The Case for Prompt Design When Interacting with Generative AI (Correia and Hickey, 2024). Dall-E-generated image curated by Sean Hickey.
As artificial intelligence (AI) becomes increasingly integrated into everyday life, the Center on Education and Training for Employment (CETE) in the college is leading efforts to make AI literacy accessible across Ohio. CETE, a translational research center, addresses societal challenges by implementing evidence-based interventions that inform policy development. The result is the widespread adoption of proven practices.
CETE’s work aims to prepare Ohio communities to face the challenges and opportunities of an AI-powered future confidently, promoting AI literacy and informed digital citizenship across the state.
In recent years, CETE conducted a series of professional development sessions called CETE Learns, which focused on AI applications. These sessions equipped members of the CETE community with the skills to understand and implement AI technology in educational settings.
As part of this effort, practitioners and researchers at the center are not only becoming proficient users of AI tools and educators in all aspects of AI, but also are contributing to the scholarly community by conducting research on AI use and how to develop AI literacy.
“AI is here to stay, and as an education and training center, it’s our responsibility to equip educational communities with the skills and knowledge needed to engage with AI technologies safely and responsibly,” said Ana-Paula Correia, CETE’s director and professor of learning technologies. “At the same time, it’s imperative that we maintain a critical perspective on all aspects of AI in education and training, recognizing that it’s not without its challenges.”
As a result, CETE scholars have shared their expertise nationally and internationally, presenting at conferences and publishing in highly ranked academic journals. These articles range from The Effects of Generative Artificial Intelligence on Intelligent Tutoring Systems in Higher Education to Integrating Artificial Intelligence in Online Learning. More recently, Correia and Sean Hickey, PhD and CETE’s deputy director for assessment, published a blog on ways to interact with AI systems to generate better responses from them.
These contributions underscore CETE’s leadership in exploring the implications of AI in educational settings and serve as a springboard for other scholars delving into these topics.
Another example is CETE’s recent commitment to advancing AI literacy for Ohio’s families and schools.
“Artificial intelligence, like many emerging tools in education, offers exciting new possibilities to support student learning, streamline tasks, and expand what schools and families can accomplish together,” said Barbara Boone, program director of the U.S. Department of Education-funded Ohio Statewide Family Engagement Center. At this CETE center, we’re committed to helping families and educators recognize how AI can enhance collaboration between home and school.”
Through the Family Engagement Center, CETE has taken steps to empower communities with the knowledge and tools to navigate an increasingly AI-driven world. This partnership, supported by seed funding, established the Artificial Intelligence Literacy for Families and Schools Project within CETE’s Family Engagement Program. This project piloted professional development sessions with educators and parents from Metro Middle School, a diverse public middle school co-founded by Ohio State and Battelle.
“Our Family Engagement Center partnered with Director Ana-Paula Correia and her team to create AI literacy resources aimed at both educators and families,” Boone said. “They include infographics designed to raise awareness about how AI can facilitate meaningful home-school communication, along with professional and family learning sessions.”
“We piloted these sessions at Metro Middle School, offering educators practical insights on using AI to strengthen family engagement. We also delivered sessions for families on how AI tools can support student learning at home and enhance their communication with teachers and administrators.”
The new resources are now available, and we plan to expand these sessions to reach educators and families across Ohio and nationally,” Boone said.
Community impact
Ohio’s diverse population provides a unique opportunity to create inclusive and accessible AI literacy programs. CETE’s Artificial Intelligence Literacy Project also focused on bridging the knowledge gap in AI by developing comprehensive programs for students, educators and families. Recognizing the broad impact of AI on workforce development and education, Ohio State has made equipping Ohioans with the skills to engage with AI thoughtfully and ethically a top priority.
To address this priority, CETE’s project developed a specialized AI literacy curriculum for integration into schools. Design-based research studies assessed these initiatives to ensure they met educational goals and provided long-term value to schools and communities.
“It’s encouraging to see that both parents and educators are gaining confidence in using AI tools,” said Fan Xu, a CETE senior learning designer who implemented the project. “At the start of each workshop or professional development session, nearly all participants rated their understanding and ability to implement AI as beginner level. By the end, the majority felt prepared to integrate AI tools to support their students or children. Some indicated they will need more practice, but at least they understood the basics of AI concepts.”
“This increase in confidence is a significant learning outcome,” he said. “It motivates them to take the first steps in using AI and fosters a sense of belonging within the AI community, helping them build an AI-related identity. This self-recognition enables them to create a supportive environment for the younger generation to develop an interest (in) and become active contributors to AI. This is especially crucial for students from underrepresented groups, who may face systemic barriers in building this identity due to a lack of visible role models in the field.”
Innovative learning tools for lasting engagement
CETE’s Artificial Intelligence Literacy Project also incorporated advanced virtual reality (VR) equipment to create immersive AI learning experiences. This allowed participants to explore AI’s potential applications, from real-world problem solving to career training.
Alongside VR, CETE provided specialized software for running AI simulations, offering users a range of scenarios to deepen their understanding of AI principles.
“The VR Experience Station invited parents and students to explore the Meta Quest 3 VR headset and AI-driven immersive soft skills training tool VirtualSpeech,” Xu said. “This setup allows families to experience firsthand how AI can support effective communication between home and school. Through immersive scenarios, both parents and teachers can practice virtual meetings, fostering empathy, improving communication accuracy and strengthening family-school partnerships.”
"When we introduced our VR devices to schools, we noticed that parents often needed time to feel comfortable with the technology and confident enough to engage with it. However, we believe that consistently offering activities like this is essential to help parents build connections with advanced technology and gradually increase their acceptance. We will continue designing engaging experiences to attract more participants in future efforts.”
Leadership and expansion
Building on this momentum, CETE plans to launch an AI Education Institute. It will mark a foundational step toward sustainable AI literacy. The Artificial Intelligence Literacy Project served as a proof of concept, paving the way for creating revenue streams. Over time, CETE aims to expand the institute, benefiting Ohio’s educational landscape and setting an example to inspire similar efforts nationwide.
CETE’s strategic goal to create the institute is more than an educational initiative; it represents a vision for informed digital citizenship in Ohio. By promoting AI literacy, CETE is preparing Ohio communities to face the challenges and opportunities of an AI-powered future with confidence.
