Prof. Pam Birtill
@diervilla.bsky.social
Professor in the Psychology of Learning at University of Leeds. Welsh learner, #psychology academic, higher education and assessment, #linoprint artist, #allotment holder, weaver, spinner and all round dabbler. Northern. She/her/hi. SFHEA. NTF.
Reposted by Prof. Pam Birtill
I have plenty of reservations about the reliability of funnel-plots and z-curves and such, as well as their interpretation.....
But holy shit look at that.
But holy shit look at that.
February 10, 2026 at 3:17 PM
I have plenty of reservations about the reliability of funnel-plots and z-curves and such, as well as their interpretation.....
But holy shit look at that.
But holy shit look at that.
This is just dystopian. I had to double check it wasn’t some near future fiction.
Token Anxiety
i think i mostly echo this for myself. with so much that can be done, i often feel like i *should* be doing something, always
i think i mostly echo this for myself. with so much that can be done, i often feel like i *should* be doing something, always
February 15, 2026 at 6:41 PM
This is just dystopian. I had to double check it wasn’t some near future fiction.
Reposted by Prof. Pam Birtill
I'm not sure we'll ever overcome the original sins of using terms like "learning" and "training".
firstmonday.org/ojs/index.ph...
My view is that these systems will never be intelligent because they're not alive, and it's as simple as that.
firstmonday.org/ojs/index.ph...
My view is that these systems will never be intelligent because they're not alive, and it's as simple as that.
De-anthropomorphizing “AI”: From wishful mnemonics to accurate nomenclature
| First Monday
firstmonday.org
February 15, 2026 at 3:29 PM
I'm not sure we'll ever overcome the original sins of using terms like "learning" and "training".
firstmonday.org/ojs/index.ph...
My view is that these systems will never be intelligent because they're not alive, and it's as simple as that.
firstmonday.org/ojs/index.ph...
My view is that these systems will never be intelligent because they're not alive, and it's as simple as that.
And yet I still hear that we can just design assessments that AI can’t do…
Omar is a friend of mine who’s currently the VP of Microsoft Word. He’s been an early adopter as long as I’ve known him and he’s shared how his family now uses OpenClaw.
This is what Siri should be by now and we need an iPhone moment to get this in everyone’s hands.
This is what Siri should be by now and we need an iPhone moment to get this in everyone’s hands.
Meet Lobster 🦞: My Personal AI Assistant
And How You Can Build Your Own
www.omarknows.ai
February 15, 2026 at 6:21 PM
And yet I still hear that we can just design assessments that AI can’t do…
Reposted by Prof. Pam Birtill
Trying to decide if I need to stay up until midnight to tell you that in Wales they don’t celebrate Valentine, they celebrate Dwynwen who wanted to be away from [a specific man] Maelon so SOULFULLY, she literally walked on water until an angel agreed to turn him into ice
She felt bad about it, so:
She felt bad about it, so:
February 14, 2026 at 2:04 AM
Trying to decide if I need to stay up until midnight to tell you that in Wales they don’t celebrate Valentine, they celebrate Dwynwen who wanted to be away from [a specific man] Maelon so SOULFULLY, she literally walked on water until an angel agreed to turn him into ice
She felt bad about it, so:
She felt bad about it, so:
Reposted by Prof. Pam Birtill
'Taken together, government policies lead to a worsening of universities’ aggregate financial position in every year to 2028-29.'
In a word, 'Yikes'. In 3 words, 'Yet more yikes'.
In a word, 'Yikes'. In 3 words, 'Yet more yikes'.
The financial impact of government policy decisions on universities
Our analysis shows that government policy decisions lead to an estimated £3.7 billion reduction in funding to higher education providers in England from 2024-25 to 2029-30.
www.universitiesuk.ac.uk
February 13, 2026 at 12:08 PM
'Taken together, government policies lead to a worsening of universities’ aggregate financial position in every year to 2028-29.'
In a word, 'Yikes'. In 3 words, 'Yet more yikes'.
In a word, 'Yikes'. In 3 words, 'Yet more yikes'.
Reposted by Prof. Pam Birtill
Sitting in train and observing through seats student in front of me copy pasting an essay into a “revised first class version” with chat gpt, incl tips on how to make it sound less “AI” with different “tone” options (eg “more academic” sic) Also checks IG reels every few minutes.
