By Uma Ganesh
The rise of generative AI (GenAI) in education and the resultant myriad tools and applications are opening up new horizons for the stakeholders. According to MarketResearch.Biz, the GenAI in education market size is projected to exceed $5,523 million by 2032 and it is estimated to reach a CAGR of 39.5% from 2023 to 2032. Lack of adequate funds and the time consuming processes that the education sector has been saddled with could be overcome with the human-like capabilities of AI tools and lift the student learning environment.
A prominent 2024 education trend is conversational learning facilitated by GenAI tools like chatbots. This approach personalises learning making it interactive, motivating learners to complete lessons on time and providing instant feedback on performance. Real time responses to queries about library resources, campus facilities, curriculum and session plans enhance the overall learning experience.
Automation of administrative tasks of teachers would free them up to spend quality time in the core education activities related to teaching and building upto date content. Even the task of content building would be actively supported by virtual facilitators. Tedious and time consuming tasks such as building session plans, grading and preparing reports could be handled by AI tools and the focus could be shifted to personalisation of content, presenting feedback and progress reports.
Content would become more and more video enabled as AI is making it easy and affordable. Virtual avatars would be able to speak in the languages of choice of the students thus making it convenient for the teachers to prepare content in one language but have the flexibility to offer the same programme in multiple languages and formats without having to incur huge costs. Platforms such as Elai.io and Heygen are helping higher education institutions to adopt avatars for delivering education to expand their reach and address students from across the globe with ease.
Making education inclusive is the other agenda that GenAI would be able to support. Speech-to-text and text-to-speech platforms and the ability to repurpose the content once prepared to suit the learners based on their physical and learning disabilities would be not only cost effective but would also make it possible to enhance the quality of learning practices across all segments.
Teachers and students must be vigilant about deep fake affecting education, staying alert to the potential for inaccuracies in content attribution to experts. Implementing tools for content accuracy detection is crucial to avoid being misled. Teachers should also take precautions to verify the originality of student assignments and ensure they are not generated by AI tools.
Above all, it is imperative that teachers to ensure that AI tools enhance, rather than diminish, critical thinking abilities in education. Thus maintaining a balance between technology and human intervention is essential for the times to come.
The author is chairperson, Global Talent Track, a corporate training solutions company
