As part of the SDL (Self-Directed Learning) Collaborative Corner on Multimodal Learning and Open Educational Resources (OER) at North-West University, Prof. Tom Mackey, Empire State University, presented an interactive session on Reimagining Course Design with AI: Practical Strategies for Global Learning. The virtual event brought together educators and researchers to explore innovative ways of redesigning courses with artificial intelligence (AI) to support OER and multimodal learning.

The presentation drew on examples from the Digital Media Arts program at Empire State University, highlighting practical strategies from courses such as Digital Storytelling, Information Design, and Ethics of Digital Art & Design. In doing so, it connected the application of AI in course design with a metaliteracy perspective, underscoring the importance of reflective, ethical, and collaborative learning.

Explore the Session

The full session recording is now available, offering an in-depth look at the key themes and interactive discussions (click on the image):

Key Takeaways

• Revise course content and learning activities with AI to expand opportunities for reflection, collaboration, and creativity.
• Create original images with AI to enhance open resources and support multimodal learning experiences.
• Develop transparent and ethical AI use policies to ensure responsible student engagement with emerging tools.
• Design rubrics for AI-assisted and multimodal projects to provide clear, equitable assessment frameworks.

These approaches demonstrate how AI can be integrated as an effective tool across disciplines and learning environments. Educators are encouraged to consider how such strategies can be adapted to their own teaching practices, fostering inclusive, innovative, and globally connected learning opportunities.

For a closer view of the concepts and examples shared, the slide deck provides a visual overview of the session. Respond to the workshop prompt on slide 26 to reimagine your own learning activity with AI:

This presentation contributes to the ongoing dialogue about the role of AI in education and its potential to empower learners and educators in designing flexible, reflective, and future-ready courses. It offers a metaliteracy perspective to further emphasize the importance of ethical engagement, critical reflection, and collaborative learning in applying AI to course design.

If you have ideas or case studies about integrating AI and metaliteracy into your own course design, we invite you to reach out. We would be glad to feature your approaches as a guest post on the Metaliteracy blog and share your insights with our global community.

Tom and Trudi