Adaptive learning technologies offer significant promise for bringing about fundamental improvements in education. However, interaction design for adaptive learning poses serious challenges. For the past several years our lab has been investigating a family of intelligent tutoring systems that have a dual focus on learning effectiveness and student engagement: narrative-centered learning environments. Narrative-centered learning environments integrate the inferential capabilities of intelligent tutoring systems with the rich gameplay supported by commercial game engines. In this talk we will introduce the principles motivating the design of narrative-centered learning environments, describe their roots in interactive narrative, explore the role of computational models to affect recognition and affect expression in their interactions, and discuss their cognitive and affective impact on students through empirical studies with K-12 students.
Dr. Lester earned his Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin in 1994 and since his graduation has been a member of the faculty in the Computer Science Department of North Carolina State University where his focus has been in computational linguistics and intelligent user interfaces. He has long been engaged in a concerted effort to design and evaluate next generation learning technologies ranging from intelligent tutoring systems to natural language tutorial dialogue systems and intelligent user interfaces. He has a particular interest in devising learning environments that integrate artificial intelligence and commercial game engines with learning environments that use AI computational frameworks to create the most effective, efficient, and engaging learning interactions for all learners, both within and outside of the classroom.