Emotion AI: redefining online education

Since the outbreak of the Coronavirus, educational systems across the world have been affected. According to Statista, over a billion students worldwide were unable to attend school or university due to closures initiated by public health authorities in response to the pandemic.

The unprecedented shift to remote learning intensified the pressure on educational institutions, who were forced to adapt to digital teaching methods and practices; which only constituted a small fraction of classroom learning before the pandemic.

The situation is undeniably frustrating for both students and teachers who are keen to achieve the results once obtained through conventional classroom activities. Today’s virtual classroom has created a communication barrier between teacher and student. Online education removes a big part of the human element in learning experiences which is cultivated through in-person communication – an integral part of the learning process.

Introducing emotion AI, a tool that studies gestures, facial expressions, body language, and tonality of voice. With the technology, teachers get a clear insight into the emotional state of their students as they progress through the curriculum. 

Bridging the gap of communication

The integrated technology has the ability to accurately capture human emotion in diverse conditions like background noise, changes in lighting conditions etc.

Facial and voice recognition help to identify a student’s response such as hesitation, focus areas and stress signals in the voice. This data can inform teachers to repeat and clarify if necessary, as well as monitor the attention level of the student, helping teachers identify parts of the content the student finds difficult to understand.

While kids vary in learning capabilities, this artificial intelligence tool may play an important role in boosting the ability of educators to detect, identify, and respond to a student’s individual learning needs.

The education system is trying it best to adapt to the new normal imposed by Coronavirus. The question is, will these emerging technologies help or hinder student learning productivity?