Simulating work in an operating room, practicing for the math test with a chatbot, training for corporate management in a virtual reality setting: The possibilities of learning and teaching with digital technologies are extraordinarily large. TUM is now making digital education technologies a new research focus area. The new TUM Center for Educational Technologies unites scientists from the educational sciences, computer sciences, management, medicine and other disciplines.
Which technologies help which learners in which situations? The center will investigate this question in order to enable the effective use of technological aids in teaching. In addition the researchers are developing their own digital tools. One example is PEER, based on large language models like ChatGPT. The AI tutor is capable of analyzing various text forms and suggesting improvements to students, depending on the students' age and competence level. Another project is concerned with eye tracking, which can be used to assess for example what learners are comprehending and how high their concentration levels are.
Continuing education and support for start-ups
In addition to schools and universities, the TUM Center for Educational Technologies concentrates primarily on medicine and the development of management staff. It will develop for example new varieties of continuing education on the use of Artificial intelligence in schoolroom teaching. Accordingly, the center has been created as a part of the TUM Institute for LifeLong Learning.
Furthermore, the center will facilitate general access to the many tools, platforms and continuing education opportunities already on existence at TUM. For example, the “Toolbox Lehrerbildung" offers multimedia materials for teachers training regarding the STEM subjects, the online portal "Clearing House Unterricht" explains the current state of research on practical questions of schoolroom teaching. Data sciences students can learn on the Artemis platform. The center will also support teams that want to bring the learning technologies developed at TUM to market as start-ups.
Designing more personalized education
"Hardly any other German university consolidates education sciences, computer sciences and data sciences with this impressive degree of strength to create value. Accordingly the TUM Center for Educational Technologies is also a part of the Excellence Strategy of the German federal and state governments. We want to leverage this potential and want to redefine learning and teaching with new technologies," says Prof. Thomas F. Hofmann, President of TUM. "Education is the key to securing the future of our nation."
"School lesson design is often out of step with the worlds in which the children and youth of today live. Digital technologies should therefore be a standard part of teaching. We want to show when using these technologies makes sense and how they can result in success," says education scientist Prof. Tina Seidel, Co-Director of the TUM Center for Educational Technologies. "The tools are not meant to replace teachers, but rather to support them – a topic which is all the more urgent given the current shortage of qualified personnel."
Computer scientist and Co-Director Prof. Enkelejda Kasneci says: "Technologies let us make education much more personal and much more participative. When students receive individual support, the result can reduce the importance of their origin, their previous knowledge and the conditions at their educational facilities. And ultimately it can increase their motivation, since technology is always available and never loses its patience."
Contact for scientific information:
Prof. Dr. Enkelejda Kasneci
Technical University of Munich
Chair of Human-Centered Technologies for Learning
+49 89 289 25118
enkelejda.kasneci@tum.de
https://www.edu.sot.tum.de/en/hctl
Prof. Dr. Tina Seidel
Technical University of Munich
Friedl Schöller Endowed Chair of Educational Psychology
Tel. +49 89 289 25114
tina.seidel@tum.de
https://www.edu.sot.tum.de/en/paedpsych
