Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly shaping everyday life not only at universities of applied sciences and other higher education institutions, but social service organizations must also increasingly address the opportunities and challenges it presents. But what exactly is AI changing at the organizational level of social services? And how can social service organizations not only respond to these changes but also proactively initiate learning processes for dealing with AI?
Under the title “Digital Disruptions Caused by AI: An Organizational Pedagogical Perspective on Artificial Intelligence as a Learning Object in Social Service Organizations,” Thomas Dierker, lecturer at the MCI Department of Social Work, delivered a presentation at this year’s congress of the German Society for Educational Science (DGfE) in Munich. He addressed these and other questions regarding organizational pedagogical negotiation and learning processes in social service organizations under the influence of AI.
The presentation was part of the symposium “Digital Breaks, Pedagogical Responses: On the Productivity of Irritation and Disruption in Pedagogical Fields,” which featured additional contributions from colleagues at Freie Universität Berlin, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, and Ernst Abbe University of Applied Sciences Jena.
In his paper, Thomas Dierker argues that AI should be viewed not merely as a technical subject of study, but as an (organizational) educational actor in organizational transformations. The resulting disruptions in operational and structural logics should be understood not merely as disruptions, but as productive spaces for reflection in which learning and organization are renegotiated. The article on which the presentation is based is currently undergoing the review process for publication in the 7th Yearbook of the Organizational Pedagogy Section of the DGfE, with the focus topic “Organization & Digitality.”
The relevance of this topic for Social Work and social services is ubiquitous due to the increasing importance of AI. The MCI department of Social Work is addressing this growing significance through the strategic implementation of teaching and research on topics related to digital transformation. Thomas Dierker’s contribution, which focuses specifically on AI in social service organizations, represents another piece of the puzzle in this strategic orientation, from which our students and practice partners benefit equally and which strengthens international research collaborations.
Thomas Dierker, lecturer at the MCI Department of Social Work, during his presentation at the 2026 DGfE Conference in Munich ©MCI
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