Benefits and Barriers of Chatbot Use in Education Technology and the Curriculum: Summer 2023

The e-learning showed the need for exceptional support, especially in the wake of COVID-19. Supplying robust aid through digital tools enhances the institution’s reputation, especially in the rapidly growing e-learning market. Ivy Tech Community College in Indiana developed a machine learning algorithm to identify at-risk students. Their experiment aided 3,000 participants, and 98% of those who received support achieved a grade of C or higher.

Students now have access to all types of information at the click of a button; they demand answers instantly, anytime, anywhere. Technology has also opened the gateway for more collaborative learning and changed the role of the teacher from the person who holds all the knowledge to someone who directs and guides instead. As a last point, school administrators may need to address instructors’ worries about chatbots in the classroom. Many workers worry that machines will replace them due to the increasing sophistication of AI technology. However, it is safe to say that chatbots will never be able to take the role of human educators. Chatbots can enhance student learning since they give students immediate, individualized feedback.

• It not only saves time for students but also relieves institutions of a load of manually answering queries.
• Whether it’s admission-related inquiries or general questions, educational chatbots offer a seamless and time-saving alternative, empowering students with instant and accurate assistance at their fingertips.
• Promptly addressing students’ doubts and concerns, chatbots enable teachers to provide immediate clarifications, fostering a more conducive and effective learning environment.
• Chatbots in the education sector can help collect feedback from all the stakeholders after each conversation or completion of every process.
• Teachers can use chatbots to ensure students have access to the necessary information without repeatedly answering inquiries about due dates, assignments, and lectures.

Overall, the findings from the detected experimental studies indicated that there had been a significant positive effect of using chatbots on learners’ learning of language skills. Chatbots can be a valuable tool for language learning because they provide personalized, interactive support to students. They can offer language practice exercises, provide instant feedback, and adapt to individual learning styles. Additionally, chatbots can benefits of chatbots in education be available 24/7, allowing students to practice language skills anytime, anywhere. Though this study engaged students with a chatbot developed with zero coding and in one course, the results are encouraging for the use of a teaching assistant chatbot in similar contexts. These intelligent assistants are capable of answering queries, providing instant feedback, offering study resources, and guiding educatee through academic content.

By 2025, the e-learning industry is estimated to be worth $325 billion, indicating the pressing need for round-the-clock student support and assistance. Educational chatbots serve as personal tutors for students in this digital age, answering queries and concerns anytime, anywhere. So, whether you’re confused with an Algebra problem from the last class or have questions about the exam schedules, these AI-based bots are here to aid you. As with every tool, chatbots have certain limitations, and their applicability depends on the use case. There is still no scientific evidence on the implication of the long-term use of chatbots on educational processes and outcomes.

Natural Language Processing Abilities of Chatbots

The way people are interacting with their devices is changing as they seek to access information quickly. The collection of information is necessary for chatbots to function, and the risks involved with using chatbots need to be clearly outlined for teachers. Informed consent in plain language should be addressed prior to the use of chatbots and is currently a concern for the Canadian government (CBC News, 2023).

These FAQ-type chatbots are commonly used for automating customer service processes like booking a car service appointment or receiving help from a phone service provider. Alternatively, ChatGPT is powered by the large language models (LLMs), GPT-3.5, and GPT-4 (OpenAI, 2023b). LLMs are AI models trained using large quantities of text, generating comprehensive human-like text, unlike previous chatbot iterations (Birhane et al., 2023). AI’s natural language processing, instant messaging, speech recognition, automation, and predictive capabilities are providing students across the world access to personalised education which is constantly evolving. Teachers are easily able to chart each student’s progress with AI chatbots delivering personalised progress reports in real-time. Before diving into the chatbot wave, institutions must identify specific areas where these tools can add the most value.

Setting the Stage: The Growing Importance of Chatbots in Education

Chatbots should seamlessly blend into existing digital ecosystems, be it LMS (Learning Management Systems) or student portals, to provide a unified user experience. They automate interactions and routine tasks, reducing the need for extensive human intervention and thereby cutting down operational costs. The chatbot also boasts multilingual support, breaking language barriers without the need for manual configuration.

