Why Edtech Must Leverage Power Of AI, Big Data

In September, UNESCO released a report that highlighted the need for India to leverage Artificial Intelligence (AI). The stark digital divide in India however has prompted many experts to express doubts if AI can really solve the problems of access and equity. While there may be some truth in the apprehensions, perhaps a deeper issue is whether the EdTech sector has even tried to leverage AI to address the needs of India beyond the 'upper middle class'. Post pandemic India is ready for innovations that can address this gap and drive the EdTech industry forward.

Since its emergence in the mid-1950s, AI has grown considerably. Along with big data, blockchain, augmented reality and the Internet of Things (IoT), AI has been hailed for ushering in the Fourth Industrial Revolution or Industry 4.0. The pandemic accelerated the use of AI-powered technologies and may have even hastened the advent of Industry 5.0 with a big focus on personalisation.  

Unachieved potential

Just like in other industries, big data AI and other smart technologies possess the potential to transform education and are termed as Education 4.0.  Indian EdTech segment has grown significantly and is poised for a market size of $10.4 billion by 2025. However, it has not fully harnessed the power of Education 4.0 and therefore is probably not ready for Education 5.0.

With nearly 4,500 start-ups, the domestic EdTech market is oversaturated.  In the last decade EdTech companies have mostly been taking offline education online and making good tutors available online from any location. They may not have fully developed solutions leveraging AI/big data, which could bring in affordability and transform the way quality education and coaching are offered at scale.

By missing the wood for the trees, however, EdTech companies may have missed the opportunity to empower schools via digital learning modules. Instead, they seem to have ended up creating a parallel institutional structure. Being expensive, the current solutions are also creating a digital divide. Middle-income families cannot bear the extra burden as they have already spent immense amounts on their child’s regular schooling.

No wonder then that the industry has started showing signs of strain after pandemic-linked restrictions eased and students went back to physical classrooms. 

India has entered what’s called 'the golden period of 30 years from 2020-2050' when it will have the youngest population in the world. This young population called the demographic dividend can provide India with a huge talent pool if we could leverage technology. With such a young population and a burgeoning number of smartphone users, the country is uniquely poised to benefit from these technologies. Many analysts believe AI-enabled technologies can help the country achieve UN SDG 4 (sustainable development goal) for ‘ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education to promote lifelong learning opportunities for all’. 

The education industry needs to be prepared to help the country achieve these goals and truly seize the power of Education 4.0 even as Education 5.0 may be upon us. 

Making Education 4.0 a Reality

Some ways to facilitate the advent of Education 4.0 via the power of AI and big data include: 

Designing AI-ready solutions: For collecting rich data of students and extracting relevant insights, bespoke educational solutions need to be AI-enabled. Moreover, the learning processes must be broken down into the smallest units. In this way, user patterns, outcomes, successes and failures can be understood across thousands of users. Thereafter, AI can be applied to create a foundation promoting innovative, customised, cost-effective interventions for learners.

Offering hyper-customised sessions: Using AI and ML, one can create Intelligent Tutoring Systems to guide students along individualised learning pathways while providing step-by-step tutorials. These are customised and personalised for each student through topics in structured subjects such as Maths and Physics. Based on a unique, nuanced understanding of each student’s strengths and weaknesses, instead of tutoring in all of Physics, for example, support can be provided in a specific subtopic such as 'unevenly distributed dielectrics in capacitors', based on the pattern of problems a student has been struggling with. 

Developing solutions for improving access and making quality learning more affordable: AI can provide powerful insights for specifically determining what students need to learn and when, as well as their competitive position in peer groups, no matter who or where they are. This can be especially valuable for entrance exam preparations. When designed properly, specific, targeted support services will be more modular and, therefore, more affordable.

Not creating a parallel structure vis-á-vis the school system: The right solutions driven by AI can also pool data and information from regular school and classroom education to provide richer insights about the learning progress and the needs of every student. Consequently, it can empower teachers to function more effectively in school classrooms. 

Preparing pupils for evolving industries: New-age technologies are also bringing change in all industries, worldwide, making legacy skills outdated. As a result, students need specialised skills to meet Industry 4.0 requirements. For instance, though computer skills were in great demand for decades, today these are commonplace. Knowledge of AI, ML, robotics, data science, coding, blockchain, automation and more is now required to retain relevance. 

Pivoting to Industry 4.0

With cyber-physical systems being integrated into most enterprises, the skills required for employees are also changing. As per a McKinsey Digital study, 60 per cent of all occupations would have one-third of tasks automated due to Industry 4.0 requirements. With this in mind, EdTech needs to pivot its courses and curriculum so that students are made future-ready for the unfolding smart industrial age. 

The pandemic may have also hastened the advent of Industry 5.0 and that makes it even more important that the Indian EdTech industry recalibrates itself and truly harnesses the power of Education 4.0 to move towards greater personalisation.  

It’s high time we moved away from the traditional one-size-fits-all approach and instead contextualise it based on aptitude and learning styles. Innovation is required as much in making learning more interactive and fun for today’s students with short attention spans, as it is to solve for the issues of access and inequity.  While the digital divide may be a complex problem for the EdTech sector to address alone, it can certainly look for innovations that bridge the gap and help India reap its demographic dividend.

Vinay Singh

Guest Author Thr author is Executive Director & CEO, Thomson Digital and Q&I