TAL Education uses artificial intelligence to improve online tutoring as it eyes new markets
The NYSE-listed private tutoring group is using face and voice recognition to monitor students’ understanding during online classes
A private tutoring group targeting primary and secondary schoolchildren in China said it is ready to expand into new markets, starting with a subsidiary school in Hong Kong this month.
A move into the US is also on the cards for TAL Education in the summer, with discussions under way about acquiring new businesses there, according to its president, Bai Yunfeng.
The New York Stock Exchange-listed company’s move into overseas markets comes as it researches new ways to apply artificial intelligence in online education.
Bai said TAL is working with Stanford University in the US to further advance the use of AI in its online tutoring programme. The two formed an alliance earlier this year to explore applications of AI in assessing students’ comprehension during the learning process.
TAL’s online platform has been capturing data on students’ level of understanding by using facial and voice recognition technologies. Its team can use the data to give tuition support after class, or deliver more personalised educational content to users.
Bai claimed during this week’s Boao Forum on Hainan island that TAL is one of the leading private tutoring groups with a large share of China’s “K-12” after-school tutoring market. In China, there are currently 150 million students in the “K-12” market.
He said the group is ready to build on that lead by extending its curriculum and services to Hong Kong in April. “K-12” refers to the period from the year before first grade through to the last year of high school.