AI’s Leap: Shaping Tailored Learning
Key Takeaways from SXSW EDU Featured Session
In this featured session at SXSW EDU, Beth Rudden, CEO & Chairwoman of Bast AI, explores the future of AI in shaping personalized education. As an expert in IT leadership and cognitive science, Beth shares her vision for transparent, ethical AI that revolutionizes learning by respecting individual styles and cognitive diversity.
Key Themes and Takeaways
- Data is a human artifact: Data is created, collected, and influenced by human activities and decisions. It carries the imprints of human society, including its biases, inequalities, and power structures. AI mirrors our biases and history, as it learns from this human-generated data.
- Explainable AI (XAI): XAI refers to techniques that make AI decision-making processes more transparent, interpretable, and understandable to human users. It helps build trust in AI systems by providing insights into how models arrive at their predictions or decisions. Beth emphasizes the importance of Explainable AI for understanding how AI generates responses.
- Humans are magical in their ability to be random, while computers are bound by their programming. Personification and anthropomorphism help us relate to AI.
- AI can enhance tailored learning by providing knowledge companions, fostering generational collaboration, and enabling industry upskilling on college campuses.
- Ensuring diverse voices in AI development is essential for equitable outcomes. Beth advocates for data sovereignty, allowing individuals control over their personal data.
- The future of education lies in modeling AI use, teaching students to ask the right questions, and embracing a wide representation of human teachers.
Vision for the Future
- Data sovereignty: Beth envisions a world where individuals have control over their personal data and can choose how it is used. She suggests that consumers should be able to use their own data to build AI systems, democratizing the development process and ensuring that the benefits of AI are more widely shared.
- Personalized learning: AI has the potential to revolutionize education by tailoring learning experiences to individual needs, styles, and preferences. Beth sees a future where AI knowledge companions work alongside human teachers to provide students with customized support and guidance.
- Lifelong learning: The future of education will involve closer collaboration between industry and academia, with a focus on continuous upskilling and reskilling. Beth envisions AI-powered platforms that enable professionals to acquire new knowledge and skills throughout their careers.
- Ethical AI development: To ensure that AI technologies benefit everyone, Beth emphasizes the importance of diverse voices and perspectives in the development process. She advocates for transparent, explainable AI systems that are free from harmful biases and designed with ethical considerations in mind.
- Human-centered education: While AI will play an increasingly important role in education, Beth believes that human teachers will remain essential. The future of education will involve a wide representation of human educators who can model effective AI use, foster curiosity and critical thinking, and provide students with the compassion and empathy they need to thrive.
Ultimately, Beth’s vision is one in which AI technologies are harnessed to create a more personalized, inclusive, and effective educational landscape, while still respecting individual privacy and agency. By prioritizing data sovereignty, diversity, and transparency, we can work towards a future where AI genuinely benefits learners and society as a whole.
Learn More
Watch this session in its entirety. Explore our full list of SXSW EDU sessions covering AI, social entrepreneurship, and impact investing.
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