A groundbreaking development in AI education has been achieved by a Leeds firm.
- The AI, named ‘Manda’, is designed to teach UK key stage 3 and 4 maths and English.
- ‘Manda’ is trained using data directly sourced from over 300 UK teachers.
- The project was executed for TLC LIVE, offering an affordable tutoring model.
- The AI adapts to updates in the national curriculum, ensuring up-to-date teaching methods.
In a significant advancement in the field of educational technology, a Leeds-based agency has pioneered an AI tutor named ‘Manda’, aimed at instructing students in UK key stage 3 and 4 maths and English. This AI is unique in that it utilises data derived directly from UK teachers, marking a first of its kind in the educational landscape. The project, executed in partnership with TLC LIVE, a provider of online tuition, signifies a milestone in leveraging AI to enhance learning affordability and accessibility.
The AI model, known as ‘Manda’, is based on the Llama 3 model released by Meta. This model has been meticulously fine-tuned with an impressive 550,000 minutes of transcribed educational explanations, sourced from over 300 qualified UK teachers affiliated with TLC LIVE. Such a robust training approach ensures that the AI tutor remains closely aligned with the practical teaching strategies employed by professional educators.
Luke Budka, the AI director at the Leeds agency, explained the process behind the AI’s development. The team utilised a private AI environment to sanitise the transcriptions, ensuring no personal data was included. They then extracted key educational content related to key stage 3 and 4 subjects to train the AI, thereby creating a dynamic tutoring platform that TLC can continually update to reflect any changes in educational standards.
Simon Barnes, the CEO of TLC, emphasised the company’s ongoing commitment to quality education. He acknowledged that while AI cannot replace the nuanced and adaptive capabilities of a live teacher, it offers a viable option for high-quality, cost-effective tutoring conforming to national curriculum standards. This initiative provides parents with a new educational tool amidst the proliferation of AI tutors in the market over recent months.
According to Josh Blackburn, COO at TLC LIVE, the timing of ‘Manda’s’ completion coincided with governmental initiatives to employ AI in educational tasks such as homework marking and lesson planning. Manda’s capability to generate text and code is regularly updated by TLC LIVE’s academic team to enhance its proficiency in guiding students. Furthermore, all interactions with the AI are safeguarded through encryption and checked against a list of prohibited terms to ensure a secure learning environment.
The development of ‘Manda’ represents a pivotal step in the intersection of AI and education, setting a new standard for future innovations.
