The world of education is increasingly important, especially during a challenging time when many students are relying on distance learning. Many schools and universities are adopting technology to improve and augment the future of higher education. Also, the existence of artificial intelligence (AI) in education helps streamline routine processes to give more time for teachers to focus on curriculum and interacting with students.
This is just the beginning of what AI is doing to change education. Let’s look at five factors to consider before deciding on adopting AI at your school or university.
1. AI Can Personalize Educational Experiences.
Every student has their own individual educational needs. How they learn will also differ based on how they process information. Using AI helps to create a personalized learning experience for each student based on their needs and preferences.
Machine learning plays a big part in processing and essentially learning data about individual students. The more an AI tool learns about a student’s learning style, the more helpful the AI can be. It becomes a truly revolutionary way for students to learn so they don’t have to conform to a one-size-fits-all educational experience.
Adding to this is the ability of AI to provide student support through the use of chatbots. These smarter chatbots also have data on each student so the student can get particular answers to questions within minutes.
2. AI Can Be Virtual Teaching Assistants.
Since interacting with an AI-powered chatbot is similar to conversing with a real human being, it can also act as a virtual teaching assistant to many students. The question is, does your school or university have a need for more virtual teaching roles in a time when social distancing is necessary?
Eventually, educational institutions will get back to in-person teaching roles and full classrooms. Even then, your teaching staff may be far too overworked and not be able to accommodate every student. Having a virtual teaching assistant is an added benefit as it helps students learn at all hours of the day or night.
Thanks to the machine learning aspect above, it also brings a more personalized approach to education, as an AI-powered chatbot can help an entire classroom or campus at the same time. This allows students to get answers instantly.
It’s important to note that AI isn’t replacing teachers. It’s just going to help make their jobs easier by answering frequently asked questions in a timely manner.
3. AI Can Help Onboard Students.
When new students enroll in your university, they need access to information to help them acclimate. Staff shortages might make this more difficult for your university.
Again, AI can step in here and make a big difference in the onboarding process. Through the use of chatbots, a new student could ask the AI program anything they need to help them adjust to their surroundings.
Students can essentially use these tools right in their dorm rooms—or even at home. It saves time because students are able to get answers in real-time, 24/7, even on weekends and holidays.
While bots are amazing tools, they aren’t always the go-to type of technology students want. Most students just want quick information through the easiest possible method. Being able to find it off the university website may be more preferred than talking to a chatbot. AI makes that information more readily available for new students when they want all their questions answered now rather than using other means.
4. Enjoy a Shorter Learning Curve.
As amazing as AI is in creating new learning experiences, you might consider it a bit daunting. The good news is using AI doesn’t require a huge learning curve.
When AI gets deployed into management platforms, it’s easier to use than ever. If your faculty or staff fears dealing with AI, they should learn not to feel intimidated. We noted that AI is helping humans do their jobs better. Having it available in a well-structured platform makes it ready to use immediately without requiring weeks of training.
Managing it is also easy, basically revolutionizing your entire university in how it processes information and learning methods.
5. It Can Provide Support for Faculty.
Let’s think about the faculty in your educational institution and what they have to deal with in their jobs. AI is clearly helping students find information in a hurry and helping them with their education. For faculty and staff, AI is providing support systems.
At times, you might face faculty or staff shortages due to budget cuts. Your staff may feel overwhelmed keeping up with finding information for students and properly answering their questions.
AI chatbots and other automation technology help faculty find the information they need within seconds, saving hours or days of research. With a chatbot, a faculty member can ask a question about topics like short-term disability coverage and get a thorough answer within seconds.