Automated Teaching Machines

What is an Automated Teaching Machine?

We consider an Automated Teaching Machine to be a machine that automates, to some degree, the tasks usually undertaken by a teacher. These include:

• Having subject knowledge
• Speaking the same language as, and understanding their students
• Presenting knowledge
• Asking questions of their students
• Making decisions about the student responses
• Correcting misunderstandings
• Remembering what the students understand and what they don't
• Coming back to revise problem areas
• Keeping records of student progress

Our aim is to make a pretty good job of carrying out these teaching tasks automatically using a machine (computer). We are using the word "machine" here in the "computing machine" sense. In his 1936 paper "On Computable Numbers", the mathematician Alan Turing refers to "automatic machines" (a-machines) and "computing machines" These are now commonly referred to as "Turing Machines" or simply "computers". So, in using computer technology, including the Internet, to automate some of the work of a teacher, we have created an "Automated Teaching Machine".

Our Automated Teaching Machine, or iTutor (Internet Tutor), is called Akilah (meaning - intelligent one who reasons). She is a software robot that has evolved from our work using the NASA CLIPS expert system tool.

She is automating the following tasks usually carried out by teachers:

• processes student responses in a reasonably 'intelligent' (AI) way
• responds with a realistic 'emotional' (AI) response
• 'knows' (AI) about her subject
• remembers what the student doesn't know
• returns to help with the areas of misunderstanding
• keeps a record of student progress
• can report on student progress

It is important to note that our system goes beyond the process of simply posting teaching videos online. YouTube and Khan Academy, for example, are not attempting to take on the technical AI challenges that we are, here at Automated Teaching Machines, nor are any websites that simply use multiple choice questions! Our Automated Teaching Machine, Akilah, is using sophisticated software techniques to process free text student responses in a reasonably 'intelligent' (AI) way and to respond with a realistic 'emotional' (AI) response.

Can Automated Teaching Machines think?

In 1950, in his paper "Computing Machinery and Intelligence", Turing raises the question "Can machines think?", which brings us to two other tasks that teachers regularly undertake:

• Think
• Solve problems

Can we at Automated Teaching Machines do that automatically using a computer?
Yes we can!
Have we at Automated Teaching Machines done that automatically using a computer?
Yes, we have!
These tasks were carried out using the NASA CLIPS expert system tool. We hope to bring that to you as an online system soon! In the mean time, you can donate to support our work here:

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