Strategies for leveraging Generative AI to deliver interactive learning experience in the STEM classroom.

The modern STEM classroom is experiencing a diverse range of effects from state-of-the-art Generative AI technology. The rising use of such tools and platforms poses unforeseen challenges for student engagement. Yet, modern Generative AI technology can also enable innovative ways to provide engaging learning experience for students. This crossroads has been the centerstage of multitude of discussions in higher education, and many questions on leveraging AI in the classroom remain unclear. Here, we will discuss strategies for Generative AI technology integration to deliver interactive learning modules and assessment for engineering students. We will discuss our experience from the perspective of a large core fluid mechanics class at a public research university. We will demonstrate how these approaches can enable instructors to bridge barriers for adopting active learning, and how the resulting tools and modules can help establish paradigms of Universal Design for Learning (UDL). We will outline specific advantages in terms of enabling diverse assessment of student learning. We will conclude with some discussion and perspectives on challenges and opportunities in terms of class size, content type, and variabilities in instructor style.