Artificial Intelligence and Education

To a significant degree, the Artificial Intelligence revolution will make obsolete, or at least, require us to rethink the current system of education and workplace training and development.

"In next century, schools as we know them will no longer exist," says a feature in The Age publication, based in Melbourne, Australia. "In their place will be community-style centers operating seven days a week, 24 hours a day." Computers will become an essential ingredient in the recipe for an effective school of the future. Students, The Age asserts, will see and hear teachers on computers, with "remote learning" the trend of tomorrow. Accessing "classrooms" on their home computers, students will learn at times most convenient for them. Yet some attendance at an actual school will be required to help students develop appropriate social skills.

In the 2011 book The Innovative University, Clayton Christensen, a professor of business administration at Harvard, argues that universities could be overtaken by competitors if they fail to adopt new technologies. Children need to learn social and emotional skills if they are to thrive in the workplace of the future, a World Economic Forum report has found.

The new research shows that as the digital economy transforms the workplace, Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) skills such as collaboration, communication and problem solving will become ever more important as more traditional roles are mechanized. With more than half of children now entering school expected to work in jobs that don’t yet exist, adaptability is becoming a core skill.

A 48-page report titled “Preparing for the Future of Artificial Intelligence ” concludes it is time to stop thinking of higher education as an experience that people take part in once during their young lives — or even several times as they advance up the professional ladder — and begin thinking of it as a platform for lifelong learning. Colleges and universities need to be doing more to move beyond the array of two-year, four-year, and graduate degrees that most offer, and toward a more customizable system that enables learners to access the learning they need when they need it. This will be critical as more people seek to return to higher education repeatedly during their careers, compelled by the imperative to stay ahead of relentless technological change.

Here are some ways in which Artificial Intelligence will have a huge impact on both the structure and delivery of higher education:

• AI can create unique learning pathways for individual learners in MOOCs and blended and online learning;

• AI could allow researchers to bring together vast amounts of data for the benefit of learners and advancement of knowledge;

• AI could provide the opportunity for global classrooms and connect learners globally;

• Intelligent Tutor Systems also can provide timely guidance, feedback and explanations to the learner and can promote productive learning behaviors, such as self-regulation, self-monitoring, and self-explanation. Furthermore, Intelligent Tutor Systems can also prescribe learning activities at the level of difficulty and with the content most appropriate for the learner;

• AI can help organize and synthesize content to support content delivery. Known as deep learning systems, technology can read, write and emulate human behavior. For example, Dr. Scott R. Parfitt’s Content Technologies, Inc. (CTI) enables educators to assemble custom textbooks. Educators import a syllabus and CTI’s engine populates a textbook with the core content;

• Leading-edge technologies like wearable devices, apps, and virtual reality can also improve SEL skills. Wearables are already being used to help students manage their emotions and build communication skills, while virtual reality can be used to take children on virtual field trips that build curiosity and improve critical thinking;

• In recent years, thanks to online services, students have been able to get help from peers thousands of miles away. Now with the help of AI and Machine Learning, finding remote help is becoming even easier. Brainly, a social network that helps millions of students collaborate, is exploring the power of AI on its platform.