Teachers should balance the use of chatbots and AI in the classroom with hands-on activities, projects, and real-world experiences. By doing so, students will be more likely to understand the value and limitations of technology and to develop the skills they need to succeed in the real world. AI chatbot for education handles the task and plans the course schedule according to the time slot of both the students and the teachers.

Education as an industry has always been heavy on the physical presence and proximity of learners and educators. Although a lot of innovative technology advancements were made, the industry wasn’t as quick to adopt until a few years back. Many prestigious institutions like Georgia Tech, Stanford, MIT, and the University of Oxford are actively diving into AI-related projects, not just as topics of research but as initiatives to help make learning more effective and easy. Advancements in AI, NLP, and machine learning have empowered chatbots with the ability to engage in dialogue with students. Furthermore, chatbots also assist both institutions in conducting and evaluating assessments. With the help of AI (artificial intelligence) and ML(machine learning), evaluating assessments is no longer limited to MCQs and objective questions.

Educational chatbots serve as personal assistants, offering individual guidance to everyone. Through intelligent tutoring systems, these models analyze responses, learning patterns, and overall performance, fostering tailored teaching. Bots are particularly beneficial for neurodivergent people, as they address individual comprehension disabilities and adapt study plans accordingly. By harnessing the power of generative AI, chatbots can efficiently handle a multitude of conversations with students simultaneously. The technology’s ability to generate human-like responses in real-time allows these AI chatbots to engage with numerous students without compromising the quality of their interactions.

With AI chatbots, the tutoring process has become more focused, personalized, and flexible, reshaping the educational tutoring landscape. Considering the diversity of the user base in an educational setting, it becomes even more pertinent to offer a variety of platforms that cater to students’, teachers’, and parents’ different technical abilities. The integration of AI chatbots in education is still in its nascent phase, which means the possibilities for the future are immense and exhilarating.

Firstly, they can collect and analyze data to offer rich insights into student behavior and performance to help them create more effective learning programs. Secondly, chatbots can gather data on student interactions, feedback, and performance, which can be used to identify areas for improvement and optimize learning outcomes. Thirdly education chatbots can access examination data and student responses in order to perform automated assessments.

A chatbot can help students from their admission processes to class updates to assignment submission deadlines. Likewise, Artificial intelligent chatbots can help teach students through a series of messages, just like a regular chat conversation, but made out of a lecture. Bots can handle a wide array of admission-related tasks, from answering admission queries, explaining the admission process, and assisting with form fill-up to sorting and managing the received application data.

Positioned as an assistant, Jill answered student queries on an online forum and provided technical information about courses. Students interacted with Jill, unaware that she was an AI entity, until the professor revealed the truth before the final exam. Through AI and ML capabilities, bots help to access relevant materials and submit tasks. Implementing innovative technologies, establishments will ensure continuous learning beyond the classroom.

Since pupils seek dynamic learning opportunities, such tools facilitate student engagement by imitating social media and instant messaging channels. Roughly 92% of students worldwide demonstrate a desire for personalized assistance and updates concerning their academic advancement. You can foun additiona information about ai customer service and artificial intelligence and NLP. By analyzing pupils’ learning patterns, these tools customize content and training paths. Such a unique approach ensures that everyone receives tailored support, promoting better comprehension and knowledge retention. Creating chatbots for education is a complex but rewarding task that requires technical, pedagogical, and design skills. To get started, you need to define your learning objectives and target audience, choose a suitable chatbot platform and tools, design the conversation and content, and test and evaluate your chatbot.

One of the main concerns is the potential for students to become overly reliant on these technologies, leading to a reduction in critical thinking and creativity. Additionally, there is a risk that students may be exposed to misinformation or biased information, leading to misunderstandings and false beliefs. Segments about… Chatbots and artificial intelligence have been popping up in the news a lot lately, and it’s easy to see why. University education major students are being presented with specific questions about how they will use technology in their classrooms. They are also requiring that students discuss how they can integrate technology into their teaching practices.

Chatbots for Education FAQs

All of these examples demonstrate the potential of chatbots to revolutionize the learning experience. Education chatbots are interactive artificial intelligence (AI) applications utilized by EdTech companies, universities, schools, and other educational institutions. They serve as virtual assistants, aiding in student instruction, paper assessments, data retrieval for both students and alumni, curriculum updates, and coordinating admission processes.

