AI's Impact on Higher Education: Transforming Research, Teaching, and Learning

  • 2,497

    Total Views and Downloads

About this Research Topic

Submission deadlines

  1. Manuscript Submission Deadline 21 January 2025

  2. This Research Topic is still accepting articles.

Background

The advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) has shown its vast potential and promise in influencing almost every aspect of higher education. However, ethical considerations regarding data privacy, algorithmic bias, and job displacement require careful attention. Our research initiative aims to comprehensively examine the transformative impacts of AI on higher education from ethical, social, and pedagogical dimensions, such as how AI advances academic pursuits, enhances learning experiences, and drives educational innovation. From cutting-edge research projects to innovative teaching methodologies, we will showcase AI's global influence on higher education, highlight AI's use in teaching AI, address ethical and pedagogical challenges, and emerging applications in administrative, teaching, learning, and research activities.

This Research Topic stimulates critical discourse on AI’s implications for higher education, aligning with community interests and promoting responsible innovation. It explores AI's profound ramifications on teaching, learning, and research in higher education, offering insights into curriculum development, assessment, and faculty workflow. By addressing ethical, social, and pedagogical considerations, it catalyzes further research and influences policy decisions. This initiative will foster the understanding of AI's role in optimizing educational experiences, advancing pedagogical practices, facilitating innovative research methodologies, supporting student learning outcomes, optimizing faculty workload management, and driving excellence in the digital age while preparing for the future. With a global perspective, we will highlight AI's innovative applications across diverse academic disciplines and institutions and empower stakeholders with the knowledge and tools needed to navigate the evolving landscape of education in the digital age.

We invite stakeholders to join us in exploring AI's developments and vast potential in academia. Together, we will navigate the opportunities and challenges presented by this technology, forging a path toward a future where AI enhances educational excellence and equity for all.

The scope of the Research Topic includes a wide range of areas that explore the long-term implications of AI for the structure and delivery of higher education, including:
• Pedagogical revolution sparked by AI in transforming traditional teaching roles and new models of learning.
• Customized educational experiences tailored to individual learner needs.
• AI's potential to foster interdisciplinary collaboration
• AI’s role in accelerating scientific discovery, exceeding boundaries of human knowledge and catalyzing breakthroughs.
• Advancing scholarly inquiry through AI-driven research endeavors and innovative research methods
• The skills and knowledge necessary to equip academics and students to thrive in an AI-driven world.
• Ethical challenges and implications of AI-driven decision-making in the current landscape.
• The broader implications of AI beyond the classroom, encompassing its impact on administrative processes and institutional operations.
• The role of AI in optimizing student support services and fostering a more productive, accessible, and inclusive college experience.

Regarding the types of articles, we are open to different research approaches and types of contributions, including:
• Original research articles on new findings and analysis on AI.
• Systematic reviews and meta-analyses on topics related to AI.
• Case studies providing details of successful (or unsuccessful) implementations of AI in higher education.
• Technical, curriculum, instruction, and pedagogy articles describing innovative curricula, teaching methodologies, teaching formats, and pedagogical frameworks on AI.
• Conceptual Analysis articles explore the concepts and issues related to AI in higher education.
• Perspective articles present a viewpoint on a specific area of investigation on AI.
• Essays and opinions addressing critical issues, debates, or emerging perspectives in the field of AI.

Research Topic Research topic image

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

  • Brief Research Report
  • Case Report
  • Community Case Study
  • Conceptual Analysis
  • Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
  • Data Report
  • Editorial
  • General Commentary
  • Hypothesis and Theory

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Keywords: Curriculum development, Research methodologies, Intelligent tutoring systems, Adaptive learning platforms, Writing and research integrity, Interdisciplinary collaboration, Personalized feedback and assessment, Ethical implications in higher education, Policy development, Artificial intelligence and accessibility

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.

Frequently asked questions

  • Frontiers' Research Topics are collaborative hubs built around an emerging theme.Defined, managed, and led by renowned researchers, they bring communities together around a shared area of interest to stimulate collaboration and innovation.

    Unlike section journals, which serve established specialty communities, Research Topics are pioneer hubs, responding to the evolving scientific landscape and catering to new communities.

  • The goal of Frontiers' publishing program is to empower research communities to actively steer the course of scientific publishing. Our program was implemented as a three-part unit with fixed field journals, flexible specialty sections, and dynamically emerging Research Topics, connecting communities of different sizes and maturity.

