Carnegie Mellon fellowships inspire Qatar faculty to improve teaching with AI
Two faculty members at Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar (CMU-Q) are researching how generative AI tools can be used to improve teaching and learning in undergraduate coursework.
Houda Bouamor and Nimer Murshid have been granted fellowships by Carnegie Mellon’s Eberly Center to explore the use of GenAI tools in order to enhance the student learning experience and process. The fellowships are part of CMU’s Generative Artificial Intelligence Teaching as Research (GAITAR) Initiative, launched in October 2023, to measure the impacts of the generative artificial intelligence (GAI) tools on students’ learning and educational experiences at Carnegie Mellon University.
Bouamor is an associate teaching professor and associate area head of information systems at CMU-Q. For her fellowship, she has teamed up with Dietrich College faculty Larry Heimann and Shihong Huang to explore the question if generative AI tools help level the playing field between students, giving less-experienced students a better chance to be successful in technical classes.
“We are just beginning to understand how generative AI tools can enhance learning, and this includes in technical fields like information systems and computer science,” said Bouamor. “Our question is fundamentally one of equity: can these tools help students who have gaps in knowledge to catch up to their more experienced classmates?”
Murshid is an assistant teaching professor of chemistry at CMU-Q, and during his GAITAR fellowship he will be investigating if generative AI tools can enrich learning in non-major elective courses like chemistry.
“At the heart of this initiative is the observation that learning is a unique journey for each student,” said Murshid. “Through this investigation, I hope to see if AI tools can personalize education more effectively, catering to individual learning paces and needs.”
Murshid will also explore whether these AI tools have different impacts on students from different academic disciplines when learning the same topic.
Artificial intelligence was invented at Carnegie Mellon University more than half a century ago, and CMU remains at the forefront of AI research. At the Qatar campus, AI is an integral part of coursework in each major.