Feeling despair.
Feeling despair.
February 12, 2026 at 8:22 PM
Sitting in train and observing through seats student in front of me copy pasting an essay into a “revised first class version” with chat gpt, incl tips on how to make it sound less “AI” with different “tone” options (eg “more academic” sic) Also checks IG reels every few minutes.
Feeling despair.
Feeling despair.
Reposted by Prof. Pam Birtill
We're looking for a lecturer in Developmental Psychology to join us at YSJ on a 12 month contract. Get in touch if you have any questions: www.jobs.ac.uk/job/DQL260/l...
Lecturer in Psychology at York St John University
Searching for an academic job? Explore this Lecturer in Psychology opening on jobs.ac.uk! Click to view more details and browse other academic jobs.
www.jobs.ac.uk
February 10, 2026 at 6:45 PM
We're looking for a lecturer in Developmental Psychology to join us at YSJ on a 12 month contract. Get in touch if you have any questions: www.jobs.ac.uk/job/DQL260/l...
Reposted by Prof. Pam Birtill
Three years ago we made an early News Agents on the student loan scandal and the sky high marginal tax rates it creates. Three years on, govts since have made it all worse still. We’ve made a special follow up, centred on our listeners own experiences.
podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/t...
podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/t...
How the government became a student loan shark
Podcast Episode · The News Agents · 06/02/2026 · 50m
podcasts.apple.com
February 7, 2026 at 3:58 PM
Three years ago we made an early News Agents on the student loan scandal and the sky high marginal tax rates it creates. Three years on, govts since have made it all worse still. We’ve made a special follow up, centred on our listeners own experiences.
podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/t...
podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/t...
Reposted by Prof. Pam Birtill
People of Leeds and surrounding.
We got a small crew doing a big ancient woodland restoration job 7th and 8th February and I need a LOT more of you to mangle all this rhododendron.
Address – Weston Woods, Weston Lane, Weston, N Yorks. LS21 2HW W3W
www.protect.earth/events/otley...
We got a small crew doing a big ancient woodland restoration job 7th and 8th February and I need a LOT more of you to mangle all this rhododendron.
Address – Weston Woods, Weston Lane, Weston, N Yorks. LS21 2HW W3W
www.protect.earth/events/otley...
Volunteers Wanted for Rhododendron Removal near Otley, West Yorkshire — Protect Earth
www.protect.earth
February 4, 2026 at 9:05 PM
People of Leeds and surrounding.
We got a small crew doing a big ancient woodland restoration job 7th and 8th February and I need a LOT more of you to mangle all this rhododendron.
Address – Weston Woods, Weston Lane, Weston, N Yorks. LS21 2HW W3W
www.protect.earth/events/otley...
We got a small crew doing a big ancient woodland restoration job 7th and 8th February and I need a LOT more of you to mangle all this rhododendron.
Address – Weston Woods, Weston Lane, Weston, N Yorks. LS21 2HW W3W
www.protect.earth/events/otley...
Reposted by Prof. Pam Birtill
‘Novice workers who rely heavily on AI to complete unfamiliar tasks may compromise their own skill acquisition… We find that AI use impairs conceptual understanding, code reading, and debugging abilities, without delivering significant efficiency gains on average.’
arxiv.org/pdf/2601.20245
arxiv.org/pdf/2601.20245
February 3, 2026 at 9:00 PM
‘Novice workers who rely heavily on AI to complete unfamiliar tasks may compromise their own skill acquisition… We find that AI use impairs conceptual understanding, code reading, and debugging abilities, without delivering significant efficiency gains on average.’
arxiv.org/pdf/2601.20245
arxiv.org/pdf/2601.20245
Reposted by Prof. Pam Birtill
Reminder that "jaywalking" was literally made up by american car manufacturers to shift the blame for accidents from drivers to pedestrians. "Jay" was a slang term meaning "idiot" or "rube".
“Jaywalking is permitted in London. In 1966, the police tried to crack down on it, but gave up after three months.”
People walk and cycle on roads by right, people drive under licence.
Jaywalking is not a thing in English law and Waymo must not change that.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
People walk and cycle on roads by right, people drive under licence.
