Page 15 - DCAP310_INTRODUCTION_TO_ARTIFICIAL_INTELLIGENCE_AND_EXPERT_SYSTEMS

Unit 1: Overview of Artificial Intelligence

who begin to fall behind can receive an instructor’s individualized attention while others can Notes
begin to tackle more complex tasks.
Computer software can mix text, pictures, sound, and motion to provide a variety of options for
learners. Multimedia software will not be the only classroom resource, but it can contribute
richness and variety to student work.

Students can build on their own understanding by using computers as resource tools, as work
stations for individual learning, or as communication channels to share their ideas with other
learners. Individual understanding and experiences must be shared and compared to curriculum
content. By uncovering students’ individual understandings, teachers can determine the influence
of students’ prior knowledge and further their education through new experience.
Computers can be used to assist active experiences – gathering data and resources, conversing
with colleagues, struggling through a challenging puzzle or application – or they can assist in
reflection. For example, while an online conversation through e-mail is an active event, such
discussions usually prompt reflection. They help us think about ideas and check our
understanding. In another reflective application, teachers can enlist computers as authoring
tools for students’ journals which are excellent vehicles for thoughtful examination of experience.

Notes Introducing technology into the learning environment can encourage cooperative
learning and student collaboration. If they are allowed to converse, most students like to
talk about their computer work and share their strategies. Classroom activities that are
structured so that computers encourage collaboration build on learners’ desire to
communicate and share their understanding. It takes planning and intervention to build
successful cooperative groups with or without computers, but groups that use computers
as teamwork tools have a better start toward collaborative work.

Beyond the classroom, computer networking allows students to communicate and collaborate
with content experts and with fellow students around the globe. Communication tools like
e-mail, bulletin boards, and chat groups allow teachers to exchange lesson plans and teaching
strategies and create a professional community.
The use of real world tools, relevant experiences, and meaningful data inject a sense of purpose
to classroom activity. Part of the mission of educational institutions is to produce workforce-
ready graduates who can, among other things, manipulate and analyze raw data, critically
evaluate information, and operate hardware and software. This technological literacy imparts a
very important set of vocational skills that will serve students well in the working world.

Technology has allowed schools to provide greater assistance to traditionally underserved
populations. Assistive technology such as voice recognition systems, dynamic Braille displays,
speech synthesizers, and talking books provide learning and communication alternatives for
those who have developmental or physical disabilities. Research has also shown that computer-
mediated communication can ease the social isolation that may be experienced by those with
disabilities. Computers have proved successful in increasing academic motivation and lessening
anxiety among low ability students and learning disabled students, many of whom simply
learn in a manner different from that practiced in a traditional, non-technological classroom.

1.3.8 Voice Recognition (VR)

In computer science, voice recognition is the translation of spoken words into text. It is also
known as “automatic speech recognition”, “ASR”, “computer speech recognition”, “speech to

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