Title: Can AI support student engagement in classroom activities in higher education? Show Chinese title

Title: 人工智能能否在高等教育中支持学生参与课堂活动？

Abstract: Lucrative career prospects and creative opportunities often attract students to enroll in computer science majors and pursue advanced studies in the field. Consequently, there has been a significant surge in enrollment in computer science courses, resulting in large class sizes that can range from hundreds to even thousands of students. A common challenge in such large classrooms is the lack of engagement between students and both the instructor and the learning material. However, with advancements in technology and improvements in large language models (LLMs), there is a considerable opportunity to utilize LLM-based AI models, such as conversational artificial intelligence (CAI), to enhance student engagement with learning content in large classes. To explore the potential of CAI to support engagement, especially with learning content, we designed an activity in a software Engineering course (with a large class size) where students used CAI for an in-class activity. We conducted a within-subject investigation in a large classroom at a US university where we compared student engagement during an in-class activity that used CAI tool vs. one without CAI tool. The CAI tool we used was ChatGPT due to its widespread popularity and familiarity. Our results indicate that CAI (ChatGPT) has the potential to support engagement with learning content during in-class activities, especially in large class sizes. We further discuss the implications of our findings. Show Chinese abstract

Abstract: 有利的职业前景和创造性的机会常常吸引学生选择计算机科学专业，并在该领域追求深造。 因此，计算机科学课程的注册人数显著增加，导致班级规模变大，可能从数百人甚至到上千人。 在这样的大课堂中，一个常见的挑战是学生与教师以及学习材料之间的参与度不足。 然而，随着技术的进步和大型语言模型（LLMs）的改进，有相当大的机会利用基于LLM的AI模型，如对话式人工智能（CAI），以增强大班教学中学生对学习内容的参与度。 为了探索CAI在支持参与方面的潜力，尤其是在学习内容方面，我们在一门软件工程课程（班级规模较大）中设计了一个活动，学生在课堂活动中使用CAI。 我们在一所美国大学的大课堂中进行了一项被试内研究，比较了使用CAI工具和不使用CAI工具的课堂活动中的学生参与度。 我们使用的CAI工具是ChatGPT，因为它广受欢迎且熟悉度高。 我们的结果表明，CAI（ChatGPT）在课堂活动中支持学生与学习内容的参与度具有潜力，尤其是在大班教学中。 我们进一步讨论了研究结果的含义。