AI in e-Learning

A little over a year since the launch of ChatGPT, how is the emergence of AI impacting online learning, what have we learned and how are we using AI in L&D?

Artificial intelligence has undoubtedly been the biggest technological trend of the past 12 months and is likely to be for the foreseeable future. In common with other industries, AI in e-learning has been a major talking point.

But in the year since ChatGPT brought AI into public consciousness, to what extent has AI transformed online learning? Let’s take a look at some of the key areas in which AI is impacting L&D.

Automated learning pathways

It’s worth considering that AI isn’t just about prompts and responses. Some important aspects of AI actually predate ChatGPT. Perhaps the most obvious example is automated learning pathways. 

Personalised and adaptive learning paths based on a learner’s role, experience, performance and other factors are perhaps the best example to date of the impact of AI in e-learning.

With its potential to save time and resources, increase engagement and improve outcomes, it showcases the very best that AI has to offer.

Adaptive learning

Another fairly well-established form of AI in e-learning is the use of adaptive learning. This is when the nature or difficulty of learning changes based on a learner’s previous answer or their performance overall.

The adaptive tests we built for Goethe-Institut show how AI can make learning easier and more effective.

Chatbots

If you’ve shopped online with a forward-thinking retailer recently, you might have noticed that the recent strides forward in AI are informing the latest generation of chatbots. This trend will become increasingly prominent in e-learning over the coming months.

Initially, that could focus on account management and site navigation, to save time administrators currently spend fielding those sorts of enquiries. As the technology is fine-tuned, learners will be able to direct questions that currently go to their tutors to a chatbot. Chatbots will perform the role of teaching assistant to triage initial questions, with a human tutor getting involved only when needed.

As well as saving time for educators, this will also free learners to complete learning outside normal business hours.

Data analysis

LMS reporting systems are getting more powerful all the time and, used alone or in conjunction with other data analysis tools, the data contained can generate key insights on learner behaviour, performance and the links between the two.

LMS reporting data can identify trends and patterns, predict future success (or failure), and underpin data-driven decision-making. The result is that data that is already being generated and stored can be used to improve outcomes at little or no extra cost.

The same data can be used to improve recruitment efficiency. This could include finding internal recruitment candidates or evaluating which traits, aptitudes and competencies in candidates are likely to result in a candidate who thrives in a particular role.

Simplified content production

Content is one of the most prominent areas in which AI has advanced of late, including written, photographic and illustrated content. The same technologies will be used to streamline content creation for online learning resources.

With H5P now fully integrated with Totara Learn, it has become even easier to use AI to create H5P learning content.

Similarly, the emergence of virtual presenters — realistic, AI-powered representations of humans — will use technology similar to what you will have seen in ‘deep fake’ videos to combine the power of human engagement with the affordability of animation.

A single virtual presenter could theoretically present a wide range of courses in multiple languages to cost-effectively engage all of your learners.

Automated grading

A key theme running through every aspect of AI in e-learning is the potential to save valuable time for administrators and educators. One area in which that is especially true is automated grading. Self-marking quizzes, plagiarism detection integrations and other forms of AI grading are already fairly common.

As the technology continues to develop and improve, even written answers could soon be graded automatically.

Talk to us about AI and your LMS

Get in touch to discuss any of the themes mentioned above or to discuss ideas you have for using AI to save time or resources for your organisation. Fill out the form below and we’ll be in touch. 

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