Australian higher education providers to be asked for GenAI action plans

Australian universities, institutes and colleges providing higher education will be asked by the government for a “detailed” and “credible” action plan to address risks stemming from generative AI.

TEQSA – the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency – wrote to all 203 higher education providers earlier this week, saying it would seek action plans in July.

Chief commissioner, Professor Peter Coaldrake, said he had first written to the sector “last October” to draw attention to the potential impacts that generative AI could have on “teaching, learning and assessment practices”.

“TEQSA is keen to ensure all higher education institutions reflect meaningfully on the impact of gen AI and have appropriate mechanisms in place to provide assurance that students have attained the skills and knowledge reflected by their qualifications,” Coaldrake wrote.

“This request will ask providers to submit a credible institutional action plan, oversighted by the appropriate governance mechanisms. 

“The request for information will enable TEQSA to share different approaches through examples and case studies, while also highlighting any areas of the sector where capability must be lifted.”

TEQSA said [pdf] it would not specify an exact format, but said the plans had to be “actionable and have realistic timelines attached” and be “able to be monitored and have their efficacy assessed”.

While TEQSA’s interest is on “teaching, learning and assessment activities”, it suggested that institutions could prepare and submit wider-ranging plans as well.

“We recognise that some providers may have these considerations as one pillar of a broader institutional strategy that includes the consideration of research and other institutional uses of gen AI,” it said. [pdf]

“Providers working on a holistic institutional plan, which includes assessment methods, are welcome to submit the broader plan and we will extract the information [that is] relevant.”

TEQSA predicted it would take about three months for it to work through the detail of all submitted action plans.

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AndyC

Andy Curtis is an award-winning security consultant, researcher and public speaker. He has been working in the computer security industry since the early 1990s, having been employed by state and federal government, leading healthcare and banking providers across three continents. He has given talks about computer security for some of the world’s largest companies, worked with law enforcement agencies on investigations into hacking groups, and is a regular voice on TV and radio explaining IT security threats.

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