Spurred on, no doubt, by the current spate of books and articles about AIED (artificial intelligence in education), the IATEFL Learning Technologies SIG is organising an online event on the topic in November of this year. Currently, the most visible online references to AI in language learning are related to Glossika, basically a language learning system that uses spaced repetition, whose marketing department has realised that references to AI might help sell the product. They're not alone – see, for example, Knowble which I reviewed earlier this year . In the wider world of education, where AI has made greater inroads than in language teaching, every day brings more stuff: How artificial intelligence is changing teaching, 32 Ways AI is Improving Education, How artificial intelligence could help teachers do a better job, etc., etc. Common to all these publications is the claim that AI will radically change education. When it comes to language teaching, a similar claim has been made by Donald Clark (described by Anthony Seldon as an education guru but perhaps best-known to many in ELT for his demolition of Sugata Mitra).

Artificial Intelligence (AI), Big Data and machine learning have all come under fire in some corners for potentially exposing humanity to unknown dangers. It makes sense because we don't understand it as much as we have invested in current known and familiar systems. In recent times, AI and Big Data have been utilised in education for more effective learning and teaching. There are also some controlled tests in the farming industry where we may soon see more innovations. In a white paper by Pearson called Intelligence Unleashed An argument for AI in Education, the team delves into learning systems that are driven by Artificial Intelligence in Education (AIEd) to shed light into the topic.

Check out these smart home startups. A lot of these use AI behind the scene to get smarter over time.

"Artificial intelligence is not just the next step in innovative learning," says Rose Luckin, a self-described learning scientist at University College London. "This technology can identify emotional states of students as well as their meta-cognitive states," she says, "and tailor learning accordingly." Previous forms of technology fell far short of this kind of capability. Rose recently co-authored a paper titled "Intelligence Unleashed: An argument for AI in Education.") Rose says artificial intelligence in education, also called AIed, can also further facilitate deeper collaboration between learners--and help teachers differentiate their instruction in order to meet every learner's needs.

We live in a world reshaped by big data and smart digital technologies that scale with ever-decreasing marginal cost. But, to date, too little attention has been given to understanding the implications of this for learning, or to setting out the ways in which artificial intelligence (AI) can be used to create learning tools that are more efficient, flexible and inclusive than those currently available; tools that will help learners prepare for an economy that is swiftly being reshaped by digital technologies. In this important new report, a positive and plausible vision is set out of how learning could be transformed by artificial intelligence in education (AIEd). For example, technology available today could be applied to support student learning at a scale previously unimaginable by providing one-on-one tutoring to every student, in every subject. Existing technologies also have the capacity to provide intelligent support to learners working in a group, and to create authentic virtual learning environments where students have the right support, at the right time, to tackle real-life problems and puzzles.