by Amani Ahsan and Olivia Davies, University of Leeds, UK.
The University of Leeds is excited to announce a project that will lead to the creation of the first-ever student led open book, “Learning with AI”.
“Learning with AI” is an open pressbook which will feature and celebrate global stories of how students are currently using AI to support their learning in resourceful and inventive ways. Serving as an invaluable resource for educators and students across the institution and further afield.
With AI already having a notable impact on education, this project will provide insight into students’ use of AI, assisting in future learning design. Additionally, since the book is created under an open license, it will (with the contributor’s consent) provide a detailed resource as open data for related scholarly activities.
This project is student-led and so it will be edited by both student ambassadors, Amani Ahsan and Olivia Davies, with support from staff in the School of Education, Digital Education Services, the Library, ODPL, Curriculum Redefined, and the Knowledge Equity Network.
When we were asked by the project team what our motivation was to join the project and how our experience has been so far, we said the following:
“I wanted to join this project as I saw it as a way to gain more experience in working in the digital education sector to advance my professional development, which it has; however, the project has also enhanced my personal development of developing my creative outlets and advancing my confidence in public speaking. This project has definitely made me want to explore the route of working with new innovational learning resources and it also learn more about how I can use AI in my own learning whether that’s at university or trying to learn a new skill in my own time!” – Amani Ahsan, student editor
“AI is such an important issue in all fields right now, but especially in education. I wanted to join this project to learn more about how it’s currently being used by students and educators in higher education and how it can help supplement students’ learning. This project has been a great experience for me and has allowed me to expand my professional skillset. It has also given me insight into using AI for my own benefit in my own life.” – Olivia Davies, student editor
The project was launched during Open Education Week, and thanks to Open Education Global. We are now excited to begin our call for contributions. To watch the launch event and submit your contribution, check out the OEGlobal page about our project where you will find a recording of the launch event and the link to the call. Deadline for submission: Saturday 31 May 2025
We are looking for contributions that provide insights about the following:
- In what context did you use GenAI?
- How did you use GenAI?
- In what ways do you feel GenAI helped you in your learning?
- What GenAI tool(s) did you use?
You can choose to be named and attributed or remain anonymous. All submissions will be entered into a £150 shopping voucher prize draw! Visual contributions are also welcome and one piece will be chosen as the cover, with a £150 shopping voucher prize.
And if you need support to prepare your contribution, sign up for the Writing Jam on the 20th of May. There will be guest speakers including students and educators, guidelines on drafting your submission and actually submitting it by the end of the jam.
Please note the project has received ethical approval from the Faculty Research Ethics Committee (FREC) for Business, Environment, Social Sciences University of Leeds, Reference 2694, 28 February 2025. You will find the link to the information sheet and the consent form within the call.
We look forward to hearing how AI has impacted your learning and sharing your story in the open book. Please share this open invitation with those who may be interested in contributing.
Project Team
Richard de Blacquiere-Clarkson (Organisational Development and Professional Learning), Damian McDonald (Digital Education Service), Kirstine McDermind (Library), Thom Freeth (Knowledge Equity Network), Chrissi Nerantzi (School of Education, project lead): University of Leeds
Authors
Amani Ahsan is a second year BSc student at the University of Leeds studying Sustainability and Environmental Management, working as a Digital Ambassador.
Olivia Davies is Digital Education Student Ambassador at the University of Leeds and is one of the editors of the Open AI Pressbook, as well as an MA student in Terrorism and Insurgency specialising in social media and digital tools in politics.
