Introduction
Artificial Intelligence is one of the latest trends and technologies that is transforming the way we live, work, and play. The Education sector also doesn’t remain untouched by the influence of Artificial Intelligence. Now, there are several education technology companies that are revolutionizing the entire teaching and learning experience.
Especially, after the impact of COVID-19, online education has got a significant boost, and edtech companies played an important role in providing quality education to the needy right at their convenience. As per Grand View Research, the AI in education market size is expected to grow at a CAGR of 36% by 2030. If AI is having such as huge impact on the education sector in the coming years, then let us have a look at what pros and cons it brings with it.
The positive impact of Artificial Intelligence on the Education Industry
First, let us check out how AI has been helping teachers and students with their academic experiences:
- Personalized learning
Every student is different, we know it, but every teacher is also different. As much as a student needs feedback on his learning, the teachers also need feedback for their teaching art. Having timely feedback can help teachers improve their teaching style. Similarly, as different students understand at different pace and different styles, AI can help them teach in a way that best matches their learning style.
With AI, a customized and personalized learning program can be made that emphasizes more the topics that the student finds difficult to learn and skips the part that he is already strong at. This personalization can save a huge amount of time in both teaching and learning.
- More student engagement
There are always a bunch of students in a classroom who are so shy that they even hesitate to ask their doubts. Yes, you got that right, the students who are laughed at for asking simple questions that they do not understand. Though for teachers, there is nothing like a silly question, for students, it is a great impact on their self-confidence.
But with the introduction of Artificial Intelligence for education, students do not have to worry about being laughed at for asking their doubts. This undoubtedly clears their confusion related to any topic but also helps to boost the self-confidence among the students. - Virtual Assistants and Chatbots
ChatGPT which was launched in December 2022 managed to get 100 million subscribers in just 3 months. A huge portion of this huge user base were students. Almost 30% of all Stanford students had used ChatGPT for their assignments or research. Pretty amazing, right?
Another great thing about Virtual Assistants and Chatbots is easy access. Education tech companies like Khan Academy have started using AI to help support their students with interactive learning. Now students can simply ask their doubts to the AI chatbots, and they will be asked simple yet easy questions by Chatbots that will help them reach answers to their questions. Several other edtech companies also incorporate AI Chatbots and virtual assistants that help students with a solution to their questions.
- Teacher training
Teachers often do not receive proper training that can help enhance their teaching style. But with Artificial Intelligence in place, that can simulate students will help teachers practice their teaching as if they are teaching in the live class.
Not only that, AI can do repetitive tasks such as evaluating marks and all that will save a huge time that they can use to interact with students one-on-one or prepare for their upcoming classes even more properly.
These are just a few of the many things Artificial Intelligence for education is capable of doing. Now let us have a look at some of the challenges associated with using AI in education as well.
Challenges of using Artificial Intelligence for education
- Cost of implementation: The cost of developing an efficient AI system that can assist students and teachers with their learning and teaching experiences respectively is very high. Universities might not like to invest in such programs.
Universities and Students in such cases can take benefits from education technology companies. They can use it on a subscription basis, etc., and start learning with AI
- Lack of human interaction and emotional factors that are great influencers in learning
- Teachers might fear AI will replace them. But they must understand AI won’t ever replace humans in teaching students. Though they can assist teachers in teaching.
- Privacy and ethical concerns.
Final Words
Artificial Intelligence is a great boon to the world and it has a great potential to revolutionize the learning experience. With the new education technology companies leveraging the power of AI, we can expect a lot of improvements in the technology that will benefit both teachers and students as well.