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November 15, 2002
Top 10 Smart Technologies for Schools (cont'd)
5. Artificial Intelligence
They don't do windows-but the next generation of AI applications can teach, tutor, and even grade essays.
By Kristen Kennedy
Just as virtual reality applications have become so much a part of our daily lives we don't even recognize the science behind the display, so too have artificial intelligence-based technologies. For instance, voice and character recognition are now invaluable aids in assisting struggling readers and writers with text entry and word recognition. Script writing and recognition intelligence is powering your handheld, translating the chicken scratch of Graffiti into readable form. Toward the goal of making computers that think like humans, AI is now making new inroads into K-12 education with writing assessment engines and smart tutoring systems.
Trained to evaluate and guide students as they work through problems, AI applications are programmed using models-whether that's the intellectual behavior of a student working on a math problem or a range of prescored essays-to evaluate and instruct.
While many English teachers balk at the prospect of hiring a computer to assess the interpretive art of essay writing, it is already happening in schools. IntelliMetric, marketed by Vantage Learning as My Access, is a Web-based system that lets students draft and submit their work online. The program then automatically gives both an analytic and holistic score based on a four- or six-point scale. According to Scott Elliot, COO for Vantage, the IntelliMetric engine claims a 99 percent reliability rate-meaning that 99 percent of the time, the engine's scores match those of humans.
Around-the-clock access to evaluation and feedback, increased scoring reliability, and general efficiency are the reasons Deb Lindsey, director for the Office of Research and Assessment in the Milwaukee Public Schools, adopted My Access. Whereas Milwaukee schools' annual writing exam once took human scorers four weeks to grade, the AI-supported grading engine now delivers results in seconds. The system also offers students roughly a dozen different essay prompts during the school year to help them prepare for the end-of-year exam. With instant feedback, kids can refine their writing and practice new essay strategies without the pressure of a one-shot final exam.
Smart tutoring systems also promise to radically transform our concept of online learning. Dr. Kurt VanLehn, AI researcher and professor of computer science at the University of Pittsburgh, explains that, unlike hypertext-based online learning applications that give students a certain number of chances to find a correct answer before providing the right one, smart tutoring systems act as coaches, offering hints when students stumble in the problem-solving process, not just when they enter an answer. This kind of direct, intuitive instruction is already having an impact on student performance. In pilot studies, learners using VanLehn's Andes physics tutor for homework help improved a full grade on their midterm exams over those using paper and pencil.
When the question is asked-and it always is-about whether computers will eventually become so intelligent they'll replace humans, VanLehn responds, "There's no way that will happen. You can't replace a teacher." A more likely scenario, VanLehn adds, is "a day when seat work takes place at home, with the help of a smart tutor. When students hit a rough spot, the tutor will automatically send a file with the problem to the teacher. When students return to class, the teacher can help them. The system directs human contact where it's most needed."
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