Abstract
This article documents, explores, and explains a paradox—that students who assert that a teacher provides better help than an artificially intelligent computer-based tutor nonetheless prefer using the tutor to learning in a more traditional manner and appear to learn more while doing so. An intensive qualitative study of eight classrooms using the tutors as well as control and comparison classrooms suggests three factors that account for this seeming inconsistency. First, rather than replacing the teacher, the tutor provided an additional resource for students. Second, using the tutors allowed teachers to provide more individualized help. Third, students using the tutors had more control over the kind and amount of help they received from the teacher, with helping interactions becoming more private and potentially less embarrassing. None of these changes were envisioned by the tutor’s developers, highlighting the importance of exploring the unintended effects of technology on classroom functioning.
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