AI Innovation and the Future of Education.

Author(s): Alinadilawaiz

Originally published on Towards AI.

Hello! I’m Aleena. I’ve been thinking about how our education system might change in the future and whether it will feel good or bad.

When I was in school, there was a story in my academic curriculum. It was just a story to me then, and I don’t remember it well after that year. But now, it keeps coming back to my mind. The story was about a kid who accidentally found books with old pages in his grandfather’s library.

He was really amazed by the books and asked his grandfather about them. The grandfather then told him that, in his time, students used to learn from books, which was a common practice. He also mentioned that they used to go to a place called “school” where they studied with many other students. The grandfather told his grandson that they used to wake up early in the morning, and put on a special outfit called “uniform,” which was specific to their “school.” After having breakfast, they used to go to a bus station where they joined other students waiting for the “school bus.” When the bus arrived, they would get on and travel together to school, where they would learn and play together. They would have a great time there and enjoy themselves. The kid listened to the story with great excitement. When it ended, he got up and went to his room. He picked up a CD, played it, and then lazily listened to the story while lying on his bed.

It was unbelievable at that time. But now I feel like it will happen in the coming years. Everything is gonna be controlled by AI. So, how will it feel like? Of course, everything has advantages and disadvantages. So, let’s have a look into it.

The Positive Influence of AI.

Nothing is good or bad. It depends on how humans use it. AI can make a lot of improvements in our education system. So, let’s discuss how AI can play a positive role in our education system.

Positive Impact of AI on Personalized Learning:

In a classroom, only one teacher deals with a number of students. It’s not easy for a teacher to carry every student because all students have different capabilities, different interests, and different learning capacities. So, how can AI help in this regard…

AI-powered systems can analyze vast amounts of data and adapt the curriculum and teaching methods to cater to each student’s unique needs, pace, and learning style. AI algorithms analyze data by interacting with students’ s educational materials, assessments, and previous performance to create personalized learning paths. These paths can include content that aligns with students’ interests, addresses their knowledge gaps, and challenges them appropriately. AI systems can provide immediate and specific feedback to students, highlighting areas of strength and areas needing improvement. This feedback helps students reflect on their progress, identify areas for further study, and take ownership of their learning journey.

Intelligent Tutoring Systems:

AI can also provide an intelligent tutoring system. Based on previous performance, AI can analyze areas where a student is weak and will provide real-time assistance by offering step-by-step explanations and additional resources to enhance understanding.

Education for everyone.

In this world, there are so many disabled students(Blind, deaf, snail or mentally weak…). So, they cannot get an education like other physically fit students. Of course, there are special educational institutes for them. But how can AI help in this regard….?

For students who are blind or have visual impairments, AI can assist through technologies like screen readers, which convert text into spoken words. Optical character recognition (OCR) technology can also be used to scan and convert printed materials into accessible formats.

AI-powered systems can recognize and interpret sign language, enabling communication between deaf or hearing-impaired students and teachers. For example, a smart camera with computer vision technology can capture the movements and gestures of a student using sign language. The AI algorithms can then analyze and translate those gestures into text or spoken language, allowing the teacher to understand and respond accordingly. This real-time translation of sign language helps facilitate effective communication in the classroom, ensuring that deaf or hearing-impaired students can actively participate in discussions, ask questions, and fully engage in the learning process.

Indeed, AI offers a wide range of real-time applications that positively impact the lives of students with disabilities, making the world more beautiful for these children.

An assistant for an educator.

AI is also playing a role as an assistant to an educator.AI algorithms can analyze student’s performances on papers, evaluate assignments, and provide instant feedback saving time and energy for educators. This allows educators to instantly identify the areas of weaknesses of a student and provide timely feedback. AI facilitates educators, So that they can provide more time to each student.

Negative impacts of AI.

Reduction in human interaction.

In educational institutes, students mustn’t only get an education, but also these institutes provide us an environment where students learn to collaborate with each other, learn different ethics, learn social skills, empathy, and emotional intelligence.

No doubt, AI systems are efficient, but they cannot collaborate like humans. Students need mentors who can guide them, encourage them, and inspire their intellectual growth.

Excessive reliance on AI may reduce human interaction, depriving students of valuable opportunities for discussion, mentorship, and personalized guidance.

The potential of AI to displace teachers.

AI-powered tutors and learning platforms can already provide instructions and feedback, and it is likely that they will become even more sophisticated in the future. This could lead to job losses for teachers, especially those who teach basic subjects like math and science. AI-powered tools can provide instructions and feedback, but they cannot replace human interaction. Students need to interact with teachers and they always need their guidance (also punishments:) ) in order to learn effectively.

Dependency on technology.

The use of AI tools may become a norm for students, and they may excessively rely on them, and they may lose the ability to learn independently.

Conclusion.

While AI offers numerous potential benefits in education, it is essential to recognize and address the negative impacts it may bring. By critically examining these negative consequences and incorporating ethical practices, we can harness the power of AI to enhance education while preserving the fundamental values of our educational system.

Happy reading 🙂

Join thousands of data leaders on the AI newsletter. Join over 80,000 subscribers and keep up to date with the latest developments in AI. From research to projects and ideas. If you are building an AI startup, an AI-related product, or a service, we invite you to consider becoming a sponsor.

Published via Towards AI