Novel Research, New Degrees: UCI at Forefront of AI in Education
By Christine Byrd
March 11, 2026
March 11, 2026
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As artificial intelligence reshapes how people learn and work together, leaders in the UCI School of Education are bringing years of research and deep expertise to shed light on the technology’s impact, while also preparing a new generation of teachers and researchers to thrive in an AI-driven world.
“Entire industries are redesigning how teams work — embedding AI as a thought partner, a collaborator, even a co-planner inside daily workflows,” said Nia Nixon, associate professor of education and department of cognitive science. “Tools are no longer just chat interfaces; they’re becoming integrated teammates.” To better understand the impact of that shift, Nixon has launched the Team Research and AI Integration Lab (TRAIL) with Amin Samadi, who is the technical lead for the work, an online platform that allows researchers to study the effects of AI when it serves as a teammate and not just a tool. |
Nia Nixon
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“Most AI tools are designed to optimize productivity. We’re studying something deeper: how humans and AI think together,” Nixon said. “We move beyond asking ‘Does AI improve performance?’ and instead ask: ‘How does AI reshape participation? Who gains voice? Who gets marginalized? How does authority shift?
’“That focus on collaborative intelligence is what differentiates our work,” Nixon added.
With TRAIL, researchers can adjust AI’s personality — mimicking a toxic teammate or an excellent facilitator — and then analyze how those characteristics change the group dynamic and affect learning outcomes. Ultimately, Nixon aims to understand not only what makes a good AI teammate, but also how that might vary for different groups, and how the right persona can foster innovation and collaboration. Nixon’s team built the digital platform, which is available to other researchers, with support from the Jacobs Foundation, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the Spencer Foundation.
While TRAIL is a unique research platform, it’s just one of many AI-related research projects currently in the School of Education, which is home to one of the nation’s largest concentrations of faculty working at the intersection of education and AI.
“What makes the School of Education at UCI so exciting right now is that we are building an ecosystem, not just a set of isolated projects,” said Nixon. “At the center is a commitment to understanding how AI reshapes learning, collaboration, and human development, and then translating that understanding into research, training, and workforce preparation.”
Preparing next-generation education data scientists
This fall, UCI is launching a new online Master of Education Sciences in Artificial Intelligence & Learning Analytics to train future education data scientists to leverage AI.
’“That focus on collaborative intelligence is what differentiates our work,” Nixon added.
With TRAIL, researchers can adjust AI’s personality — mimicking a toxic teammate or an excellent facilitator — and then analyze how those characteristics change the group dynamic and affect learning outcomes. Ultimately, Nixon aims to understand not only what makes a good AI teammate, but also how that might vary for different groups, and how the right persona can foster innovation and collaboration. Nixon’s team built the digital platform, which is available to other researchers, with support from the Jacobs Foundation, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the Spencer Foundation.
While TRAIL is a unique research platform, it’s just one of many AI-related research projects currently in the School of Education, which is home to one of the nation’s largest concentrations of faculty working at the intersection of education and AI.
“What makes the School of Education at UCI so exciting right now is that we are building an ecosystem, not just a set of isolated projects,” said Nixon. “At the center is a commitment to understanding how AI reshapes learning, collaboration, and human development, and then translating that understanding into research, training, and workforce preparation.”
Preparing next-generation education data scientists
This fall, UCI is launching a new online Master of Education Sciences in Artificial Intelligence & Learning Analytics to train future education data scientists to leverage AI.
Mark Warschauer
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“The advances in technology over the last few years have not only created many sources of digital data, but also powerful tools for analyzing that data and applying it to improve teaching and learning,” said Mark Warschauer, Distinguished Professor of Education, who has been studying artificial intelligence in education for more than 20 years. “UC Irvine has unique strengths in helping build the next generation of educational professionals.”
Led by Warschauer and Nixon, this master’s program is only the second of its kind in the U.S. and goes beyond teaching how to use the latest AI tools to focus on learning science, psychometrics, and the ethics of AI. “There’s a massive market for people with this expertise,” Nixon said. “We are not training people to simply use AI tools. We are training them to design, evaluate, and govern them responsibly.” |
As a professional degree program, the master’s prepares students for careers managing and interpreting learning data for corporate training programs, school districts, education technology companies, nonprofits and higher education institutions.
To facilitate the transition to jobs, faculty drew on their deep networks to assemble an advisory board that includes leaders from companies such as Google and Khan Academy. Their advice and insights helped guide the master’s curriculum, and board members will offer seminars and career guidance to students throughout the year-long program.
The online master’s courses are designed to be taken part-time over 12 months, with the option to meet in person at the start of the program and during the capstone presentations at the conclusion. Applications are now open to join the inaugural cohort of the MES-AILA program, with the first courses beginning in September 2026.
Empowering teachers to leverage AI
AI isn’t just transforming how learning is measured and analyzed, it’s also reshaping the traditional roles of teachers and students in the classroom.
“The role of AI is probably the most compelling question in K-12 and higher education today,” Warschauer said. “How can you prepare students for a world in which AI is going to be so fundamental on the one hand, but not to create a situation where students are outsourcing their thinking to technology?”
