story by Claire Miller
As students learn to craft strong written arguments, it’s important for them to receive feedback on how they organized their arguments and the language they used.
While teacher feedback plays a vital role in students’ writing development, some learning technologies researchers are considering how artificial intelligence (AI) systems could help students improve their writing skills.
Associate Professor Min Kyu Kim and colleagues at the University of Miami developed and evaluated a pilot version of the AI-Supported Scaffolding (AISS) system, which is “a web-based application designed to assist students in enhancing their information literacy and argument writing skills,” Kim said.
They conducted a study with 14 graduate students enrolled in a foundations of instructional design and technology course. Participating students learned about a specific learning approach and were asked to develop a written argument about it.
Students wrote an initial 200-word draft of their answer based on instructions from the AISS system. Then, they selected a part of their argument they wanted to improve, placed it into the AISS system and reviewed the alternative writing suggestions that the system provided. Students continued to revise their work in the AISS system until they finalized and submitted a 500-word written response to the initial question.
The researchers found that by the time students submitted their final drafts, they were more selective in their word choices, used more words that clarified their arguments, and worked to avoid redundant words and better preserve their argument’s central ideas.
Students also submitted personal reflections on the AISS writing and revision process, where they noted how the AISS system’s feedback encouraged them to write more in-depth arguments, add more evidence to prove their points and write in a more professional tone.
“These findings demonstrate the potential of AI to interact with human learners. Additionally, learners expressed their acceptance of AI-generated feedback information,” Kim said. “Learners appeared to enhance their argument quality through careful refinement of words and sentences. And besides improving arguments, AISS feedback seemed to assist them in developing writing skills related to content accuracy, coherence, clarity of expression, logical flow and more.”
This study also provides a glimpse of how universities can begin utilizing AI programs to support student learning.
“Instructors at higher education institutions can learn about the potential of an AI application to provide learners with adaptive and timely aids, especially for a complex learning task like scientific argumentation in an academic domain,” Kim said. “The findings could help instructors perceive the value of AI tools and accept the positive utility of AI, marking the first phase of AI literacy.”