We Taught the AI. Now It Teaches Us

Hi, I'm the author.

I teach applied machine learning at UC Berkeley. The post argues that fixing the homework feedback loop is one of the bigger near-term opportunities, and that AI can finally deliver one-on-one tutoring, applying personalized mastery learning for every student.

There's obvious interest and momentum in this area. With Y-Combinator's request for startups, Andrew Ng (whom I always highly recommend) investing in this direction, Khan Academy making moves and more.

On the research side, two highlights:

1. Bloom's 2 sigma (1984): a tutored student outscored 98% of a conventional classroom, but tutoring does not scale. Later work has trimmed the 2 sigma number, though the direction holds. 2. A 2025 Harvard randomized controlled trial (RCT) (n=194) found students with a well-designed AI tutor had more than double the learning gains, in less time, than an active-learning class.

I don't think teachers are going away. The AI iterates and works with the students, while the human sets the direction, monitors and course corrects.

We still need people who know what's right, know what's wrong, and can imagine what's possible.