Putting the "Person" in Personalized Learning Using AI

For years we've heard EdTech enthusiasts tout the potential of digital learning tools to "personalize" learning. As a blended learning specialist, I too have contributed to this chorus. Now given the new possibility of generative AI in the classroom, these proclamations have only gotten louder and more punctuated with the words "finally able to". But what do we really mean by this aspiration to "personalize" learning?

It's critical we get it clear because there are many ways we could get it wrong. If we mean that AI will finally create the opportunity for technology to teach students instead of teachers, we are greatly misguided. The most important factor in a child's success is still the quality of the teachers who seek to understand, nurture, and support their growth. If we mean that AI will finally be able to level content so that students only access the lowest level of sequential skills, we could inadvertently broaden the rigor and equity gap. In an era that is defined as equally or even more so by the mental health crisis among youth as it is by technology advancement, the missteps we might take in trying to personalize in these ways could be dire.

To get it right, we have to actually put the "person" at the forefront of our efforts to develop solutions that truly personalize learning. And generative AI does have the potential to do this in a number of ways, especially as a copilot, not a replacement to the teacher. Here are a few we're focused on through Yourwai.com:

1. Making learning more relevant: When I say "relevant" I don't mean dropping expectations to the lowest gatekeeper skill. I mean generating learning activities and assessments that connect to a student's lived experience, cultural/linguistic background and/or interest. We can create tools that allow a teacher to do in mere seconds what used to take hours to raise relevance. Great examples of this are our math stories or personalized playlist by interest Yourwai tools.
2. Creating time for connection: Imagine a teacher station with a generative AI copilot, say a feedback or a brainstorming station, and students able to visit that station for preliminary feedback in the self-assessment process before meeting with the teacher at the teacher station. By using generative AI within blended models such as Station Rotation, Playlist, or Flipped learning, teachers can gain time in small groups or 1-1 with students, thereby increasing person to person connectivity.
3. Planning for student-centered, blended learning: It has been a very heavy lift for educators to shift to blended practices because curriculum is not delivered in the format of blended learning models (side bar - if you are a curriculum company and ready to do this, come find me). When I have sat with teachers to plan for blended learning, it has usually taken at least an hour to plan for one blended lesson. With generative AI, you can use tools such as the ones we've built to plan for a station rotation with differentiated instruction, or generate a learning playlist in seconds.
4. Asset-based planning: Instead of lowering the gate to keep kids skill-drilling at a level that is frustrating and uninspiring for them, why not use tools to generate lessons that accommodate a student's assets such as their multilingual abilities or skills in other areas that can be applied to boost skill building in an area of lesser strength?
5. Leveling up cultural responsiveness: As we apply generative AI in learning, we must be careful not to exacerbate the problems with existing models and materials. We can use AI copilot tools to provide feedback for or generate new lessons aligned to culturally responsive practices to ensure we are enhancing learning with AI and not doubling down on existing biases.

We are just beginning to discover how generative AI can impact learning, but it's also an inflection point to clarify and get right what we mean by "personalization". Let's be sure we're driving in a direction which recognizes the most powerful use of tech empowers teachers to do what only teachers can do, and empowers students to reach their potential rather than gatekeeping it, so that the impact is positive.