To support teachers navigating this dynamic, UCI’s Digital Learning Lab, led by Warschauer, partnered with the UCI Teacher Academy to create the K-12 AI in education certificate. The online series of three courses covers the foundations of AI, AI-enhanced learning, and AI-enhanced teaching. Teachers, administrators and curriculum developers have flocked to the courses during its first year. This summer, a faster-paced version of the courses will be available for educators aiming to level up their AI skills before the next school year.
“The intersection between research and practice is very important for us,” said Nicole Gilbertson, director of the UCI Teacher Academy. “Not only are we part of a large research university, but the university is part of the broader education community.”
Classes meet once a week and work asynchronously in online forums and discussions. One of the highlights for participants so far has been the digital “Tinker Labs,” where they can practice using AI as a co-planner, a co-teaching tool, and as a resource for students.
“We’re seeing teachers experiment with generative AI, personally and professionally, and through these courses, the Teacher Academy is creating learning opportunities for them to be in conversation with one another about how they can use AI to complement student thinking effectively and ethically.”
While the certificate is a comprehensive approach, the UCI Teacher Academy has partnered with other programs to support a number of AI-related learning opportunities for K-12 educators. Starting this year, a long-term professional learning program, Fortifying Liberty’s Legacy: Cultivating Informed Citizens through History and Innovation, partners history and civics teachers with historians and researchers to incorporate AI-literacy into their classes. Meanwhile, the UCI Science Project is developing a program starting in April where science teachers will investigate how to support their students to engage more robustly with scientific data by using AI as a “lab partner.”
“There’s a genuine sense that we are all learners in this space. Teachers want to build a shared learning community alongside their students, where we’re all thinking critically about our use of AI to support learning,” said Gilbertson.
Because AI is just as rapidly reshaping post-secondary education, the Digital Learning Lab is offering a class focused on AI in higher education beginning in summer 2026.
From groundbreaking research platforms to new degree offerings, UCI School of Education remains at the forefront of AI for learning. These new offerings are likely only the beginning.
“We are at a pivotal moment where AI will reshape how people learn and work together,” said Nixon. “Our goal is not simply to adopt AI, but to understand it deeply, shape it responsibly, and ensure it expands — rather than narrows — opportunity.”
To facilitate the transition to jobs, faculty drew on their deep networks to assemble an advisory board that includes leaders from companies such as Google and Khan Academy. Their advice and insights helped guide the master’s curriculum, and board members will offer seminars and career guidance to students throughout the year-long program.
The online master’s courses are designed to be taken part-time over 12 months, with the option to meet in person at the start of the program and during the capstone presentations at the conclusion. Applications are now open to join the inaugural cohort of the MES-AILA program, with the first courses beginning in September 2026.
Empowering teachers to leverage AI
AI isn’t just transforming how learning is measured and analyzed, it’s also reshaping the traditional roles of teachers and students in the classroom.
“The role of AI is probably the most compelling question in K-12 and higher education today,” Warschauer said. “How can you prepare students for a world in which AI is going to be so fundamental on the one hand, but not to create a situation where students are outsourcing their thinking to technology?”
To support teachers navigating this dynamic, UCI’s Digital Learning Lab, led by Warschauer, partnered with the UCI Teacher Academy to create the K-12 AI in education certificate. The online series of three courses covers the foundations of AI, AI-enhanced learning, and AI-enhanced teaching. Teachers, administrators and curriculum developers have flocked to the courses during its first year. This summer, a faster-paced version of the courses will be available for educators aiming to level up their AI skills before the next school year.
“The intersection between research and practice is very important for us,” said Nicole Gilbertson, director of the UCI Teacher Academy. “Not only are we part of a large research university, but the university is part of the broader education community.”
Classes meet once a week and work asynchronously in online forums and discussions. One of the highlights for participants so far has been the digital “Tinker Labs,” where they can practice using AI as a co-planner, a co-teaching tool, and as a resource for students.
“We’re seeing teachers experiment with generative AI, personally and professionally, and through these courses, the Teacher Academy is creating learning opportunities for them to be in conversation with one another about how they can use AI to complement student thinking effectively and ethically.”
While the certificate is a comprehensive approach, the UCI Teacher Academy has partnered with other programs to support a number of AI-related learning opportunities for K-12 educators. Starting this year, a long-term professional learning program, Fortifying Liberty’s Legacy: Cultivating Informed Citizens through History and Innovation, partners history and civics teachers with historians and researchers to incorporate AI-literacy into their classes. Meanwhile, the UCI Science Project is developing a program starting in April where science teachers will investigate how to support their students to engage more robustly with scientific data by using AI as a “lab partner.”
“There’s a genuine sense that we are all learners in this space. Teachers want to build a shared learning community alongside their students, where we’re all thinking critically about our use of AI to support learning,” said Gilbertson.
Because AI is just as rapidly reshaping post-secondary education, the Digital Learning Lab is offering a class focused on AI in higher education beginning in summer 2026.
From groundbreaking research platforms to new degree offerings, UCI School of Education remains at the forefront of AI for learning. These new offerings are likely only the beginning.
“We are at a pivotal moment where AI will reshape how people learn and work together,” said Nixon. “Our goal is not simply to adopt AI, but to understand it deeply, shape it responsibly, and ensure it expands — rather than narrows — opportunity.”
The Digital Learning Lab offers custom professional learning experiences for school districts, educational organizations, and institutions of higher education seeking practical, research-based guidance on AI for teaching and learning. Contact us to discuss your goals, audience, and timeline.