Jaywalking is not a thing in English law and Waymo must not change that.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Self-driving taxis are coming to London – should we be worried? | Jack Stilgoe
Waymo’s cars were first rolled out in San Francisco, but the English capital’s old roads, pelican crossings and jaywalkers may pose issues for AI, says science and technology professor Jack Stilgoe
www.theguardian.com
February 2, 2026 at 11:21 PM
Reminder that "jaywalking" was literally made up by american car manufacturers to shift the blame for accidents from drivers to pedestrians. "Jay" was a slang term meaning "idiot" or "rube".
Reading about moltbot/clawdbot. I feel old. I neither understand all that is being said, nor understand why anyone would give any bot passwords etc. Have these people never watched Terminator??
January 31, 2026 at 9:52 PM
Reading about moltbot/clawdbot. I feel old. I neither understand all that is being said, nor understand why anyone would give any bot passwords etc. Have these people never watched Terminator??
Reposted by Prof. Pam Birtill
Re-amplifying great work I somehow missed—nicely showing what many of us suspected (and then some). #TeamRL 🔥
New paper in QJEP with Dave George, Dom Dwyer and @markhaselgrove.bsky.social. We discuss a recent claim to have shown complex statistical reasoning in crows, and show the simplest S-R learning would give the same behaviour. A fun paper to write with old friends.
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
Apparent statistical inference in crows may reflect simple reinforcement learning - David N George, Dominic M Dwyer, Mark Haselgrove, Mike E Le Pelley, 2024
Johnston et al. report results which they argue demonstrate that crows engage in statistical inference during decision-making. They trained two crows to associa...
journals.sagepub.com
January 30, 2026 at 2:49 PM
Re-amplifying great work I somehow missed—nicely showing what many of us suspected (and then some). #TeamRL 🔥
This is scandalous. We have a university sector that could have provided this, at a fraction of the cost, and much higher quality. What was the contract - what was promised to be delivered?
January 29, 2026 at 11:54 AM
This is scandalous. We have a university sector that could have provided this, at a fraction of the cost, and much higher quality. What was the contract - what was promised to be delivered?
Reposted by Prof. Pam Birtill
Users of survey data, lovers of DAGs, and general methodological enthusiasts, gather round!
I'm so excited to share this new paper, joint work with my brilliant colleagues @rjsilverwood.bsky.social, @pwgtennant.bsky.social, and Liam Wright.
🧵
I'm so excited to share this new paper, joint work with my brilliant colleagues @rjsilverwood.bsky.social, @pwgtennant.bsky.social, and Liam Wright.
🧵
How can the use of different modes of survey data collection introduce bias? An introduction to mode effects using directed acyclic graphs (DAGs)
Abstract. Survey data are self-reported data collected directly from respondents by a questionnaire or an interview and are commonly used in epidemiology.
academic.oup.com
January 28, 2026 at 12:12 PM
Users of survey data, lovers of DAGs, and general methodological enthusiasts, gather round!
I'm so excited to share this new paper, joint work with my brilliant colleagues @rjsilverwood.bsky.social, @pwgtennant.bsky.social, and Liam Wright.
🧵
I'm so excited to share this new paper, joint work with my brilliant colleagues @rjsilverwood.bsky.social, @pwgtennant.bsky.social, and Liam Wright.
🧵
Reposted by Prof. Pam Birtill
"In other words, European taxpayers will have spent more on the funding process than on the funding itself, and the scientific ecosystem has been drained"
The situation is rapidly becoming unsustainable: the current research funding scheme does not work.
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
The situation is rapidly becoming unsustainable: the current research funding scheme does not work.
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Point of no returns: researchers are crossing a threshold in the fight for funding
With so little money to go round, the costs of competing for grants can exceed what the grants are worth. When that happens, nobody wins.
www.nature.com
January 28, 2026 at 12:59 PM
"In other words, European taxpayers will have spent more on the funding process than on the funding itself, and the scientific ecosystem has been drained"
The situation is rapidly becoming unsustainable: the current research funding scheme does not work.
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
The situation is rapidly becoming unsustainable: the current research funding scheme does not work.
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Except as WonkHE article shows its record number of 18 year olds. Baseline matters!
Rise in demand for UK undergraduate courses despite fee increases. Record interest from 18-year-old domestic students, Ucas figures show #highered #EduSky https://ow.ly/t8zS50Y4oPY
January 28, 2026 at 7:13 AM
Except as WonkHE article shows its record number of 18 year olds. Baseline matters!
