A Little AI Conversation, a Little More Traction, Please

Looking for new ways to engage learners with interactive, practical tasks? Look no further. The AI Conversation tool is on the way-just one of a host of Anthology®Blackboard innovations announced at our recent Anthology Together conference-and will be available to institutions starting September 5.

The AI Conversation tool allows instructors to design a discussion between the learner and an AI persona. It is based on the Socratic conversation method, wherein the instructor goes beyond right and wrong answers to instead provoke thought, expanding students' knowledge of the subject area. Instructors set the topic of conversation and the complexity, then create the profile of a relevant expert to lead the discussion. (If teaching a class on rock and roll in the '50s, for example, the instructor might create an Elvis Presley persona for the student to chat with. If so, we highly recommend they use the tool's context options to stipulate that it's Elvis in his prime. Things got a bit weird later on.)

The AI Conversation tool offers numerous benefits to students. It pushes them to explore relevant topics in more depth, with the AI persona providing prompts that require learners to develop and refine their ideas. This teaches lateral thinking skills, which are highly valued by employers. Further, each task ends with a reflection question, encouraging them not only to assess their own performance but also to consider the role of AI in the discussion, building the increasingly sought-after skill of AI literacy.

AI Conversation extends Anthology's commitment to responsible AI adoption-as laid out in our Trustworthy AI Approach-in two crucial ways. Firstly, as with previous AI features in Blackboard, this will be released behind a feature flag, and each institution can choose whether to enable it based on its own AI policies. Secondly, the instructor maintains full control of the task-from setting the parameters, as described, through to reviewing and grading the exchange once the student is finished.

We continue to receive feedback from institutions that our responsible approach to AI is resonating. This includes our partners at both the University of Westminster and Northumbria University, who have detailed their experience in working with our AI Advisory Council to bring new features to market.

Lastly, if you're looking to apply AI in an ethical way at your institution, you should check out our recent Strategy Guide with MIT SMR Connections. With insights and actionable tips from experts across the sector, this is a great resource to inform AI policies and best practices.

Ready to try Blackboard's market-leading AI tools for yourself? Access a FREE, 30-day trial today!