• By analyzing pupils’ learning patterns, these tools customize content and training paths.
• Their AI chatbot, ‘Carlson,’ developed with IBM’s Watson, has transformed library services.
• This way it benefits the learners with a slow learning pace along with the educators to instruct them accordingly.
• As a result, it significantly increases concentration level and comprehensive understanding.

Thirdspace Learning is one of the largest online mathematics education platforms in the UK. Through the platform’s chatbot harnessing machine learning capabilities, each student’s abilities are assessed and a fully personalised curriculum is created. Each student is assigned an online tutor who is able to communicate and assess their student’s progress in real-time. We’ve made a list of the top chatbots in education and explore how their particular AI functionalities help their learners absorb more knowledge and improve their retention.

To investigate RQ2, the investigators used the data from the focus groups, which took place at the University premises. The students were interviewed in groups of 11 or 12 people to create the dynamic of a conversation and to make the student feel more at ease (Witsenboer et al., 2022). The data were digitally recorded, transcribed, and manually coded under themes using content analysis. First level of coding included labels assigned to specifics fragments of the focus group, which could help us answer the RQ2.

However, after OpenAI clarified the data privacy issues with Italian data protection authority, ChatGPT returned to Italy. To avoid cheating on school homework and assignments, ChatGPT was also blocked in all New York school devices and networks so that students and teachers could no longer access it (Elsen-Rooney, 2023; Li et al., 2023). These examples highlight the lack of readiness to embrace recently developed AI tools. There are numerous concerns that must be addressed in order to gain broader acceptance and understanding. It’s important to note that some papers raise concerns about excessive reliance on AI-generated information, potentially leading to a negative impact on student’s critical thinking and problem-solving skills (Kasneci et al., 2023).

The serendipity of lunchbreak, lift, or passing-by chats is difficult to emulate in the somehow desolate environment of our home office spaces. But with the introduction of intelligent machines and complex systems, which require constant upskilling from their operators, traditional eLearning materials stopped serving their purpose. It’s true as student sentiments prove to be most valuable when it comes to reviewing and upgrading your courses. Guiding your students through the enrollment process is yet another important aspect of the education sector. Everyone wants smooth and quick ways and helping your students get the same will increase conversions.

This can help to expand their knowledge and understanding and to prepare them for the challenges they will face in the future. After all, we all know that these educational chatbots can be the best teaching assistants and give some relief to educators. They can also track project assignments and teachers with individually tailored messages and much more. However, we indicated that more research should be done among low-level foreign language learners since these benefit from using chatbots the least (Yin and Satar, 2020) to address the gaps in the literature.

Some popular options include IBM Watson Assistant, Microsoft Azure Bot Service, and Google Dialogflow. Most students were satisfied with their interactions with the KNUSTbot during the course, as exposed in Table 7. Below there are some representative examples of student statements confirming the positive viewpoints. On the other hand, teachers’ criticism informs pupils about areas where they should focus their efforts. Teachers can exchange comments with students along with assignments, exams, and examinations.

University Template by ChatBot

Traditional education systems struggle to provide individual attention, resulting in unequal learning outcomes. The user interface and conversational flow of the chatbot are carefully considered during the design phase. Principles of user experience (UX) are crucial for creating engaging and logical interactions. Depending on the educational setting, the chatbot’s personality is likewise expertly tailored, achieving a balance between professionalism and approachability. The database of the chatbot is also carefully managed and contains a multitude of educational resources, including course materials and FAQs. Our chatbots are designed to engage students with different media to take a break from heavy text-based messages and enjoy some graphically pleasing learning content.

This user-friendly option provides convenient and efficient access to information, enhancing the overall student experience and streamlining administrative processes. Whether it’s admission-related inquiries or general questions, educational chatbots offer a seamless and time-saving alternative, empowering students with instant and accurate assistance at their fingertips. Institutional staff, especially teachers, are often overburdened and exhausted, working beyond their office hours just to deliver excellent learning experiences to their students. With artificial intelligence, chatbots can assist teachers in justifying their work without exhausting them too much. This, in turn, allows teachers to devote more time and attention to designing exciting lessons and providing learners with the personalized attention they deserve. Chatbots in education offer unparalleled accessibility, functioning as reliable virtual assistants that remain accessible around the clock.

