New Hampshire Schools Offer AI Tutor Option for Subjects like Precalculus and ‘Gatsby’

Countless English classes have delved into the world of Lady Macbeth through the captivating monologues of Shakespeare’s Scottish play. In Act I, she passionately declares, “Come, you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here, and fill me from the crown to the toe top-full of direst cruelty,” challenging the societal norms of her gender and status.

In the upcoming academic year, students may have the unique opportunity to engage directly with this iconic character.

Through an innovative artificial intelligence program being introduced to New Hampshire schools, students will be able to interact with Lady Macbeth and even her ill-fated husband by posing questions of their choice. Powered by ChatGPT, a chatbot-style program will provide insights into her motivations, actions, and regrets.

Recently, the AI incarnation of Lady Macbeth shared, “Regret is a specter that haunts many a soul, yet in my union with Macbeth, I found not just a husband, but a partner in ambition,” in response to a query from the Bulletin. She then turned the tables on the reporter, asking, “Now, I ask thee, in thy own life, how dost thou measure the worth of thy decisions? Doth regret ever color thy reflections?”

The program, known as Khanmigo, has been developed by Khan Academy, an online educational platform offering resources for core middle and high school subjects. Beyond delving into Macbeth’s world, students can interact with a variety of pre-selected literary characters, quiz historical figures like Martin Luther King Jr. or Queen Victoria, and receive academic support ranging from English compositions to precalculus problems.

Following the approval of a $2.3 million federally funded contract by the Executive Council last month, New Hampshire school districts will have the opportunity to integrate Khanmigo into their teaching curriculum at no cost for the upcoming school year.

For some educators and administrators, Khanmigo represents a promising avenue. They believe the program can offer individualized attention and guidance to students of all levels, particularly amid challenges in teacher staffing.

On the other hand, some remain wary of introducing AI into educational settings, citing concerns about outdated or inaccurate information and the utilization of academic work to generate responses. Advocates of Khanmigo, which includes Department of Education Commissioner Frank Edelblut, argue that the program has stringent safeguards against inaccuracies compared to the public versions of ChatGPT and Gemini.

To provide a glimpse into the student experience, the Bulletin explored Khanmigo, exploring various subjects across different grade levels.

Chat-based learning

Khanmigo enables students to access Khan Academy’s library of tutorials, practice tasks, and quizzes covering a wide array of middle and high school subjects, including English language arts, social studies, science, and mathematics.

As students navigate through these lessons, the AI bot is on hand to assist them in comprehending concepts. Whether tackling a quiz on art history or AP economics, students can rely on the chatbot for guidance when they encounter challenges.

From the outset, the program acknowledges its potential errors, a phenomenon commonly known in the AI realm as “hallucinations.” These errors can arise from the AI model being trained on inaccurate data or encountering unanswerable queries.

“I’m relatively new, so I may make mistakes,” it explains to students upon login. “If you catch me making an error, click the Thumbs Down icon to help me learn. For instance, if I provide an incorrect math answer, click Thumbs Down.”

The AI assistant also reminds students that their questions are visible to teachers and parents, cautioning them against sharing personal information in their responses.