ProFuturo will present at the MLW 2019 how it applies learning analytics to improve teaching and learning in vulnerable environments. As part of UNESCO’s conference on education, to be held March 4-8 in Paris, ProFuturo, together with the UNESCO and experts in artificial intelligence (AI), will present the background paper entitled “Artificial Intelligence in Education: Challenges and Opportunities for Development”, which will outline a framework of action to help countries adopt AI in public policies in the education sector, particularly in developing countries. With the aim of measuring the results of the program and improving education, ProFuturo is building a network of education data at the global level thanks to its presence in 28 countries in Latin America, sub-Saharan Africa and Asia.
In its eighth edition, the Mobile Learning Week, held each year in Paris, will deal with artificial intelligence (AI) and sustainable development and bring together international experts to debate the opportunities and threats in the use of AI in education (particularly in developing countries).
In this edition, which will take place on March 4-8 in Paris, the UNESCO has invited as partners the ProFuturo Foundation, an initiative sponsored by Telefónica Foundation and “la Caixa” which aims to improve the quality of education for children in a situation of vulnerability; the International Telecommunications Union (ITU); and the company Skillogs as co-organizers.
All the activities will revolve around four axes: inclusion and equality in the use of AI in education; the use of AI to improve education and learning; developing skills in AI; and the responsible use of education data.
Another highlight will be the progress and understanding of how the UNESCO member states and other institutions can harness the power of technology in today’s society in order to improve education.
Artificial intelligence: challenges and opportunities for development
At the Policy Forum taking place within the Mobile Learning Week, ProFuturo will present the background paper entitled “Artificial intelligence and education: challenges and opportunities for development”, prepared in collaboration with UNESCO and experts in artificial intelligence.
This document will provide a framework of action to help countries to incorporate AI into their public policies in the education sector, particularly in developing countries. The paper will highlight the main issues in integrating and adopting AI and its associated technology. Another issue covered will be the way in which governments are dealing with the challenges of AI in education. The paper offers an overview of challenges and opportunities, and singles out the countries that have begun to tackle these challenges. It will also serve to start up a dialog and exchange of opinions on this subject.
The paper is divided in three parts: the first one deals with the topic of how AI can help improve education and teaching through real cases; the second deals with the change required in the education system to navigate in a world with AI, exploring experiences of governments and education institutions; and the last section contains a summary of the challenges and implications for public policy of the introduction of AI in education.
Within the framework of Mobile Learning Week 2019, ProFuturo will also present:
– “Evaluating the impact of education programs: methods and case studies” (the case of EduCaixa and ProFuturo Peru), in a workshop led by “la Caixa”, ProFuturo and Telefónica LUCA.
– “Using learning analytics in complex environments on a global scale”. ProFuturo will present a session on the program’s results obtained through data analytics and show how decisions are taken based on learning analytics. It will also showcase the type of analytical tools and the AI methods and techniques used by ProFuturo for the purpose of improving the quality of education for 10 million children in vulnerable environments by 2020.
– “How to use big data/learning analytics to find out success cases inside social programs”: the case of ProFuturo in Brazil.
– “Employment map in Spain: building an employment tool using big data”, a session organized by Telefónica Foundation. This session will look at the newConecta Empleo platform based on AI and big data, which maps the 23 most demanded digital profiles in the employment market. The tool serves as a guide in the search for employment by territory and offers education in the digital professions for job seekers or people who wish to retrain. That is, it provides snapshot of digital employability in Spain in real time.
Artificial Intelligence for Sustainable Development
Additionally, this year the event will analyze how the international community, governments, private companies and civil society can and should join forces to ensure the equal and inclusive use of AI in education; to harness AI to promote education and knowledge, to promote the development of skills for work and life in the era of AI, and to safeguard the transparent and accountable use of education data. Last year this conference was attended by 750 experts from 68 countries, representing over 350 international organizations, a figure that is expected to increase this year.
MLW 2019 will see the participation of a wide and diverse number of individuals and institutions: Ministries of Education and ICT in UNESCO member countries, international experts in the field, representatives of civil society organizations and private companies, representatives of international bodies, among others, who will share information on innovative forms of learning based on the use of technology.
The program for the event can be seen at the following link, along with the registration for MLW2019.
Artificial intelligence and ProFuturo
With the aim of measuring the results of the program and improving education, ProFuturo uses learning analytics to analyze the data from its network of education data at the global level, thanks to its presence in 28 countries in Latin America, sub-Saharan Africa and Asia.
ProFuturo aims to develop an “education quality algorithm”, through AI that helps to measure the results of its program and make decisions based on data and on the personalization of teaching. This furthers ProFuturo’s ultimate aim of improving the quality of education and teaching for boys and girls in vulnerable environments.