    Research Topics originate from the scientific community. Many of our Research Topics are suggested by existing editorial board members who have identified critical challenges or areas of interest in their field.

  • As an editor, Research Topics will help you build your journal, as well as your community, around emerging, cutting-edge research. As research trailblazers, Research Topics attract high-quality submissions from leading experts all over the world.

    A thriving Research Topic can potentially evolve into a new specialty section if there is sustained interest and a growing community around it.

  • Each Research Topic must be approved by the specialty chief editor, and they fall under the editorial oversight of our editorial boards, supported by our in-house research integrity team. The same standards and rigorous peer review processes apply to articles published as part of a Research Topic as for any other article we publish.

      In 2023, 80% of the Research Topics we published were edited or co-edited by our editorial board members, who are already familiar with their journal's scope, ethos, and publishing model. All other topics are guest edited by leaders in their field, each vetted and formally approved by the specialty chief editor.

  • Publishing your article within a Research Topic with other related articles increases its discoverability and visibility, which can lead to more views, downloads, and citations. Research Topics grow dynamically as more published articles are added, causing frequent revisiting, and further visibility.

    As Research Topics are multidisciplinary, they are cross-listed in several fields and section journals – increasing your reach even more and giving you the chance to expand your network and collaborate with researchers in different fields, all focusing on expanding knowledge around the same important topic.

    Our larger Research Topics are also converted into ebooks and receive social media promotion from our digital marketing team.

  • Frontiers offers multiple article types, but it will depend on the field and section journals in which the Research Topic will be featured. The available article types for a Research Topic will appear in the drop-down menu during the submission process.

    Check available article types here 

  • Yes, we would love to hear your ideas for a topic. Most of our Research Topics are community-led and suggested by researchers in the field. Our in-house editorial team will contact you to talk about your idea and whether you’d like to edit the topic. If you’re an early-stage researcher, we will offer you the opportunity to coordinate your topic, with the support of a senior researcher as the topic editor. 

    Suggest your topic here 

  • A team of guest editors (called topic editors) lead their Research Topic. This editorial team oversees the entire process, from the initial topic proposal to calls for participation, the peer review, and final publications.

    The team may also include topic coordinators, who help the topic editors send calls for participation, liaise with topic editors on abstracts, and support contributing authors. In some cases, they can also be assigned as reviewers.

  • As a topic editor (TE), you will take the lead on all editorial decisions for the Research Topic, starting with defining its scope. This allows you to curate research around a topic that interests you, bring together different perspectives from leading researchers across different fields and shape the future of your field. 

    You will choose your team of co-editors, curate a list of potential authors, send calls for participation and oversee the peer review process, accepting or recommending rejection for each manuscript submitted.

  • As a topic editor, you're supported at every stage by our in-house team. You will be assigned a single point of contact to help you on both editorial and technical matters. Your topic is managed through our user-friendly online platform, and the peer review process is supported by our industry-first AI review assistant (AIRA).

  • If you’re an early-stage researcher, we will offer you the opportunity to coordinate your topic, with the support of a senior researcher as the topic editor. This provides you with valuable editorial experience, improving your ability to critically evaluate research articles and enhancing your understanding of the quality standards and requirements for scientific publishing, as well as the opportunity to discover new research in your field, and expand your professional network.

  • Yes, certificates can be issued on request. We are happy to provide a certificate for your contribution to editing a successful Research Topic.

  • Research Topics thrive on collaboration and their multi-disciplinary approach around emerging, cutting-edge themes, attract leading researchers from all over the world.

  • As a topic editor, you can set the timeline for your Research Topic, and we will work with you at your pace. Typically, Research Topics are online and open for submissions within a few weeks and remain open for participation for 6 – 12 months. Individual articles within a Research Topic are published as soon as they are ready.

    Find out more about our Research Topics

  • Our fee support program ensures that all articles that pass peer review, including those published in Research Topics, can benefit from open access – regardless of the author's field or funding situation.

    Authors and institutions with insufficient funding can apply for a discount on their publishing fees. A fee support application form is available on our website.

  • In line with our mission to promote healthy lives on a healthy planet, we do not provide printed materials. All our articles and ebooks are available under a CC-BY license, so you can share and print copies.

Manuscripts can be submitted to this Research Topic via the main journal or any other participating journal.

Impact

  • 2,497Topic views
  • 1,081Article views
View impact