MBZUAI Team Receives Google Academic Research Award For Advancing AI In Education

The Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI) has announced that a team from their institution has been honoured with the Google Academic Research Award. This accolade will allow the team to further their research into educational foundation models and intelligent tutoring systems driven by dialogue. The award was presented to Ekaterina Kochmar, an assistant professor specialising in natural language processing (NLP), and Kaushal Kumar Maurya, a postdoctoral researcher focusing on NLP and large language models (LLMs) for education.

MBZUAI's team was the only one from the Middle East recognised in the inaugural Google Academic Research Awards. They were acknowledged in the category dedicated to making education equitable, accessible, and effective through AI. Their project, "2σ-ITS: A Pedagogical Intelligent Tutoring System Grounded in Learning Science Principles," aims to develop educational foundation models and create a new generation of dialogue-based intelligent tutoring systems powered by generative AI.

Their research is designed to assist students across various subjects, including STEM and language learning. Kochmar expressed her gratitude for receiving this award, stating, "It is a true honour to receive this award, and we are grateful to Google Academic Research Awards for supporting our work in this field." She emphasised that their project aims to make NLP-driven technology accessible globally, helping tutors reach students who may not have access to mainstream education services.

Kochmar added that they are eager to develop advanced AI solutions with the potential to enhance lives and appreciate Google's recognition of their efforts. She highlighted the importance of using modern technologies like state-of-the-art AI models and LLMs for impactful applications in education. "I would like to see this being used in real life, to the benefit of the educational system at large," she said.

Kochmar and Maurya stressed that their system is intended to support teachers rather than replace them. In a busy classroom setting, if teachers lack time to address every student individually, personalised tablets could be provided. These tablets would adapt to each student's needs by understanding what they know and don't know, offering tailored explanations.

Kochmar explained that while all students aim for the same level of expertise, their paths might differ. The system would assist in achieving this goal by providing customised learning experiences. Maurya likened these tutoring systems to calculators and computers from the past, suggesting they will become integral parts of education without replacing human teachers.

Categories of Google Academic Research Awards

The Google Academic Research Awards offer funding and collaboration opportunities for researchers, fostering impactful research with practical applications. The 2024 awards covered six categories: creating machine learning benchmarks for climate issues; making education equitable using AI; quantum transduction for scalable computing; solving infrastructure problems with Gemini; society-centred AI; and trust & safety.

This recognition underscores MBZUAI's commitment to advancing educational technology through innovative research. By leveraging AI-driven solutions, they aim to improve educational accessibility and effectiveness worldwide.

With inputs from WAM