Department of Ecology and Evolution Professor Ross Nehm has been selected to serve on the National Science Foundation funded committee “Advancing AI in Science Education: A Comprehensive Approach to Equity, Inclusion, and Three-Dimensional Learning.”
Stony Brook, NY, Oct 21, 2024 - SBU Professor Ross Nehm, a leading researcher on the use of AI in student assessment, is one of 15 international scholars selected to serve on this NSF-funded committee, which is charged with establishing norms, frameworks, and guidelines for AI-involved science education research.
Ross Nehm
Ross is the Principal Investigator of the Biology Education Research (BER) Lab at Stony Brook University, where he studies how reasoning and learning facilitate or constrain conceptual growth, scientific identity, and academic persistence in an individual. He has been working with machine learning and artificial intelligence for over 15 years, building scalable methods to assess student learning in science education at Stony Brook University and K-12 schools.
Addressing the root of the issue, Ross says, “Most professors use Multiple Choice Questions to assess their students, whereas the National Research Council policy documents state that scientific practices, like explaining, arguing, and model building, should be used to test students. But grading these skills takes a huge amount of time and effort.” In his previous work, Ross has developed methods to assess student learning in large classes. Over the past 10 years, his team has tested more than 10,000 students using sophisticated AI methods. As a result, they’ve been able to identify common learning difficulties, like equity gaps in students’ use of technology, and language barriers.
As part of the NSF-funded committee, Ross, along with a diverse group of scholars from UC Berkeley, University of Georgia, University of Florida, and international institutions from Germany and China, will help craft a strategic road-map for the seamless, effective, and equitable integration of AI into science education in the U.S.
The committee will begin by addressing the bias present in data corpora, and how people use language differently to talk about the same ideas. Ross admits, “We have already learned so much about how students express their understanding of a concept. Now we can use this knowledge to alter how we approach communicating with them.”
This approach is meant to study and use AI’s potential to level the playing field of scientific understanding that students and teachers can access. “It’s incredible,” Ross says, “Knowing that AI can lead to a better understanding of students, their needs, and how we need to evolve as educators — AI can teach us to teach better!”
The NSF committee, harmoniously aligned with AI and DEI, aims to explore a comprehensive educational experience that transcends traditional teaching methods, fostering a learning environment that is both immersive and inclusive. The project, propelled by collaboration, will converge to share insights, challenges, and strategies, fostering a rich tapestry of perspectives, to advance the future of AI in education.
Communications Assistant
Ankita Nagpal