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Associate professor Andrea Guzman sits with the Department of Communication NAO V6 social robot.

Ask the average person what artificial intelligence (AI) is, and you are likely to hear responses like “ChatGPT,” “chatbots” or “robots.” Many novice users think AI is a more sophisticated Google search engine.

According to Northern Illinois University Department of Communication associate professor Andrea L. Guzman, Ph.D., NIU faculty and students are helping to evaluate artificial intelligence and its potential to shape higher education, bringing new life to research and curriculum. They are leveraging its power to provide family caregivers real-time support, accelerate the data collection process in climate change research, enhance proficient human-machine communication, and explore the advantages of AI integration in K-12 classrooms.

“People have wide-ranging views on AI, including its benefits and drawbacks, but we can’t ignore it,” said Guzman. “It’s critical for students to engage with different AI technologies to help them develop important literacies and competencies to flourish in an increasingly technological world.”

Communicating with Machines

Guzman and Department of Communication chair David Gunkel, Ph.D., have pioneered courses in AI and communication and teach classes such as AI, Robots and Communication.

Occasionally, Guzman and Gunkel bring an NAO V6 social robot into their classes—an advanced fully programmable humanoid robot widely used to enhance STEM learning. NAO (pronounced ‘now’), as Guzman calls it, can mimic human behavior and communication cues, respond to verbal commands and interact in a conversational manner.

“NAO helps students understand the similarities and differences in communication between humans and machines,” Guzman said. “It also can explain concepts such as anthropomorphism, which is attributing human characteristics and behaviors to non-human things. We see this applied to robots and AI technologies such as voice assistants.”

According to Guzman, effectively giving AI commands or prompts is an increasingly in-demand skill. She teaches students how to use various generative AI apps for idea generation, text, video and audio creation, editing and search engine optimization (SEO). Students also explore the complexities of data privacy, surveillance and bias issues related to AI use, and how to use technologies to help humans rather than replace them.

“Students learn to think critically about how the human data fed to AI technologies may contain human biases and, thus, produce biased results and how the collection and use of personal data may affect them and others,” Guzman said. “When designed thoughtfully and used carefully, AI can be effective and ethical. We want to educate students on how to be good stewards of AI.”

M. Courtney Hughes, Christy Muasher-Kerwin,
and Hamed Alhoori look on as computer science
Ph.D. student Ibrahim Al Azher shows the team
data metrics.

Giving Caregivers Compassion and Support

Family caregivers are expected to increase as the population ages, people live longer with chronic diseases, and healthcare workforce shortages increase.

M. Courtney Hughes, Ph.D., public health professor, and Christy Muasher-Kerwin, PT, DPT, clinical assistant professor in the Doctor of Physical Therapy program, tap into AI to help positively impact the lives of family caregivers. The pair teamed up with Department of Computer Science associate professor Hamed Alhoori, Ph.D., and Department of Communication associate professor Shupei Yuan, Ph.D., to develop a solution to capture patient and caregiver experiences via smartphones and process the information using AI-enabled models.

NIU students from public health, nutrition, communication and computer science are collaborating on this transdisciplinary work and learning cutting-edge research skills.

“Our goal is to deliver real-time guidance to patients and family caregivers via smartphones,” said Hughes. “We will pilot test these solutions with family caregivers of patients with glioblastoma, the most common and most aggressive form of brain cancer.”

Hughes shared an example where AI could offer actionable solutions to support the patient and caregiver.

“It’s the middle of the night and a caregiver’s husband with diabetes and dementia wakes up drenched in sweat and confused,” Hughes said. “The caregiver asks the AI-enabled system, already trained on evidence-based data, what to do. Almost instantly, the caregiver receives instructions and a short video about checking her husband’s blood sugar and giving him glucose tablets. The system provides statements to help calm her husband and guide him back to bed. The system reminds her that she is not alone, and it is there to help.”

According to Hughes, physicians from Northwestern Medicine, the University of Chicago and Cook County Health volunteered to recruit participants, provide expertise and share findings. The American Brain Tumor Association believes this project will make a “meaningful difference” for glioblastoma patients and caregivers.

Assistant professor Cansu Tatar works with
middle school students engaged in AI
curriculum activities.

Helping Learners and Educators Succeed

Studying the integration of AI literacy in K-12 settings is the research focus of Cansu Tatar, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the Educational Technology, Research, and Assessment (ETRA) Department at NIU’s College of Education. She collaborates with visiting associate research professor Michael Tscholl, Ph.D., to study teaching AI concepts to middle school students. They are developing technology-enhanced K-12 curricula to support students’ understanding of AI concepts through hands-on projects.

Recently, middle school students collected their own data, trained AI models and designed AI games. NIU Ph.D. students were involved in this curriculum intervention and gained valuable experience performing data collection, analysis and interpretation.

Tatar also integrates everyday uses of AI in her classes. For example, she teaches students to use an AI app to prepare lesson plans and check the alignment of learning objectives with standards to free up valuable time in their future careers.

“Our research will provide valuable insights about how to introduce AI concepts to middle school students and integrate AI activities into K-12 classroom curricula to support AI literacy, attitudes and motivation,” Tatar said.

Left to right: David Changnon, Alex Haberlie, Mark Frank, Tom Skilling (former WGN-TV meteorologist and NIU honorary Ph.D. recipient), Walker Ashley, Victor Gensini.

Speeding up Research and Accuracy

Department of Earth, Atmosphere and Environment assistant professor Alex Haberlie, Ph.D., received a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to explore using AI to enhance high-resolution climate project ions. The research could influence how communities and policymakers respond to and prepare for the effects of climate change while providing hands-on training for a graduate student to train modern AI tools to advance climate and data science research.

“We have a unique and extensive dataset that took Dr. Victor Gensini and Dr. Allison Michaelis years to create,” said Haberlie. “However, because the data creation process is slow, using an AI approach called climate emulation could accelerate this process and increase accuracy.”

The project will evaluate if AI can simulate rainfall projections faster and more efficiently than traditional models. Ultimately, if AI can generate the same level of detail and accuracy using fewer resources, cl imate modeling will be more accessible.

Adventuring in the Possibilities

These AI use cases are just a sampling of the ingenuity and assessment of AI that NIU faculty and students are exploring. AI’s potential is profound, and adventuring in its possibilities to enrich learning, advance research and prepare students for the future is essential to nurturing a collaborative learning environment and state-of-the-art research institution.