Closing Plenary
Smarter than your average chatbot: AI as a Study Buddy
Professor John Murray
Plenary speaker
Pro Vice-Chancellor (Teaching and Learning), University of Huddersfield
The integration of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) into Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs) presents a transformative opportunity to enhance personalised learning experiences in Higher Education. By providing tailored feedback, adaptive learning pathways, and instant support, GenAI can bridge learning gaps, accommodate diverse learners, and foster a more inclusive, directed and personalised educational learning experience.
A key challenge in Higher Education is maintaining student engagement and ensuring knowledge retention. Traditional one-size-fits-all teaching approaches often fail to address individual student needs, leading to disengagement and attrition. Personalised learning through GenAI offers a scalable solution, enabling students to interact with an intelligent support system that adapts to their progress, reinforces understanding, and provides real-time assistance and feedback including notification of upcoming important events. This study examines whether such an approach leads to increased academic persistence, motivation, and overall learning satisfaction, and ultimately ‘attainment’.
Beyond student outcomes, this research also considers the implications of AI-driven tutoring for educators and institutional frameworks. The study further discusses how institutions can leverage AI responsibly to complement, rather than replace, human instruction.
By conducting qualitative interviews and surveys, the study assesses how academic staff view the role of AI in Higher Education, its potential benefits, and the challenges it may pose. Furthermore, it investigates whether educators believe AI will fundamentally alter teaching methodologies, academic roles, and institutional priorities. Understanding these perspectives will provide a holistic view of how AI integration could shape the future of Higher Education, ensuring that technological advancements align with pedagogical best practices and ethical considerations.
Ultimately, this paper argues that, if implemented effectively, Generative AI has the potential to revolutionise teaching and learning, enhancing student engagement, retention, and academic success in an increasingly digital educational landscape.
Professor Murray has spent much of his academic research career in the area of Human-Robot Interaction, and Ethics and Trust around Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning systems and has worked on many research projects from FP7 to H2020 and with businesses and organisations including DASA, QinetiQ, UK Home Office, Borderforce, Health organisations including the NHS and many more.
He is specifically interested in the acceptance of technology, robotics and AI into society, the social challenges of this and how we design AI and Robotic systems to be socially acceptable. This includes looking at work around human factors, cognitive biases and personality and ethics. He also has interests in security, from computer security (such as ethics, encryption) to border security (through work with the UK Home Office and Border Force) to food security and policy.