CKPC held the first session of World Café for this semester, with the topic on Artificial Intelligence (AI). Students, including international and exchange students from different cultural backgrounds, participated in several rounds of lively conversations on this hot topic. The table hosts recorded their thoughts in graphical notes, along with stimulating drawings from some participants.
Some notable notes collected from the students:
- Most students have been using some forms of AI tools without knowing about AI. Their AI experiences dated back 5 to 10 years and were mostly through online chat bots and internet games.
- Students cautioned that one should use AI tools in a moderate way. Do not just copy and paste and rely on them solely. Beware of fake information. Always verify with other authoritative sources.
- Some students used chatGPT to improve writing, build outlines or starting points for papers, or even as entertaining or stimulating hints to enhance creativity.
- Most students were concerned about the increasingly powerful AI tools, as they may replace certain types of jobs, become independent or even loose from human control, challenge many established legal and ethical concepts, mix fiction with reality, and fill the world with “deep fake” information.
The World Café is a group activity designed to create a friendly and welcoming environment to connect multiple ideas and perspectives on a topic. The table host engages participants in several rounds of conversation, collecting and sharing their inputs along the way. Participants also exchange ideas during the short tea breaks, which keep the flow of discussion and sharing throughout.
Students said that the World Café offers an opportunity for them to reflect on some hot or even controversial issues. During the final presentation, they were amazed at other groups’ ideas and commented that they liked this kind of idea-sharing activity.
