My friend Sandie Morgan spent over a decade in Greece and knows languages far better than I do. She once taught me a word that often gets misinterpreted to mean waiting to take action until you reach a distant land but a better translation is 'as we are going' (loving our neighbors within our current, messy contexts). While our conversation was about theology, I find it also fitting for my current situation. I'm in a 'figure things out as I go' phase, as I create the Go Somewhere card sorting game. Its purpose is to not wait until we have everything figured out about AI's impact on higher education before taking action. I've been working on Go Somewhere for a while. Initially, I focused on game structures with right/wrong answers. But in Episode 527 of Teaching in Higher Ed, Alexis Peirce Caudell encouraged me to think non-dualistically and create a game with expansive possibilities. Another influential voice was Autumm Caines, who was part of me being selected as Scholar in Residence for the University of Michigan-Dearborn in Fall 2023. On Episode 501, Autumm and Maya explain how my curiosity and willingness to explore liminal spaces related to AI's impact on higher education helped me be a resource for them. So, I've *almost* invented a game with the following card sets: 1. Metaphors: Based on research by Anuj Gupta, Yasser Tamer, Anna Mills, and Maha Bali, exploring how discussing AI metaphors can build awareness. 2. Values: Based on Schwartz's value theory, exploring how values relate to motivations. 3. Actions: Based on suggestions from over 50 voices in higher education (see comments). The week of August 12, I'll be in Nashville to play Go Somewhere with ~150 faculty at Belmont University. The week after, I'll facilitate Go Somewhere with ~130 within Vanguard University's Academic Affairs. The cards are ready, and I have a handout for exploring metaphors. However, I still don't know how to turn this activity into a game. I'm realizing I don't know what makes something a game, which is probably why I'm struggling. I never saw Frozen 2, but the song Into the Unknown keeps playing in my mind. I'm going to get as far as I can for these events, recognizing it might not quite end up being an actual game. The flow I'm experimenting with is: 1. Identify the AI metaphor you use. Compare it with the researchers' findings and others' views at your table. 2. Explore the value cards and find one that aligns with your metaphor. 3. Commit to one action this term/semester to Go Somewhere. Pick an action aligned with your values, recognizing others' choices may differ, and AI's impact is messy and complex. If you have any ideas on making this more game-like, I'm all ears. I can't change the cards as they're already printed, but other suggestions are welcome. Thanks, Sandie, for the reminder that adopting an "as we are going" mindset can take us to amazing places and help us bring others along for the adventure. | 38 comments on LinkedIn