Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly reshaping various sectors, including education. Its potential to revolutionize teaching and learning is undeniable. But just as every valuable coin has two sides, so does AI in education. Top Applicant is breaking down the basics about the benefits and barriers that artificial intelligence presents to the modern world of learning.
We’ll also be taking a deeper look into the potential AI has for employers to increase productivity and reduce downtime with more streamlined educational programs. There’s a lot of ground to cover! So to make things manageable, we recommend browsing the table of contents.
The Basics
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The Basics of AI in Education
Before we dive into the nitty-gritty details of AI, we’ll be taking a look at what AI is doing in the modern educational landscape. There are many ways that artificial intelligence can elevate our understanding. However, as with any emerging technology, there are obstacles to overcome! Here are a few use cases for AI in education, and a few emerging obstacles to be aware of as you implement this technology.
Using AI in Education
When we’re talking about AI in education, we’re not talking about using chat GPT to write your term paper. Educators and students are using AI for innovative problem-solving every day. So as you consider the ethics of using it in your classroom, consider the benefits it’s already bringing to millions of students, employees, educators, and employers! To learn how to implement AI strategically into your educational resources, check out our related reading:
The Case for AI in Education
Providing fair educational opportunities for students with diverse learning needs is a major challenge for rural school districts. Traditional instructional methods are proving less and less helpful for engaging students and addressing the widening achievement gap. To overcome these obstacles, a few school districts are implementing AI-powered educational approaches, as we highlight in the following case study.
Obstacles and Objectives
The school district sought to enhance student engagement, improve academic outcomes, and optimize resource allocation. Key challenges included limited financial resources, a geographically dispersed student population, and a lack of specialized instructional staff.
Implementation Strategy
These districts all adopted AI educational tools to deliver tailored instruction to their particular student population. Out of respect to those involved in this study, we focused on the numbers rather than the names.
This unbiased platform ensured accurate measurement of improvements in traditionally subjective areas like tutoring, assessments, and personalized content delivery. Extensive specialized training accompanied each implementation to ensure that each staff member understood the uses of these AI tools in education across departments.
The Impact of AI in Education
The integration of AI into these educational goals showed substantial improvements in student achievement. We noticed improved metrics, particularly in standardized test scores. Interestingly enough, improvements were noted across all STEM-oriented subjects.
Student engagement and motivation also soared as students progressed at their own pace. Teachers reported increased job satisfaction due to the platform’s ability to automate routine tasks and provide actionable student data.
The platform ultimately contributed to narrowing the achievement gap by providing equitable access to high-quality instruction for all students. Here are the core concepts that made such an impact on the minds of students and the hearts of teachers:
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Education for All
AI-driven educational tools can identify students at risk of academic difficulties, facilitating timely interventions. AI can enhance educational access for students with disabilities through tools such as speech recognition, text-to-speech, and real-time captioning. All these qualities helped the district bridge the gap students were at risk of falling into!
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Executive Efficiency
AI can automate routine administrative tasks, allowing educators to focus on core pedagogical responsibilities. This also includes optimizing the use of limited resources. With tighter budgets than ever, the board vetted the risks and voted on implementing strategies AI assisted with creating. Early data is projecting district-wide savings year over year as other offices see the effects of changes implemented by AI in education.
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Grading on a New Curve
AI helped the district streamline the grading process, affording educators more time for student interaction and curriculum development (or just a quick break). This can help students and teachers create a dialogue that tailors their education to meet their needs better!
The utilization of AI in education enhances evaluations and curriculums by adapting assessments to suit each student’s personality, performance, and past aptitudes, resulting in more engaging learning experiences.
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Enhanced Student Engagement
Students tend to be more attentive when teachers have sufficient time for teaching. Improved lesson plans contribute to increased student motivation, resulting in better academic performance! In order to maintain student engagement and productivity, teachers are adapting their lessons by removing busy-work that can harm both grades and self-esteem.
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Empowered Teachers
It’s no secret that teaching is one of the most difficult jobs in the US right now. With so many options available for teachers who trust AI in education, school districts can’t afford to ignore the results!
This school district optimized lesson planning alongside so many other strategies that led to increased instructional time and focus on developing problem-solving skills alongside their students. This is how empowered teachers stay teaching!
