Stanford Seminar - Thesis Defense: Smart Tutoring Through Conversational Interfaces

Sherry Ruan Stanford University In the well-known two sigma problem introduced in 1984, Bloom found that students tutored by a one-on-one expert tutor achieved a learning outcome two standard deviations higher than those taught using traditional classroom methods. Since one-on-one tutoring is too costly to scale up to the majority of students, technology-based solutions have been suggested as promising solutions to simulate one-on-one human tutoring experiences. However, current automated computer-based tutors still primarily consist of learning activities with limited interactivity such as multiple-choice questions, review-and-flip flash cards, and listen-and-repeat practices. These tutors tend to be unengaging and thus their effectiveness typically relies on students’ desire to learn. With recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI), we now have the potential to create conversation-based tutoring systems with the ability to provide personalized feedback to make learning more engaging and effective and