Whether you run your own eLearning platform or operate as a tutor or instructor with your own courses ready for outsourcing, the addition of artificial intelligence (AI) into the mix can be highly transformative for your content. According to Finances Online, 96% of online learners expressed the desire to measure their learning and progress in some form, while only 50% of them express the direct correlation between their eLearning and professional ROI and job performance.
AI technologies can not only help your students or employees learn more efficiently but also help them to focus on meaningful learning experiences which will directly impact their career development in a positive way. With that said, let’s dive into several essential ways in which AI can shape the future of eLearning going forward with its innovative and disruptive additions to the online learning scene.
1. Increased Accessibility
At its core, the role of eLearning is to provide a learning experience for people from across the globe regardless of their personal or professional background. In that sense, artificial intelligence can ensure that your content is seen and engaged by a plethora of people from around the world, whether they speak English, German, Italian or Spanish. AI can effectively translate your content into a variety of languages and even deliver that content via generic voice delivery to people with some form of impairment.
AI can also act as a personal assistant to the learner, allowing for voice-activated browsing, content engagement, problem-solving and other activities associated with the eLearning platform. Increased accessibility will ensure that eLearning is a more lucrative choice for people without the ability to attend traditional academic education as it will meet their needs halfway and help them gain new skills from the comfort of their homes.
2. Addition of Interactive Content
One of the greatest challenges of today’s eLearning is to create a sense of interactivity for the learner. Branching paths, interactive lessons and other forms of engagement are still in their early phases given the complexity of the content creation process involved with it. Problem-solving scenarios uniquely suited to individual learners and their progress so far is another example of content which might be beneficial for the learning process.
However, the addition of AI to an eLearning platform can ensure that learners are presented with more engaging and interactive content in their experiences. Samantha Briar, Chief of HR at Studicus spoke on the topic recently: “No two interns or onboarding employees will ever have the same characteristics, skillsets or habits. Creating an interactive and dynamic learning environment for their professional development will have positive effects on the future motivation and productivity in their respective field.”
3. VR and AR-Based eLearning
Immersive learning is an important point of contempt when it comes to applying AI into eLearning platforms. Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) services and peripherals are widespread and affordable enough for us to be able to have this conversation now with 2020 looming on the horizon. The addition of AI in eLearning can have uprooting effects on the way you deliver content to your learners when it comes to immersion and interactivity. Imagine having an AI teacher in a VR environment tutor a group of learners just as you would do in a physical classroom.
The caveat in this instance is the fact that the process can take place a dozen times over at the same time, with different students and the same AI teacher you’ve written dialogue and branching paths for previously. The same goes for AR and practical exercises, demonstrations and various types of media designed to illustrate and teach learners more advanced applications of their desired skillsets. This type of approach to eLearning is nigh impossible without AI present, giving the technology tangible credence and objective advantage over manual tutoring or learner management.
4. Smart Curation and Personalization
Each of us has a certain approach to learning when it comes to pacing, the amount of information we can take at once and the way in which it is presented to us. However, the academia and traditional learning channels can rarely accommodate the plethora of learning styles people approach them with, often resulting in a learner drop-off as a result. With AI in the mix, eLearning platforms can offer smart curation and personalization features which will enable learners to study at their own pace and in the style that suits them.
AI can monitor a learner’s performance throughout the process and adjust it so that it never becomes too daunting or too slow for immersion to take place. Likewise, AI can suggest which lessons to take next, how frequent should testing be and to offer guidance in terms of which courses the learner should tackle afterward. This level of personalization will allow eLearning platforms to rise above the competition and ensure that individuals are satisfied with the amount of information and skills they’ve accumulated from using them.
5. Seamless Performance Analysis
People who attend schools and universities often want to see some form of recognition in terms of numeric or empiric values which represent their performance. Speaking of individual wants and needs, AI can efficiently perform ongoing data gathering and analysis while the learning process is in place.
Learners should have full access to the data gathered by AI algorithms for the sake of transparency and also to allow them to reflect on their learning progress so far. This data can be used for a number of reasons, including further content curation or as a job application resume reference. Even if manual tutoring, coaching, and mentorship are in place, the AI will have more objective and factual empirical data to show for its monitoring of the learning process than its former, more subjective counterparts.
6. Constant AI Development
Lastly, the development road of AI is twofold. Your AI algorithm will learn more about your audience’s expectations, habits, and performance as time goes by, allowing it to find a healthy balance of curation and accessibility over time.
Secondly, AI as a whole is a constantly-evolving technology with numerous future applications in store which we are not even aware of as of today. This makes its addition to your eLearning features highly lucrative due to the dynamic nature in which it exists and develops. It will ensure that your platform stays fresh, engaging and most-importantly – learner-oriented as time goes by.
It’s not a Course - It’s an Experience
The culmination of all the ways in which artificial intelligence can shape the future of eLearning comes down to one simple word – transformative. Modern eLearning platforms as we see them today will change into immersive, cohesive experiences over time, tossing away their traditional, course-based structures.
Gauge the potential of AI in your platform, courses, and content you provide to the global audience regardless of the niche you operate in. Chances are that you will find interesting ways to slowly but surely implement AI into eLearning for the continued benefit of both you and your learners in 2020 and beyond.
Disclaimer: This article was contributed by guest blogger Diana Nadim. The views and opinions expressed belong to the guest blogger alone, and do not necessarily reflect the official policies or opinions of Lambda Solutions.
Diana Nadim is a writer and editor who has a Master degree in Marketing. She combines her passion for writing with her interest in research and creates thought-provoking content in various fields. Besides working as a contributor writer for TrustMyPaper, Diana also runs her own 3to5Marketing blog. What inspires her the most in her writing is traveling and meeting new people. Follow her on Twitter.
