“Ephemeralization” is a term coined by a US visionary and philosopher, he defines it as the tendency of technology to do more and more with less and less until eventually, one can do with nothing. The phenomenon of ephemeralization is relevant to the evolution of ed-tech. Starting with radio teaching in the 1920s to mobile phones with audio, visual, and even sensory teaching. The technological power is growing more with lesser hardware.
Now with the advent of Artificial Intelligence in the education sector, the technological power is learning on its own to enhance itself as per the student. As a result, upgrading the comprehension factor for students.
With the onset of the pandemic, the education sector is adapting to the digitalization wave. Meanwhile, the major challenge for students learning in an online environment is to engage with the platform. The attention span is declining with the increase in distraction in the home environment. Let’s explore some of the ways Artificial Intelligence is pushing boundaries in ed-tech.
AI-Powered Personalized Courses
Gen Z is flooded with information in this era. Hence, their attention span is hard to capture. Furthermore, this challenge is making many ed-tech owners scratch their heads. One of the ways AI is able to help ed-tech is by engaging students by analyzing their patterns of interest.
Every student is unique. Consequently, conventional education systems may not provide a unique set of curriculum as per student’s aptitude. This challenge may be subsided with the arrival of new technologies. Dynamic AI-powered personalization provides one such use case scenario. It can understand, interpret and predict student’s aptitude while they interact with the platform. This sort of data helps ed-tech firms provide a curriculum best suited for the child. Eventually, students engage more with the platform.
More interested in 5 Firms Using AI to Enhance Classroom Learning
Instant Learning with Artificial Intelligence
An ed-tech firm in Indonesia is transforming the education sector in their country, especially after the pandemic. The firm has developed a product that uses AI and computer vision to create instant learning for its students.
The features of the product include a “Ask” feature on the app. The students can upload a picture of a math problem statement. In turn, the application posts a step-by-step video explanation to solve student’s doubts.
But why is it called an instant learning platform? Because now a student can be clear with his doubts in just 3 seconds which might have taken up to three hours earlier.
Tracking Engagement and Empathy
An engagement management system uses the power of AI to divide a class into positive support behaviors. Educators analyze the data to assess how it may affect the class over time and suggest improving student engagement. However, the system is working on addressing challenges that the answers which educators may provide from their biases.
Additionally, it can hover over the previous data. Give insight on which conditions to avoid to lower the student engagement and what may be the best possible action plan.
Machine Learning to Simplify Maths
A company called Carnegie Learning is transforming the way students learn mathematics. It deeply analyzes student’s patterns so that they can tackle difficult concepts. Eventually presenting the student with a flow chart of the concept as per his/her understanding.
In essence, the education curriculum must always be a work in progress, however in reality the implementation of change is always the hardest. Moreover, the incorporation of AI will bring greater challenges. However, the ed-tech platforms provide increased useability for any student. Likewise, personalization will open a new horizon to better bridge the gaps between the educator and the student.
According to the technology and media scholar Danah Boyd, educators are yet to realize that “society is no longer bounded by a physical space” and that the state of personalization in education right now is “so far from meaningful.” Personalized education is a necessity now. The future of education depends on the accurate AI personalization of student’s minds.
