Authoring tools to build AIED systems
Stephen B. Blessing, Stephen B. Gilbert, STEVE RITTER · Edward Elgar Publishing eBooks · 2023
Easy-to-use authoring tools allow for more efficient and less costly creation of Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITSs). Such ITSs are shown to be educationally effective within the Artificial Intelligence in Education (AIED) literature, but authoring costs are a barrier to broader use. ITSs are more adaptive and flexible than other interactive systems, and authoring their intelligence requires more complexity than other instructional approaches. Development of ITS authoring tools has been an ongoing process for many years by many researchers. In this chapter, we discuss the considerations that go into creating these tools, such as the breadth of domains with which ITS authoring tools can engage and the role and capabilities of authors. We provide an overview of authoring tools across a variety of tutoring types, such as model-tracing, constraint-based, agent-based, and dialog-based tutors. We conclude with an assessment of the current state of authoring tools for ITSs and some discussion of their future.