The Future of Learning: Using AI to Create Interactive Learning Environments
I’ve attended several higher education events in NYC this past year, met wonderful people, listened to amazing speakers and panelists, and discussed exciting ideas. I felt most of the conversation was driven by the emergence of AI technology and how it may impact the learning experience, like how it may threaten teaching jobs, plagiarism, using LLMs to cheat, creating or reducing the divide in educational inequality, and of course how AI can enrich the classroom experience.
With everything new, there is a low-grade anxiety around the AI as we begin to figure out how we can use it so I am going to throw some ideas in this blog post how I would use it to improve the learning experiences.
The LLM Classroom
Since the COVID times, the online delivery format has seen increased demand. People can learn any topic from anywhere at any time using an internet-connected device. Many learning management systems (LMS) today use a very familiar setup: the course provider designs the course, creates the content, and uploads it to the LMS. The content can be delivered in a variety of audio, text, and video formats. The student usually starts from the beginning, jumps through the structured content, and digests it. There may be some quizzes or assignments sprinkled here and there as well. This is a wonderful way to learn with different types of rich content, and it works well for most of the learners.
So how can we improve on this with the help of AI?
OpenAI and other LLM providers offer a new way for us to learn, by allowing us to interact with the course content. This is very powerful, the course content is no longer static and becomes much more dynamic with the use of a capable AI tool. Namely, Google’s Notebook LM, OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Quizzard’s UnStuckAI, or Anthropic’s Claude all offer us a new way to make use of our study materials and courses.
Today, we can use AI to ingest our course material, whether in audio, text, or video format and turn it into interactive content that we can ask questions about and interact with.
Imagine having a course on leadership delivered in 50 separate videos with 10 hours of content. In an in-person immersive setting, we, as students, have the opportunity to interact with course materials to reinforce our learnings by either asking questions to instructors or during group study sessions with our classmates; this is something that’s inherently missing from how we deliver course content in an online format today, even when the content is delivered in multiple types like audio, video, and text. We learn best when we interact with the content and practice with it.
With the advancements in AI technology, we can now let students interact with our course content in a way that never existed before. Students can ask questions about the course content, have AI summarize, and get additional context as if they were in a classroom with another student or a teacher.
By opening up a new opportunity with AI as a tool or a feature of the course content, we introduce a whole new way for our students to learn and improve their learning experience.
The 360 Classroom
Looking at MOOCs and the availability of knowledge ready for consumption in digital format, we have an opportunity to improve on the delivery by incorporating AI and introducing humans to manage an overall experience.
360 is often used to describe an end-to-end experience or a looping experience. In the context of this article, I’ll be using it in its literal 360-degree, going full circle as the earth turns, meaning.
If you are in a physical goods business, it takes effort and resources to deliver to a customer across the globe. But when your product is digital, the barrier to delivery significantly reduces. E-books, audiobooks, movies, and digital music are great examples of digital products that can be delivered instantly to the recipient.
Meet the students where they are.
Gathering student information, goals, and challenges
Our learning experience will start with learning more about our students, their levels, goals, challenges, and learning styles. Our AI chat agent will ask questions to the students to tailor a learning journey that’s most beneficial and efficient for them.
Building the tailored course content.
When we know more about our students, tailoring their learning journey becomes much more straightforward. Our AI-powered LMS will curate modular course content based on student input. The courses will consist of interconnected modules. A module can be a part of many tailored courses.
Interactivity
Student <-> Student Interactions
As I mentioned, an in-person learning experience is extremely valuable; however, we can still do some things to elevate the online learning experience. In this case, with each module having its dedicated chat channel, think Slack, students can see who else is active on the module they view. This can increase the pier-to-pier study opportunities and interactions between students, which is missing from current online programs delivered through MOOCs.
The chat feature would allow students to see who else is online and go through the same content. This would enable them to connect and make the otherwise uneventful learning experience more human and interactive. The added interactivity can help students ask questions, learn from each other, create connections, and increase attendance rates.
Of course, for students who enjoy a more uninterrupted learning experience, the chat can be turned off or muted by the student.
Student <-> Student Interactions
As I mentioned, an in-person learning experience is extremely valuable; however, we can still do some things to elevate the online learning experience. In this case, with each module having its dedicated chat channel, think Slack, students can see who else is active on the module they view. This can increase the pier-to-pier study opportunities and interactions between students, which is missing from current online programs delivered through MOOCs.
The chat feature would allow students to see who else is online and go through the same content. This would enable them to connect and make the otherwise uneventful learning experience more human and interactive. The added interactivity can help students ask questions, learn from each other, create connections, and increase attendance rates.
Of course, for students who enjoy a more uninterrupted learning experience, the chat can be turned off or muted by the student.
Student <-> Teacher’s Assistant Interactions
Our course model takes advantage of time zones and divides the world into segments. Several TAs will be assigned to assist with course delivery for any given course. These course managers will monitor module group chat, jump in and help answer questions when needed, or be available for a more 1-on-1 mini session to help students get unstuck on course content.
Each module will have more than one TA for global coverage and to help with an uninterrupted course delivery in all time zones.
Student <-> AI Interactions
An AI course bot will always be available to the student via a separate chat window UI and assist with any course-related questions. This is very similar to Khan Academy’s Khanmigo AI application. The AI can guide students to relevant modules, help them manage their course content by adding or removing modules, and answer questions directly or indirectly about course content while freeing up TAs’ time.
Conclusion
The emergence of AI presents both challenges and unprecedented opportunities in higher education. By embracing these advancements, we can revolutionize the learning experience. The "LLM Classroom" leverages AI to transform static content into dynamic, interactive learning environments. Students can engage with course material through questions, receive personalized explanations, and deepen their understanding. Furthermore, the "360 Classroom" envisions a more holistic approach, integrating human interaction with AI guidance. This model fosters a supportive community where students connect with peers, receive personalized assistance from TAs, and benefit from the constant availability of an AI course bot. This blended approach, combining human expertise with the power of AI, has the potential to create a more engaging, practical, and accessible educational experience for learners worldwide.
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