In recent times, we have seen the increasing use of AI (Artificial Intelligence) impacting on our daily lives. It should therefore come as no great surprise that educational institutions are using this type of technology more to help cope with the problems caused by shutdowns. The New York Times is discussing this trend and what it means for the future.
“We no longer have the ability for the foreseeable future to interact with students in any way in person,” said Eric Nichols, vice president for enrolment at Loyola University Maryland in Baltimore.
That has spurred Loyola to engage a new A.I.-fuelled chatbot in the voice of their greyhound mascot, Iggy. Starting next month, committed students and their parents can opt in to hear from Iggy or query the chatbot — via text message, through Facebook Messenger or using the school’s website — about issues they otherwise might have learned about on a campus visit, like plans for orientation and choosing classes.
Chatbots work by tapping into a bank of human-created answers and questions, crafted to account for multiple ways of making (and spelling) a query.
One wonders if these type of bots are here to stay as they are much more cost efficient than paying a human to answer questions. A very interesting article well worth taking the time to read.
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