The web resource that I found aligns with the frontier poll topic of ‘Learning in a Time of Crisis” https://blogs.ubc.ca/etec523/2021/01/06/learning-in-a-time-of-crisis/‘. This article, released by Berkeley News, discusses research that focuses on the holes in education, with K-12 and post-secondary learning moving online during Covid. Issues that Lempinen (2020) brings up, include the lack of direct instructional time, personalized learning, and personalized feedback to scaffold learning. Lempinen (2020) also discusses how the lack of structure that comes with online learning, does not work for everyone.
This article brings up a possible solution to learning during a pandemic: AI online tutors. Lempinen (2020) talks about how AI tutors, can provide adaptive learning. Adaptive learning builds on what we know about immediate feedback, but coupled with an AI has additional benefits: “The key components of adaptive tutoring systems have tended to be a model that continually assesses what a student knows, a list of knowledge in the domain being learned and then hints and an adaptive sequencing of content based on what the student knows” (Limpinen, 2020).
This article is a valuable source of information, especially given the current state of education during the pandemic, as it points out how trying to replicate the classroom environment online does not work. I feel like this article can give educators some hope, and with technologies like this being developed more quickly to fill a current gap, we may end up with tools that may enhance education even outside of a pandemic. I feel like adaptive learning with AI’s has great potential for students with diverse needs, and that even though AI tutors are not new, concentrated research in this area has the amazing potential to increase satisfaction for parents, students and teachers.
Lempinen, E. (2020). The pandemic could open a door to new technology — and dramatic innovation — in education. Retrieved January 20, 2021, from https://news.berkeley.edu/2020/05/27/the-pandemic-could-open-a-door-to-new-technology-and-dramatic-innovation-in-education/
Hi Jennifer,
A very good article. I agree with you that during pandemic AI is providing adaptive learning and personalized content. These intelligent learning tutoring systems not only help in curating the learning content, but help the teachers in assessment and evaluation of students. Also, AI will help teachers and school management in decision making by collecting metadata including students’ admission, academic achievement and students’ engagement.
However, I was wondering if the AI technology on it’s own with it’s adaptive and personalized nature will bring the learning outcomes.Or should the AI technology co-exist with the current education setup with the educators putting forward their own life-experiences and providing socio-emotional connections as well as inspiration to the students’ community?
That’s a good question Loveleen! I feel like the AI would be better served to tutor to the outcomes, but after the teacher has already given activities that are more contructivist in nature. I think the tutor is better to fill gaps, where a variety of activities or repetition are needed to build foundational knowledge.
Hi Jennifer:
I will admit this article does present some important points about adaptive learning. The one thing I wish the article would have addressed was the digital divide. It is possible this may not be as big of an issue at Berkley, since it is a Ivy League school, which very likely enrols students from very wealthy families. Their vision of AI may work well for Berkley but unlikely for other Universities, which may have other visions. It would be interesting to read what other institutions are envisioning about AI , particularly at the college level.