How robots and artificial intelligence are taking over the classroom! (Professional Development Reflection - Isamar)

How robots and artificial intelligence are taking over the classroom

Past Saturday I arrived at the Penn Stater Conference Center expecting to develop my teaching skills through a series of presentations by experts in the field. I had not seen the agenda before arriving. Good thing I didn't have any idea on what to expect because the first talk by the keynote speaker discussed everything from turkeys, chickens and why washing your hands is important! I couldn't stop laughing but at the same time, it made me think about the reason behind every study and how to use data to teach and impact people. Also, it gave me a new podcast to listen to on my morning commute!

Some standard topics I thought would be included in a teaching and learning symposium would be making lesson plans, effective teaching and classroom management. To my surprise, the topics were full of tech-savvy teachers using innovative techniques in their classrooms to enhance the learning experience. Robots and artificial intelligence were a hot topic throughout the day. Two out of the three proposals in the open innovative challenge included these topics.

One particular proposal in the challenge that caught my attention was "Faulknerbot", a chatbot modeled after the writer William Faulkner. In this case Aaron Mauro, an English professor at PSU, developed a chatbot with the purpose of applying conversation based content discovery. Instead of going to the library or searching the web for Faulkner content, you can just chat with an online version of him! Imagine how fun and engaging this could be for students. The chatbot was programmed with not only Faulkner's written works but also many of his interviews. There was a suggestion from the audience to create a "Syllabus chatbot" that could answer questions regarding office hours, assignments and other syllabus topics quickly instead of having to e-mail the professor. 


Another interesting proposal from an Economics Professor, introduced the idea of using robots as learning devices for students. However, this was the second time during the symposium that the robot topic was introduced. One of the talks I attended was from Dr. Ronald Arkin from Georgia Tech. His research focuses on human-robot interacton and how this could help early stage parkinson patients. This technology could also be applied in the classroom for students with disabilities or even as an ethical mediator between graduate students and advisors. 

Needless to say, my day was full of surprises (in a great way!). My mind was exposed to innovative and out-of-the-box ideas on how to engage students in learning. As a Mechanical Engineer, I had never looked at robots or A.I. in the teaching and learning environment. Usually these technologies are introduced in engineering or computer science courses. However, now I can see how they could be applied to everyday teaching on all subjects. Robots or A.I. shouldn't be seen in any way as a replacement of the teacher but as a tool for the teacher. I wouldn't call this is a robot takeover, but a teaching and learning takeover!

Written by Isamar Amador a graduate student in Agricultural and Biological Engineering at Penn State

Student introduction: Isamar Amador Diaz, MS Student, Agricultural and Biological Engineering

¡Hola a todos!

You might be asking how I moved from a sunny island to a snowy state. I guess I would have to explain my background first to answer that question.

I come from a generation of Puerto Rican farmers who started working in sugarcane plantations and now own dairy farms in the island. My childhood was filled with many exciting events, like waking up at 4am to help a cow give birth. The first car I ever drove was a tractor. I was so small that I had to stand with both feet on the clutch to start it. These experiences made me appreciate the role of agriculture in a person’s life.

However, milk sales along with the number of active dairy farms have decreased more than 20% over the past ten years in Puerto Rico. Since engineers are known for solving problems through innovation, I decided to pursue a double bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and Economics at the University of Puerto Rico. During my undergraduate degree, I went to several conferences about energy and sustainability. These introduced me to the bioenergy field!

In Fall 2017, I enrolled in the Agricultural and Biological Engineering MS Program at Penn State with one goal in mind: to help solve the critical problems my family, the agricultural sector, and Puerto Rico are facing.  

How? My research intends to biomimic the cow’s digestive system for anaerobic digestion of grasses. I will be looking at technical and economic factors involved in producing biogas through this biomimetic strategy. My love for cows, sustainable energy and economics are a perfect match! I’m ok with leaving the tropical weather for a while when such a great research opportunity is available here.

My aim is to someday comeback as a professor to my alma matter, the University of Puerto Rico, and help establish a program focused on Bioenergy. I believe this course will give me essential teaching tools that I will need to reach my ultimate goal.