ASCEND-AI framework, provides a comprehensive approach for creating and evaluating AI prompts in education. The framework has been enhanced by integrating key elements from the AI-PromptScale Rubric, Arrighi AI-C2 Utilization Spectrum, Bloom's Taxonomy, and ISTE Standards. This integrated framework allows educators to design pedagogically sound AI learning experiences that support progressive skill development, evaluate the quality of AI prompts across dimensions, and align practices with established models. It also includes updated alignment tables mapping the ASCEND-AI levels to elements of the other frameworks to demonstrate how the use of AI prompts can promote various levels of cognitive engagement and the development of AI literacy skills.
About Dr. Robert O'Keefe Hassell
Dr. Robert O'Keefe Hassell is the Senior Executive Director. A native of Lebanon, Tennessee. He attended Lane College in Jackson, Tennessee where he graduated in 2007, Summa Cum Laude, with a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in English. Dr. Hassell went on to pursue Graduate Studies at Tennessee State University where he obtained a Master's in Education (M.Ed.) in Curriculum and Instruction with a concentration in Education Technology. Subsequently, he earned a Doctorate of Education (Ed.D.) in Curriculum and Instruction with a concentration in Curriculum Planning from the Department of Teaching and Learning at Tennessee State University. True to his Education Technology Background, he is also a Certified Apple Teacher.
Dr. Hassell has maintained a highly successful career in Higher Education since 2009. Currently, he works as the Executive Director of the Immersive Technology Division and Tennessee State University SMART Technology and Innovation Center. Additionally, he is an Professor of Humanities (English-Literature)/Genera Studies and the Title III Writing Center Coordinator for Student Success at American Baptist College.
