conversations in education today, and it's one this module equips you to have with confidence. You'll explore the key ethical issues associated with AI and work with a CSIRO framework for navigating them in educational contexts. You'll examine how AI-based decisions can be just as biased and prejudicial as those made by humans, and consider what safeguards people should be able to expect, including the right to know when a decision affecting them has been made by a machine, and the right to appeal it. By the end of this module, you'll be able to identify key AI ethics issues and begin integrating ethical thinking about AI into your teaching.
  • Course Summary and Teaching Applications
    • This module brings the course together. You'll reflect on what you've built: a grounded, critical understanding of AI that goes well beyond the headlines. The foundations you've developed here, across AI's history, the thinking skills it demands, and the ethical questions it raises, are exactly what you'll need as Generative AI continues to reshape education. You'll leave with practical strategies and resources ready to carry into your teaching practice. By the end of this module, you'll have a clear picture of your learning journey and concrete next steps for applying your new knowledge in the classroom.

Taught by

Dr Anne Forbes and Dr Markus Powling

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Reviews

1.0 rating, based on 1 Class Central review

4.7 rating at Coursera based on 955 ratings

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  • Anonymous
    Unfortunately, the course is not working on Coursera. !!
    When I started the course it was perfect, however after my first week, it stopped working without any response.
    I raised the issue to Coursera and got automatic feedback, but nothing changed.
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