The pandemic caused many changes around the world, including an educational shift towards online learning, especially because of the policies implemented to contain the virus until the population was found with a reasonable way of living with a vaccine and immunity. COVID-19 in one way or another, helped to increase online learning. The Faculty of Public Administration at the University of Ljubljana, Slovenia in conjunction with an international consortium of universities around the world, which included other higher education institutions, and students' associations, used several machine learning and statistical models to analyse data collected during those transitional periods proposed by the world health organisation and governments around the world. The results indicated that features related to students' academic life, have the largest impact on their emotional wellbeing.
Other important factors included students' satisfaction with their universities and governments handling of the pandemic as well as students financial security, which was also been noticed the increased demand of virtual classes. Coronavirus impacted greatly the importance of awareness towards mental health and with it, online studies. These studies launched one of the most comprehensive and large-scale worldwide online surveys in the world, entitled: Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Life of Higher Education Students.
The demand emerging of high education online as key strategy in addressing the changes in the educational system, opened a new source of tech solutions and concerns within online learning and human development. How AI became the unnatural offspring?
Even before COVID-19, there was already high growth and adoption in education technology, with global tech investments reaching US$ 18.66 billion in 2019, and the overall market for online education projected to reach $350 Billion by 2025.
Whether it is language apps, virtual tutoring, video conferencing tools, or online learning software, there has been a significant surge in usage since COVID-19.
While some believe that the unplanned and rapid move to online learning - with no training, insufficient bandwidth, and little preparation - will result in a poor user experience that is un-conducive to sustained growth, others believe that a new hybrid model of education will emerge, with significant benefits.
The general consensus on children, especially younger ones learning, is that a structured environment is required, with the needs of a concerted effort to provide beyond replicating a physical class and lectures through video capabilities, instead, using a range of collaboration tools and engagement methods that promote “inclusion, personalisation and intelligence”.
According to Dowson Tong, a Senior Executive and Vice President of Tencent and President of its Cloud and Smart Industries Group. Since studies have shown that children extensively use their senses to learn, making learning fun and effective through use of technology is crucial, according to BYJU's Mrinal Mohit. “Over a period, we have observed that clever integration of games has demonstrated higher engagement and increased motivation towards learning especially among younger students, making them truly fall in love with learning”, he says.
When speaking about children’s online education a well skilled professional able to integrate online learning and physical activities is needed. There still need for an actual human being to perform those physical teachings and classes efficiently.
It is said that: ‘‘Necessity is the mother of all inventions’. EDTECH has never quite fulfilled its promise to galvanise poorly performing school systems. Past investments in educational technology often failed because of badly specified hardware and clunky software, which put off potential users. But as with much else, the closures forced on the world by the covid-19 pandemic has put pressure on schools, parents and pupils to embrace innovation ever since. An AI-powered adaptive learning uses algorithms to evaluate a student's abilities and identify gaps where they require more support. It also examines how each student interacts with course content to make real-time adjustments that empower a greater understanding of concepts, while Ai can be used to shape higher performances of learning, it can also be its demise.
Students and new tech students uncover secrets and the power of AI through groundbreaking moment in history
One of the most exciting recent advancements in AI is the emergence of virtual chatbots, like Microsoft's Bing, Google's Bard, and Jasper.ai. Open AI's Chat GPT, trained using a text database of more than 300 billion words, is one of the most pervasive of these new tools. A new version of Chat GPT, which was trained on trillions of words and images and can produce text outputs from both text and image inputs, was also released, changing almost everything we knew about research and learning. Chat GPT can actually do the work for you in matters of report and research. While these chatbots offer comprehensive knowledge and human-like responses to written prompts, offering answers and minimising time-consuming while researching over a subject, it also shortens the learning path on education for those actually learning, most educators are concerned with students using it as a way to boost their grades without actually studying, when it actually creates a barrier to genuine learning, as students may rely too heavily on these tools to complete assignments without critically exploring their own ideas. AI can undermine the credibility not only of students but educators and Universities.
The combination of online learning and Ai technologies have to be carefully investigated for our own safety as humanity. There are valid concerns about the potential for these tools to widen gaps in fairness, access, and learning. However, when used as a supplement to a student's own thinking and a teacher's workload, AI-enabled tools can help to broaden understanding, lower educational barriers, and stimulate engagement in online learning. Intent and context are key. Although online learning and AI are already incorporated without much policies against it from governments and educators, it can become a matter of concern in the future.
Study shows the importance of technology and diversity in maintaining a healthy and evolutionary way of learning and also a concern regarding algorithmic biases
In conclusion, AI has the potential to enhance learning experiences in education, offering personalised and adaptive approaches. However, ethical concerns regarding algorithmic biases and the devaluation of human interaction need to be addressed. Techies have long coveted a bigger share of the $6 trillion the world spends each year on education.
When the pandemic forced schools and universities to shut down, the moment for a digital offensive seemed right. Students flocked to online learning platforms to plug gaps left by stilted Zoom classes. The market value of a provider of online tutoring, Chegg, jumped from $5 billion at the start of 2020 to $12 billion the following year later. Some universities started taking the approach that if students are using ChatGPT for example, it is misconduct. Since its public release at the end of 2022, ChatGPT, the AI chatbot developed by OpenAI, experienced rapid growth and widespread adoption. Its role in education, however, remains a topic of contention. With the solution in been on its usage and live correction but not in considering its b
an in online studies.
