IBM and Pearson, the world’s learning company have announced a new global education alliance intended to make Watson’s cognitive capabilities available to millions of college students and professors.
Combining IBM’s cognitive capabilities with Pearson’s digital learning products will give students a more immersive learning experience with their college courses, an easy way to get help and insights when they need it basically by asking questions in natural language just like they would with another student or professor. Importantly, it provides instructors with insights about how well students are learning, allowing them to better manage the entire course and identify students who need additional help.
“I like the accessibility, mastery, reading and learning part of it. I can’t be available 24 hours a day,” said Professor Sherry Grosso, Economics, University of South Carolina, Sumter.
“To think that when I’m reading, I could just say, ’Watson, can you explain this to me a little bit more?’ that would be great. It would be nice to know that it’s there,” said Shadi Rum, a Saint Petersburg College student and aspiring nurse.
For example, a student experiencing difficulty while studying for a biology course can query Watson, which is embedded in the Pearson courseware. Watson has already read the Pearson courseware content and is ready to spot patterns and generate insights. Serving as a digital resource, Watson will assess the student’s responses to guide them with hints, feedback, explanations and help identify common misconceptions, working with the student at their pace to help them master the topic.
The IBM Watson-Pearson collaboration aims to help address the challenges students face as they balance busy work and course schedules with the demands of advanced learning. More than 60 percent of all job openings by 2018 predicted to require some college education, but 40% of students in four year public universities don’t complete their courses on time, and many of these don’t complete at all. This is creating a need for a flexible virtual resource that college students can access when they need it. With the combination of Watson and Pearson, students will be able to get the specific help they need, ask questions and be able to recognize areas in which they still need help from an instructor. The goal of this always-available approach to tutoring is that it may become the difference between a student successfully completing a required course or dropping out.
“With Watson and this incredible collaboration with Pearson, we are changing the way college students learn. The idea of having a built-in resource to help tackle the challenging questions college students get stuck on is amazing,” said Harriet Green, General Manager, Watson IoT, Cognitive Engagement & Education. “Our goal is for college students to feel empowered, improve study performance and assist educators with breakthrough academic content.”
“Our partnership will use the power of Watson to help students stay engaged and deepen their learning, complete their degree and be better equipped for their careers,” said Tim Bozik, President of Global Product at Pearson. “Teachers are the most important factor in delivering a great education. The partnership will support teachers by providing better digital tools and enabling personalized learning for their students.”
With Pearson and IBM’s education-specific innovations, students will be able to dialogue with Watson in real time by asking questions on a particular topic. In another scenario, Watson will be able to search through an expanded set of education resources to retrieve relevant information to answer the student’s question. During the dialogue with the student, Watson will constantly assess the student’s responses and guide them with hints, feedback, explanations and identify common misconceptions.