Embracing AI enables rural school districts to overcome traditional challenges and achieve remarkable advancements in student outcomes. This case study shows that AI-powered personalized learning works well in different educational settings.
But when it comes to education after graduation, optimization doesn’t stop! That’s why millions of savvy C-suites are saving thousands every day by implementing AI to streamline their onboarding and continual education requirements. However, AI has its limitations. Learn with the best as we go over the common obstacles AI poses when companies lose touch with the human element.
Emerging Obstacles
To illustrate these obstacles, we’ll take a look at a prominent global company that implemented AI in educational processes—ranging from sales and service to accounting! Early adoptions improved the abilities of its customer service agents. So the initiative was green-lit company-wide with the following directives:
- Improve problem-solving capabilities.
- Reduce customer resolution times.
- Elevate overall customer satisfaction.
Initial Implementation and Promising Outcomes
The initial metrics pointed towards positive outcomes. Customer satisfaction ratings saw a slight uptick of 5%, while average resolution times dropped by 10%. The platform proved to be effective in delivering personalized learning paths tailored to individual performance. AI-generated data was primarily responsible for ongoing improvements, with occasional employee feedback considered in initial testing to eliminate bias.
The Impact AI Had in Ongoing Education
Despite the initial successes, the long-term effects of the AI-driven training program proved detrimental to the organization. As employees began to seek other options, executives were unaware of their opinions because their data wasn’t accounting for employee retention costs. This was the disconnect that cost the company millions.
Losing the Human Touch
Over the years, early adoption led to complacency across departments to “trust the tools.” This excessive reliance on largely experimental AI in education on all levels of the company led to a marked decline in customer satisfaction. The platform’s focus on efficiency over empathy resulted in a 15% drop in customer satisfaction scores within the subsequent quarter.
Insult, Meet Injury
While the company was reeling from this loss of staff and recurring customers, they experienced a significant data breach that compromised sensitive customer information. This ended up incurring a substantial financial penalty of $2 million and irreparable damage to the company’s reputation. Those who were left at the company took drastic measures to ensure the business stayed afloat while still contractually tied to use the AI tools in their educational sessions.
Job Role Displacement
The AI system’s automation of routine tasks did help when the company sent out layoff letters! In one quarter, the company served 20% of the customer service team those dreaded slips via email. Per their AI-assisted educational model’s suggestion, leadership scheduled these layoffs after a company retreat as a subtle thank you in lieu of a severance.
The goal was to save some face as leadership braced to pivot to survival mode. The resulting decline in employee morale and increased turnover cost the organization an estimated $500,000, and an employee deficit that many struggle to recover from.
Ineffective Problem-Solving
The AI’s inability to adapt to unforeseen customer supply issues led to escalated complaints and even more negative publicity, eroding customer trust and loyalty. Less than a year after the initial green light, leadership unanimously voted to end the contract as they were fighting legal battles and seeking additional financial backing.
Final Financial Implications
The cumulative impact of these challenges miraculously only resulted in a 3% decrease in annual revenue. But by breaking the trust of their employees and their customers, this globally recognized titan fell to its knees. The organization incurred additional costs related to legal fees, data breach recovery, and increased recruitment and training expenses.
This case study underscores the critical importance of a balanced approach to AI implementation in workforce development. While AI can augment human capabilities, it should not replace human judgment, empathy, or critical thinking. Organizations must prioritize data privacy, ethical considerations, and employee well-being to mitigate the risks associated with over-reliance on AI.
Building Balance for Better Education
It is essential that we take a deliberate and calculated approach in order to optimize the benefits of AI in education at all levels while addressing any potential drawbacks. To do this, Top Applicant believes that the human element should always come first in every company procedure. From quarterly budget meetings to finding the next great hire, our platform keeps the human element alive and well in every human resources department we help.
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To truly be a Top Applicant, or Employer, it takes a lot more than just human ingenuity! That’s why implementing AI in education, day-to-day processes, and hiring is never a bad idea. However, before you ask a chatbot, ask yourself:
“How will I confidently face my future?”
With Top Applicant, employers and employees get the tools, guidance, and opportunities to make the right career moves with a profile that looks good and metrics that work great! Build your profile, track your progress, and improve your career with the human way to hire.
