Since September 2024, the Erasmus+ project AI-HED – Artificial Intelligence in Higher Education Teaching and Learning has been working to support lecturers and students in navigating the rapid rise of AI in education. Just over a year into the project, we are proud to share that AI-HED has already delivered concrete results, meaningful insights, and a growing community of engaged educators across Europe.
Countries
Teachers Trained
Pilot Courses
Year of Progress
A shared urgency, a strong partnership
AI-HED started from a clear sense of urgency. Across our institutions, many lecturers felt uncertain—sometimes even overwhelmed—by the speed at which AI tools entered teaching and learning. At the same time, students were already using AI, often quietly, because expectations and rules were unclear. Institutions across Europe were at very different stages of policy development, making collaboration and shared learning even more important.
The project is coordinated by the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, together with partners from the University of Applied Sciences BFI Vienna, the Polytechnic University of Lisbon, and the University of Zagreb. Each partner brings distinct expertise—ranging from teacher training and communication to research and data analysis—which has proven to be a major strength of the project.
Inclusion at the core
From the start, AI-HED has been guided by a clear principle: we cannot leave anyone behind. The project intentionally involves teachers from different age groups, disciplines, and backgrounds, with attention to gender balance and accessibility. For students, we focus on tools that are widely available and affordable, because AI should not become a privilege for only a small group—it should support inclusive education.
Tangible results after one year
One of the major achievements so far is the AI Starter Kit, developed to help teachers understand AI and explore its didactical potential in a practical way. The Starter Kit has been tested at all partner institutions and is now publicly available. Feedback from lecturers shows that it helps reduce anxiety and increases confidence, offering hands-on guidance rather than abstract theory.
In early 2025, AI-HED also launched a series of training sessions and workshops, bringing together nearly 40 teachers across four countries and 24 courses. These sessions sparked rich discussions about ethics, assessment, academic integrity, creativity, and the role of the teacher in an AI-supported classroom.
At the same time, 24 pilot courses were carefully designed and are now being implemented. Teachers were supported in integrating AI into their courses without changing the original learning outcomes, focusing instead on how AI can act as a learning partner, feedback provider, writing aid, or analytical assistant.
From experimentation to evidence
These pilot courses are now generating a wealth of data. Students and teachers complete pre- and post-course surveys, and teachers keep weekly reflective logbooks. This combination of quantitative and qualitative data gives deep insight into how AI is experienced across disciplines, levels (bachelor and master), and institutional contexts.
One early observation is cultural rather than technical: attitudes have shifted. Where AI was initially seen as intimidating or disruptive, it is increasingly approached as an opportunity—when used thoughtfully and responsibly.
AI as a Thinking Partner, Not a Shortcut
In the Consumer Branding course, students created generative AI personas based on real consumer research. These personas became interactive testing tools for brand concepts and campaign ideas—forcing students to confront their assumptions and refine their thinking iteratively.
For students like Stijn, AI functioned as a didactical tool that strengthened critical thinking and evidence-based decision-making.
A concrete teacher example comes from a language course at the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, where a lecturer developed a custom AI-based “ConversationBot” using ChatGPT. Students use this bot to practise speaking French, receive immediate feedback, and prepare for their oral exam. For the lecturer, this was a first experiment with AI; for students, it created a low-threshold and safe way to practise. Half a year earlier, the lecturer had no prior experience with chatbots—illustrating how quickly confidence and creativity can grow with the right support.
We also see this shift clearly from the student perspective. In the third-year Consumer Branding course within the Marketing & Sales major, students used AI in a very different way than simply generating content. They were asked to use AI to create a generative AI persona based on real primary and secondary consumer research. This AI persona represented a realistic target audience and was used as an interactive testing tool to evaluate brand concepts, visual identity, and campaign ideas for introducing a new brand to the Dutch market.
Instead of replacing research, AI forced deeper thinking: students confronted insights from interviews and surveys with feedback from the AI persona, reflected on differences, and refined their work iteratively. For students like Stijn, AI functioned not as a shortcut, but as a didactical tool that strengthened critical thinking, understanding of consumer behaviour, and evidence-based decision-making.
Conceptual grounding and learning outcomes
AI-HED does not only experiment in practice; it also builds a strong conceptual foundation. The project links AI use to constructive alignment and, in the pilot courses, has mapped AI-related learning outcomes across Bloom’s Taxonomy levels. This early overview provides insight into how AI supports different cognitive levels, from understanding and application to analysis, evaluation, and creation.
Looking ahead
AI-HED is far from finished. In the coming period, the project will compile best practices, develop clear recommendations for higher-education institutions, and publish a white paper to support institutional strategy across Europe. A MOOC on AI in teaching and learning will also become available, offering an open and self-paced learning route for educators.
What we see so far gives us confidence. AI-HED shows that when teachers are supported, given space to experiment, and connected across institutions, AI can become a meaningful and inclusive part of higher education—not a source of fear, but a shared learning opportunity.
We are proud of what has been achieved so far and look forward to the next phase of the project.
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