The Challenge
Professors within the psychology department at North West University found that traditional training methods for the professional Masters in Psychology programme, including peer-to-peer roleplay activities, were insufficient in preparing students for interactive hospital sessions with patients. Previously used methods, like roleplay, tended to trigger anxiety among students and stifle the authenticity of the learning experience.
Furthermore, educators found that many students dealt with language barriers in the academic environment, resulting in them struggling to properly and confidently engage with course material and communicate effectively.
There was a clear need for a better way to prepare psychology students for real-life, conversational sessions with patients as well as a more accessible and user-friendly learning tool to use throughout coursework.
How AI Tutors Work In NWU’s Psychology Department with Mindjoy
NWU’s Psychology Department has introduced a specialised version of Mindjoy’s AI tutor to postgraduate psychology courses. The tutor, nicknamed “James”, has been provided with a detailed personal history and personality set out in a rubric created by Professor Caroll Hermann. James has been specifically designed to allow students to converse with it in the same manner in which they would communicate with real clients and patients, practising communication skills, empathy, how to ask questions, and how to think off the cuff.
In addition to serving as a tool for students to practise their interactive skills with patients, the AI simulation also provides retrospective insights. These insights provide students with almost instantaneous feedback on their performance, pointing out both their strengths and weaknesses in asking questions and responding appropriately. Furthermore, these insights are then used by educators to understand potential problem areas within the class so that additional effort can be directed towards these topics.
While James was initially developed for general use in everyday training for clinical sessions, students requested that the AI tutor be utilized within the formal assessment process.
Mindjoy’s tutors have also been integrated into undergraduate courses, allowing students to interact with module content and course work in their own time and in their own languages. The AI tutor gives them the opportunity to ask questions and request explanations in an environment that is comfortable, convenient, and makes them feel less vulnerable than if they were to raise their hand in a lecture or approach professors directly.
The Impact
Within NWU’s Psychology Department, the introduction of a specialized AI simulation programme has provided students with the means to properly practice and hone their clinical conversational skills in situations that are significantly more authentic and comfortable than ever before. The students are able to engage with a sophisticated tutor that can respond insightfully and create ideal grounds for the training of clinical skills.
Additionally, the AI tutor also provides students with valuable feedback on their performance, highlighting potential areas for improvement and pointing out key moments or scenarios that could have been handled differently. Educators have noticed students taking this feedback into consideration in future use of the AI tutor.
As a result, psychology students feel more confident and far better equipped with real-world skills that they will require moving forward in an incredibly competitive academic and professional field.
Furthermore, the implementation of Mindjoy’s AI tutor within undergraduate and honors courses in the department has resulted in a remarkable improvement in both student performance and engagement. One notoriously difficult honors class in particular improved from a 10% pass rate to 100% within a single semester of students gaining access to the AI simulation.
In addition to the unequivocal improvement of academic performance, educators have noticed somewhat of a revival of interest and passion in coursework within the psychology department. Students seem to be more keen and willing to engage with coursework due to the improved ease of use, accessibility, and the establishment of a comfortable space in which to learn and practice their skills.