While some view it as a tool to enhance learning and reduce teacher workload, others see it as a threat to integrity which opens the door to concerns, such as ‘cheating’ or ‘plagiarism’. In fact, generating content for essays is probably its weakest function. Where it excels is at manipulating structure and form. Which means, transformations will accelerate as these systems train themselves, and indeed this is already happening. The question is not whether to use ChatGPT in schools, but how to do so safely, effectively, especially with the growth of online and remote learning while also training the machine. The traditional approach of regulating out any potential threats to the way educational organisations operate won’t work on ChatGPT, as we need a collaboration between executives and practitioners to determine its potential threat and appropriate use. ChatGPT shows that we can’t control, predict and calculate our way through risks to education and that our actual decision-making hierarchies would need to be completely different so parts of the educational system could be able to refine the appropriate usage of it, while remaining in constant dialogue with leaders and executives about its further development, and as in any type of new technology, what ChatGPT will do is to even more, evolve.
ChatGPT evolved from a simple text generator to a sophisticated AI assistant with the rise of its own and human pre-training. Its future is even more promising .
The future is bright indeed for ChatGPT. Integration and advancement of other technologies will expect to see ChatGPT and other language models being integrated with other technologies, such as virtual and augmented reality, allowing for even more advanced and immersive experiences. Development of new applications: With the capabilities of ChatGPT, we can expect to see the development of new applications and use cases that we haven't even imagined yet.
Despite its many capabilities, ChatGPT, like any other language model, has its own limitations and challenges. Some of these include:
• Lack of common-sense: While ChatGPT is able to understand and respond to user input, it still lacks common sense knowledge that humans possess. It is unable to reason about the world and make inferences like humans do.
• Bias: Language models, including ChatGPT, are trained on a large amount of text data from the internet, which may contain biases. These biases may be reflected in the model's outputs, which can be harmful when the model is used in certain applications, such as decision-making.
• Lack of context: ChatGPT can understand and generate text, but it does not have the ability to understand the context in which the text is used. This can lead to confusion and misinterpretation when the model is used in certain applications.
• Data security: ChatGPT and other large language models, such as Trinelix, requires a large amount of data to train. This data is often sensitive and personal, and there are concerns about how this data is collected, stored, and used, and the potential risks it may pose to the privacy of individuals.
The future of ChatGPT is promising, with possibilities of improved performance, greater customisation, more human-like communication, integration with other technologies, and development of new applications. However, it's also important to be aware of its limitations and challenges in the educational system and how we can create policies to not undermine
learning and educational credibility for the safety of human race in the future.
Are we getting education wrong with AI? The answer is, we always did even before AI.
The integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) into the educational system is a double-edged sword because the way we always managed education and how we provided, until now. On one hand, AI holds the potential to revolutionise learning by offering personalised educational experiences, automating administrative tasks, and providing sophisticated tools for both students and teachers. However, on the other hand, it raises significant concerns, particularly regarding the increasing trend of online students leveraging AI to perform better on their exams. This practice is worrying as it threatens the integrity of the educational system and poses long-term risks to society.
One of the primary concerns is that AI can facilitate cheating. With the advent of advanced AI tools, students can now generate essays, solve complex problems, and even complete entire exams with minimal effort. This undermines the learning process, as students are not genuinely engaging with the material or developing the necessary skills and knowledge. As a result, they may pass their exams without truly understanding the subject matter, leading to a devaluation of academic qualifications.
The potential consequences of this are dire. In the professional world, individuals who have relied on AI to pass their exams may lack the competency required in their respective fields. This is particularly alarming in professions where precision and expertise are critical, such as medicine, engineering, and law. For instance, a doctor who has not fully mastered medical knowledge due to AI-assisted cheating poses a significant risk to patient safety. Similarly, an engineer who lacks true problem-solving skills could contribute to the failure of crucial infrastructure projects.
Moreover, the widespread use of AI for academic dishonesty could erode trust in educational institutions. Employers may become skeptical of academic credentials, leading to a greater emphasis on practical assessments and professional experience over formal education. This shift could disadvantage honest students who have diligently earned their qualifications through hard work and perseverance.
In conclusion, while AI has the potential to enhance education, its misuse for academic cheating presents serious ethical and practical challenges. It is crucial for educational institutions to implement robust measures to detect and prevent AI-assisted cheating, ensuring that students genuinely acquire the knowledge and skills needed for their future professions. Failure to address this issue could have far-reaching implications, compromising both the quality of education and the safety and well-being of society.
Ai and Future Consequences to consider
The potential consequences of this are dire. In the professional world, individuals who have relied on AI to pass their exams may lack the competency required in their respective fields. This is particularly alarming in professions where precision and expertise are critical, such as medicine, engineering, and law. For instance, a doctor who has not fully mastered medical knowledge due to AI-assisted learning poses a significant risk to patient safety. Similarly, an engineer who lacks true problem-solving skills could contribute to the failure of crucial infrastructure projects. Unless professionals will keep using their Ai tools as a second brain for the rest of their lives and we accept as a way of living. In the actual world although we are okay with the use of Ai on online studies and even on exams we acknowledge its existence, we still not assimilating its implications and future accessibility and adaptability into professions. How ready are we to accommodate AI and accept as a second brain or even an ‘offspring’ of our own data input, researches and creations on a daily basis?
Moreover, the widespread use of AI for academic purposes is considered dishonesty for many and could erode trust in educational institutions if not widely accepted. Which is already happening. We are questioning. Employers may become skeptical of academic credentials, leading to a greater emphasis on practical assessments and professional experience over formal education. This shift could disadvantage honest students who have diligently earned their qualifications through hard work and perseverance.
In conclusion, while AI has the potential to enhance education, its considered misuse if for academic cheating, the gains presents serious ethical and practical challenges. It is crucial for educational institutions to implement robust measures to detect or even prevent AI-assisted learning, ensuring that students genuinely acquire the knowledge and skills needed for their future professions. Failure to address this issue could have far-reaching implications, compromising both the quality of education and the safety and well-being of societies in general.
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