Exactly this. And sometimes convenience is important and a few errors are ok - but not in science!
Using gen AI means sacrificing accuracy for convenience. Its purpose is to cut corners. If that’s how you roll, science has no need for you.
We’re getting so many journal submissions from people who think ‘it kinda works’ is the standard to aim for.
January 28, 2026 at 6:53 AM
Exactly this. And sometimes convenience is important and a few errors are ok - but not in science!
Never has it been more important to understand truth, epistemology and ontology. Some things are objectively true, other things do depend on your positionality. But we shouldn’t “balance out” the objectively true with conspiracy theory and misinformation.
Thinking about the underlying notion of truth this morning. 🧵
The BBC coverage is absolutely terrible.
It leads on "sharply contested narratives"
It has a dramatic skew to the US government
It has posted the video but has failed to report on what it shows: it shows the US govt account is untrue
It leads on "sharply contested narratives"
It has a dramatic skew to the US government
It has posted the video but has failed to report on what it shows: it shows the US govt account is untrue
January 25, 2026 at 10:23 AM
Never has it been more important to understand truth, epistemology and ontology. Some things are objectively true, other things do depend on your positionality. But we shouldn’t “balance out” the objectively true with conspiracy theory and misinformation.
Reposted by Prof. Pam Birtill
Banning children from using devices won't stop kids going online.
It creates secrecy, it will stop kids from talking to trusted adults when they come across dangerous content.
It also takes the responsibility from companies like X cleaning up their act on misinformation, abusive/dangerous content.
It creates secrecy, it will stop kids from talking to trusted adults when they come across dangerous content.
It also takes the responsibility from companies like X cleaning up their act on misinformation, abusive/dangerous content.
From what Australian friends tell me - kids who wanted to, just got round the ban and lied to parents and guardians.
Not convinced that's progress at all.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Not convinced that's progress at all.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
As a parent – and a Conservative – I know that banning social media for under-16s is the right thing to do | Kemi Badenoch
Britain’s parents know that this content is harming their children. It’s vital to put young people’s mental health first, says Kemi Badenoch, leader of the Conservative party
www.theguardian.com
January 21, 2026 at 9:01 PM
Banning children from using devices won't stop kids going online.
It creates secrecy, it will stop kids from talking to trusted adults when they come across dangerous content.
It also takes the responsibility from companies like X cleaning up their act on misinformation, abusive/dangerous content.
It creates secrecy, it will stop kids from talking to trusted adults when they come across dangerous content.
It also takes the responsibility from companies like X cleaning up their act on misinformation, abusive/dangerous content.
Reposted by Prof. Pam Birtill
“Universities must find new ways to connect with disadvantaged communities, and to offer new accounts of their societal value. We need a renewed focus on community-oriented research, bringing academic expertise to bear on problems faced by disadvantaged places and people”
Attacking Universities Is Now a Populist Position. We Must Redefine Their Moral Purpose
Britain's universities face an acute financial and moral crisis. Sarah Chaytor and John Tomaney explore how to build a solid base of citizen support.
open.substack.com
January 18, 2026 at 10:34 AM
“Universities must find new ways to connect with disadvantaged communities, and to offer new accounts of their societal value. We need a renewed focus on community-oriented research, bringing academic expertise to bear on problems faced by disadvantaged places and people”
This analytical approach is worth using in other contexts too!
For all those involved in drafting so-called AI guidelines, but being overwhelmed with nonsense, this is a lifesaver. Great work by Dagmar and Ariel!
Resisting Enchantment and Determinism: How to critically engage with AI university guidelines. doi.org/10.5281/zeno...
Resisting Enchantment and Determinism: How to critically engage with AI university guidelines. doi.org/10.5281/zeno...
January 18, 2026 at 9:48 AM
This analytical approach is worth using in other contexts too!
Reposted by Prof. Pam Birtill
everybody assumes Plato is being absurd when he has Socrates say that writing detracts from memory but, as C. Derick Varn pointed out, the capacities associated with oral culture did disappear in most literate societies. could you recite The Odyssey from memory?
January 15, 2026 at 2:23 PM
everybody assumes Plato is being absurd when he has Socrates say that writing detracts from memory but, as C. Derick Varn pointed out, the capacities associated with oral culture did disappear in most literate societies. could you recite The Odyssey from memory?