Elon University’s AI Pedagogy Challenge sparks innovation and collaboration

Elon University faculty unveiled a wave of innovative teaching strategies at the recent AI Pedagogy Challenge Show and Tell event, highlighting the university’s growing commitment to ethical and responsible integration of artificial intelligence (AI) in education.

“The AI Pedagogy Challenge Show and Tell was very exciting,” said Mustafa Akben, assistant professor of management and director of AI Integration. “Almost 80 of our teachers, staff and students came together to share new ideas about using AI in teaching and learning. This event showed how well we work together and how creative we are at Elon. It’s clear that our faculty are learning about AI and leading the way in making it a meaningful and responsible part of education’s future.”

The event was organized by Akben and Sagun Giri, instructional technologist and Elon AI team member, who partnered to create a space for sharing and celebrating innovative AI teaching practices. Students working at the AI Center played a crucial role in the initiative’s execution, supporting presenters, organizing logistics and helping build resources such as the new AI Toolbox. The challenge also benefited greatly from the thoughtful contributions of faculty and staff judges, who volunteered their time to carefully review all submissions and help select the top projects through a blind review process.

“What struck me was the sense of community in the room,” said Giri. “Seeing faculty reflect on the process, adapt their teaching and then share it with colleagues was a reminder that innovation doesn’t have to be perfect. It just has to be purposeful.”

Highlights from the AI Pedagogy Challenge Winners

Five projects were selected by a blind panel of judges for their outstanding integration of AI into pedagogy.

J. Israel Balderas, assistant professor of journalism

“AI-Facilitated Civil Discourse Companion:”
Developing a chatbot to assist students in navigating difficult class discussions by offering prompts, respectful language suggestions and frameworks for understanding opposing viewpoints, particularly on controversial topics in media law like free speech and ethical dilemmas.

“I’m honored to be recognized alongside so many inspiring colleagues who are exploring how to integrate AI in ways that strengthen – not replace – human learning. The Civil Discourse Companion emerged from my Media Law and Ethics course, where students wrestle with the boundaries of free speech and ethical communication in a polarized world. In an era where so much of our national discourse is reactive, performative or outright toxic, Elon University is doing something different: we’re helping students practice difficult conversations before they graduate; conversations grounded in logic, empathy and moral clarity. This AI Chatbot project is one small step toward that goal and I’m especially proud it came out of the School of Communications, where so many faculty are doing impactful work with AI tools to ensure our students become thoughtful contributors to public life.”

Erin Hone, senior lecturer in education and director of the Teaching Tellows program

“AI-Driven Classroom Assessment Design”
An assignment where pre-service teachers use AI tools (e.g., ChatGPT, MagicSchool) to generate classroom assessments and rubrics, followed by a critical evaluation of their alignment, effectiveness, and potential biases.

“Participating in this challenge has been a deeply meaningful experience that pushed me to think more intentionally about how AI can enhance core pedagogical practices in teacher education,” said Hone. “Designing an assignment that blends foundational assessment principles with emerging AI tools shifted my perspective from viewing AI as a novelty to recognizing its potential as a catalyst for critical thinking and equity-centered teaching.

Hone says an unexpected outcome of the challenge was seeing how peers across campus use AI in diverse, creative ways.

“This cross-disciplinary exchange sparked new ideas and prompted me to reflect more deeply on how to help my students engage with AI ethically and appropriately. It reinforced the importance of preparing future educators not just to use AI tools, but to do so with discernment, responsibility and a strong pedagogical foundation. I’m excited about the potential ripple effects of this work, from classroom practice to professional development, and hope to continue building on this foundation to help both preservice and in-service teachers navigate the evolving landscape of AI in education.”

Keshia Wall Gee, assistant professor of dance and coordinator of Elon’s African and African-American Studies program

AI-Enhanced West African Dance Learning
Introducing an AI-driven motion capture tool to record and analyze West African dance movements, providing students with a visual aid to break down and understand polyrhythmic and polycentric techniques.

“Participating in the AI Pedagogy Challenge was both energizing and affirming. It connected me with faculty across disciplines who are asking bold, forward-thinking questions about teaching, research, and technology,” said Wall Gee. “The experience sparked new ideas for my own scholarship and opened the door to potential interdisciplinary collaborations that I hadn’t previously imagined. Most of all, it reminded me that innovation thrives in community.”

Anne-Marie Iselin, associate professor of psychology

Using Artificial Intelligence in Psychological Research Course
A new course designed to equip students with skills to integrate AI tools like ChatGPT and Elicit into their research workflows for tasks including writing, idea generation, data analysis (code generation and direct analysis) and meta-analysis.

“This challenge motivated me to design a new course that will help psychology students integrate AI tools into their research while also engaging in critical and ethical reflections on their use of AI,” said Iselin. “The AI Pedagogy Challenge broadened my own thinking, sparked ideas for interdisciplinary collaborations and reinforced how AI can enhance and deepen student learning when used with purpose and curiosity. I’m grateful to be part of the Elon AI community where innovation, critical thinking, and shared learning are so deeply valued.”

Youssef Osman, assistant professor of cinema and television Arts

The Production Survival Challenge (AI-Enhanced)

An interactive, AI-enhanced simulation where film production students manage budgets, logistics, scheduling and AI-generated crises, with AI serving as a real-time assistant for problem-solving recommendations and feedback.

“I’m honored to be part of a community exploring how AI can enhance, not replace, human creativity and learning,” said Osman. “The Production Survival Challenge grew from my desire to help students in film and media navigate uncertainty, make real-time decisions, and collaborate under pressure. By integrating AI into this simulation, we created a space where students could safely fail, rethink, and adapt, much like they will in the professional world. I’m proud this work emerged from Elon’s School of Communications, where storytelling evolves alongside technological innovation.”

From ideas to actions

The AI Pedagogy Challenge did more than just inspire ideas; it helped make real tools.

“I was really impressed by how creative our teachers are,” Akben noted. “The AI Pedagogy Challenge did more than just inspire ideas; it helped us make real tools, like our new AI Toolbox on the Elon AI website. This collection now has over 100 custom chatbots and resources. It shows how our community worked together and proves we’re making AI easy to use and helpful for everyone on campus, including faculty, staff, and students.”

The challenge also demonstrated that AI’s utility spans across all disciplines, not just in STEM or business. Many of the most innovative submissions came from Elon College, the College of Arts and Sciences, with strong showings from English, psychology, and dance, while the School of Communications celebrated two finalists.

Beyond specific innovative projects, the AI Pedagogy Challenge suggests a strategic, long-term vision for AI literacy at Elon. This involved not just adopting technology but supporting faculty by equipping them with tools like ChatGPT and recognizing their innovative work. More importantly, the AI Pedagogy Challenge initiative demonstrated that AI, when combined with effective teaching pedagogy, can improve student outcomes and critical thinking without replacing teachers or students. It was exactly this event that created an intellectual space for sharing ideas, fostering collaboration and inspiring a university-wide awareness of AI’s potential to reshape education..