Admission is typically a chaotic and exhaustive process that requires a significant amount of manual labor and time. Thus, having readily accessible support channels for addressing these issues is essential. The keyword here is ‘customized,’ emphasizing how a bot’s response varies in accordance with the user’s input, mimicking a real-life tutor to a great extent. We wanted AI-powered features that were deeply integrated into the app and leveraged the gamified aspect of Duolingo that our learners love.

How chatbots will foster classroom engagement

This automation of mundane administrative tasks allows teachers to dedicate their attention and effort toward pedagogical improvements. Considering this section, platforms or channels where chatbot dialogues take place play a significant role in creating a user-friendly, intuitive, and accessible interface for users to interact with the chatbot. By employing NLP, an AI chatbot can effectively analyze and understand the user’s input, thereby generating appropriate and relevant responses.

We use advanced encryption and follow strict data protection rules, creating a secure space to engage with the bot, assuring users of their data privacy. Moreover, our projects are tailored to each client’s needs, resolving customer pain points. So, partnering with MOCG for your future chatbot development is a one-stop solution to address all concerns from the above. The success of chatbot implementation depends on how easily educatee perceive and adapt to their use. If they find tools complex or difficult to navigate, it may hinder their acceptance and application in educational settings. Ensuring a user-friendly interface and straightforward interactions is important for everyone’s convenience.

Language acquisition happens through interaction with peers, teachers, and other professionals (Çakıroğlu, 2018). Interaction is crucial for the language acquisition process because it gives learners comprehensible input, feedback on their output, and the chance to produce modified output (Liu, 2022). Such opportunities for language learning can be offered to learners through interaction with pedagogical or conversational chatbots (Yin and Satar, 2020; Mageira et al., 2022). Using text, speech, graphics, haptics, and gestures, as well as other modes of communication, chatbots assist students in completing educational tasks (Kuhail et al., 2022).

Therefore, this section outlines the benefits of traditional chatbot use in education. Students receive customised learning through increased interaction as the bot learns more about the student’s profile and constantly assesses their strengths and weaknesses pertaining to each topic through machine learning. The education sector, always on the cusp of innovation, has embraced chatbots with open arms. In the UAE, where technological advancement is a national priority, chatbots are not just add-ons but essential components of educational frameworks. Many brands are successfully using AI chatbots for education in course examinations and assessments.

Even in a regular classroom context, students don’t always have the most delicate attention span. Chatbots are impacting and transforming education and assisting teachers in various ways. This blog post is brought to you by Interacly AI, a platform that simplifies the creation, training, and sharing of chatbots, democratizing access to the power of large language models. We need to understand the fact that integrating a chatbot to a classroom will be an essential part of education since the time is running fast and the leap into the education system has been taken by technology years ago. As soon as a student clicks ‘Get Started’ the chatbot welcomes and responds to student queries with detailed information. If need be, students can get in touch with a human support representative by clicking ‘Human Help’ in the top menu.

Online education is no longer restricted to mere online certification courses on platforms like coursera and udemy anymore. Universities offer distance learning programs, online flagship courses and much more. With edtech companies at its core, chatbot for education has become a new norm and made life easier for students, professors and even the administration department. To summarize, incorporating AI chatbots in education brings personalized learning for students and time efficiency for educators. However, concerns arise regarding the accuracy of information, fair assessment practices, and ethical considerations. Striking a balance between these advantages and concerns is crucial for responsible integration in education.

By providing this level of support, chatbots can contribute to a positive and inclusive campus culture. Furthermore, chatbots can assist in overcoming this difficulty by initiating conversations based on the student’s context, making students seem individually addressed (Hien et al., 2018; Howlett, 2017). A chatbot can be an intermediary between a student and an instructor, which allows students to concurrently control their learning and improvement at their pace without constraining them (Wang et al., 2021). Also, chatbots tend to stimulate questions from students who may be restrained from engaging in a conventional learning space (Verleger & Pembridge, 2018).