AI and Higher Education Teachers: Expectations, Attitudes, and Ethics

Abstract

In recent years, generative AI has become increasingly relevant since ChatGPT took the public by storm in 2022, prompting businesses to integrate it into their operations in 2023. The higher education sector is no exception. In 2024, we are implementing generative AI not only for our systems and services, but also for our curriculum, teaching methods, and learning experience. The situation of Finnish higher education institutions has not yet been extensively studied from these perspectives before. In the spring of 2024, we surveyed 178 Finnish higher education institute (HEI) teachers about their use of, expectations for, attitudes toward, and ethical considerations regarding generative AI. After analyzing the results, we found that, although teachers are moderately aware of current AI tools and well-informed about their secure and ethical use, few of them frequently use AI tools in their teaching. Nevertheless, teachers recognize the importance of educating students about AI-related topics. They are optimistic about the future of AI: although they believe AI will significantly transform education and work, they do not think AI will replace teachers entirely.