ENHANCING COMMUNICATION AND COLLABORATION THROUGH AI-BASED LEARNING: EVIDENCE FROM AN EXPERIMENTAL STUDY AMONG SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS

Abstract

Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the field of education has become a more and more commonly discussed topic in the academic world since it can contribute to the improvement of 21st-century skills, especially communication and teamwork. However, there is limited empirical evidence on the context of secondary schools in the developing countries. In this regard, this research study explores the effects of AI-based instruction on both communicative and collaborative skills of secondary students in Karachi, Sindh, with a pre-post experimental design.  This experiment enrolls a group of high-school pupils who enacted an AI-based teaching module designed in accordance with fostering an interactive learning process, a group discussion, and collaborative problem solving. Information was collected using instruments and standardized assessments which evaluated communicative and collaborative skills at baseline and later on after the intervention. Wilcoxon Signed-Rank Test (non-parametric) were implemented to identify changes in the level of skills among students.  Findings have shown that both communication and collaboration competencies were significantly better after the interaction with AI-mediated learning, although the improvement in collaboration was slightly higher. The implications of these findings are that the AI-enhanced environments applied with the help of appropriate pedagogic techniques can effectively develop interpersonal and teamwork skills in second school learners.  The research is based on the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework and the Social Constructivist theory and emphasizes the need to provide AI implementations with purposeful instructional design and sociocognitive interaction in order to maximize educational performance. The research has the contribution of providing empirical data related to a Pakistani-based secondary school environment and suggests practical implications of researchers, policy-makers, and curriculum developers who want to leverage AI to develop holistic skills in schools.