Matapaki Atamai Hangahanga | Promoting reflective and interactive learning with AI conversations
Status
Key Research question
How can integrating AI-driven verbal conversation assessments improve the educational outcomes for tertiary learners across diverse subject areas?
Traditional written methods often fail to engage students. This project intends designing two types of AI-powered verbal conversational assessments:
Reflection: Where the AI engages students in real-time dialogue
AI Student: Where through role reversal, student will play the role of tutor who will ‘teach the AI’.
The role reversal (AI student) will enable a novel learning assessment type that helps students better articulate their course learning material learning and reinforce their learning by teaching others.
Aims:
By integrating verbal conversational AI, the research aims to create a more engaging and interactive environment that encourages deeper reflection and sustains deeper student interest. The timely and personalised responses from the AI will prompt students to think and reflect deeply about the subject matter, developing critical thinking skills.
Methodology
A combination of Kaupapa Māori and action research will guide the project.
- A Kaupapa Māori approach will be used to assess the tool's usefulness for ākonga Māori.
- An action research approach will enable the project to iteratively develop, test, and refine the platform in diverse educational settings ensuring the platform remains relevant and effective for tertiary education.
Team
Dr Nasser Giacaman
Project leader
The University of Auckland
Dr Piata Allen
The University of Auckland
Dr Allan Fowler
The University of Auckland
Raina Song
The University of Auckland
Danielle Print
The University of Auckland
Professor Michelle Craig
University of Toronto
Timothy Looi
The University of Auckland
Jiaxin Yan
The University of AucklandStatus
Funding
$132,851.00 (excl GST)
Project progress
The project has resulted in the development of the Co-Thinker platform.
Co-Thinker has been trialled at the University of Auckland courses across two different disciplines successfully:
• DESIGN 200: Design Methods and Processes 2 (350 students)
• SOFTENG281: Object-Oriented Programming (100 students)
The team has also collaborated with colleagues at Te Puna Wānanga | School of Māori and Indigenous Education exploring Co-Thinker’s ability to support te reo Māori education. They will continue evaluating its readiness for integration into their courses in 2026.
They have discovered that Co-Thinker supports te reo text well, but have not yet explored te reo audio. However, the team is going to discuss with Te Hiku Media as they have a te reo Māori speech synthesis technology that would allow us to explore incorporating te reo audio into Co-Thinker.
Future work
Co-Thinker – Project Hub
The Co-thinker Project Hub website will be updated by the project team in the coming months with project videos, resources and news updates.
Project leader Nasser Giacaman gave a presentation about at the Promoting Reflective, Interactive Learning with AI project at Ranga Auaha Ako (University of Auckland’s Education Office) Research Hui in October 2024.
- 17 October 2024
The Co-thinker Portal will be updated in the coming months with project updates, videos, resources and news from Matapaki Atamai Hangahanga | Promoting reflective and interactive learning with AI conversations project team.