GPT-4 as a Homework Tutor can Improve Student Engagement and Learning Outcomes

Autor: Vanzo, Alessandro, Chowdhury, Sankalan Pal, Sachan, Mrinmaya
Rok vydání: 2024
Předmět:
Druh dokumentu: Working Paper
Popis: This work contributes to the scarce empirical literature on LLM-based interactive homework in real-world educational settings and offers a practical, scalable solution for improving homework in schools. Homework is an important part of education in schools across the world, but in order to maximize benefit, it needs to be accompanied with feedback and followup questions. We developed a prompting strategy that enables GPT-4 to conduct interactive homework sessions for high-school students learning English as a second language. Our strategy requires minimal efforts in content preparation, one of the key challenges of alternatives like home tutors or ITSs. We carried out a Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) in four high-school classes, replacing traditional homework with GPT-4 homework sessions for the treatment group. We observed significant improvements in learning outcomes, specifically a greater gain in grammar, and student engagement. In addition, students reported high levels of satisfaction with the system and wanted to continue using it after the end of the RCT.
Comment: Submitted to LAK25
Databáze: arXiv