edYOU's Reputation in AI Education: Insights from Research Studies

When artificial intelligence first came to the public’s attention, it was hailed as a game-changer of the same magnitude as some of the most important human inventions. The enthusiasm was fueled by the seemingly endless potential of AI to automate complex tasks and bring significant advancements in fields such as healthcare, finance, and education.

As time passed, however, the discussion around the impact of AI and its role in various industries has become more nuanced. The public discourse shifted, tempering the early excitement with concerns about ethics, its effects on employment, and the ability of the new technology to deliver on its promise.

For Dr. Michael Everest, however, there was no dilemma that his field of work — education, specifically medical education — could benefit from implementing artificial intelligence.

“As I saw the impact of the pandemic on education, it became evident that student outcomes were not favorable. The lack of accessibility to the internet during that time further exacerbated the problem,” Dr. Everest says. “Private schools with the resources to implement online learning quickly had their teachers available 24/7, providing a smoother transition. However, this wasn’t the case for many public schools, leaving students without proper academic support for months.”

Dr. Everest’s solution to the problem was to utilize artificial intelligence to create a service that would be a mix of study aid and an AI tutoring service with 24/7 availability. His approach involved creating human-like avatars, AI entities the users could interact with and whose characteristics would eventually be shaped by these interactions. Using conversational artificial intelligence, personalized AI modules, and proprietary ingestion engines, Dr. Everest and his company edYOU strive to create a unique application of cutting-edge technologies in the field of education and offer an experience suited to modern users.

“The decline in reading outcomes is a concern, and many people nowadays prefer to get information in more engaging ways than traditional reading,” Dr. Everest says. “Our technology addresses this shift by offering alternative means of obtaining information, catering to individual preferences. In this modern age, people expect personalized experiences that cater to their specific needs, and our platform seeks to meet those expectations.”

The decision to offer a more engaging learning experience than traditional isn’t without its merit. Seeking to examine the effectiveness of its approach, edYOU was approached by California Northstate College of Medicine, and CNU did an IRB-approved double-blind study that CNU funded to see the efficacy of the edYOU platform. The study had three randomized groups for their incoming medical students for the class of 2027: 1) edYOU platform users, 2) traditional PPT (PowerPoint Presentation), and 3) PowerPoint voice-over. The study found a 10% increase in learning outcomes for those who used the edYOU platform vs. traditional means. It examined how some of the platform’s characteristics – voice-over lectures, review games, and interactive AI beings — influenced learning outcomes. The study used a flipped classroom strategy involving active learning during class time.

In the study, three groups of students were given access to different learning methods. One group used slide decks alone, while the other supplemented slide decks with professor narrations, and the third group implemented edYOU’s interactive conversational AI beings tutoring in real time, narration, and interaction with an AI being. Groups were given a formative quiz that assessed their understanding of voice-over lectures, slide decks, and AI. The analysis of the quiz focused on three key metrics, which allowed it to determine the quiz items’ difficulty, effectiveness in discriminating between participants, and their overall correlation with the participants’ performance.

The study results showed that students who used edYOU had 10% higher quiz scores, especially regarding more challenging questions. They also had a higher percentage of correct answers. The overall test scores didn’t show a statistically significant difference between the two groups; the group that supplemented their study regimen with edYOU spent less overall time in lectures. This breakthrough study showed that AI in the edYOU setting helped the students. In addition, the professors of the edYOU control group had data on the student's study habits, questions asked, and answers. Hannah, edYOU’s AI-entity in the study has granular info on the students' time spent. The other two groups simply did not have this.

In the end, the study showed that using edYOU to facilitate a multimodal approach to learning helped students utilize their time more efficiently and improved test scores. While the study is an early exploration into possible applications of AI in the classroom, at the very least, it indicates that there needs to be a further examination of the potential of AI to help students achieve better outcomes.

As far as Dr. Everest and edYOU are concerned, they will continue introducing new advancements in their platform and advocate for the safe and responsible use of AI in the classroom. Besides benefiting the students, Dr. Everest also sees edYOU as a way to help teachers and the world of academia at large.

“The main goal of creating this system was to improve education outcomes post-COVID and ensure its safety and neutrality,” explains Dr. Everest. “In academia, it is crucial to avoid any political biases and keep the focus on providing accurate and reliable information. The platform aims to simplify and organize the learning process, making it efficient and effective for all users. Ultimately, the intention is to create a supportive and secure environment for education, where everyone can thrive.”