Amy Ogan

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Professor, Human-Computer Interaction Institute
School of Computer Science, Carnegie Mellon University
Director, Learning Science for Innovators
Courtesy Faculty, Carnegie Mellon University Africa

About Me

I am the Director of the Learning Science for Innovators program and a Professor in Carnegie Mellon University’s Human-Computer Interaction Institute, with a courtesy appointment at CMU-Africa. My research sits at the intersection of human-computer interaction, learning science, and educational technology, with a focus on designing learning experiences that are more engaging and effective. I have conducted field research on the deployment of educational technology across five continents. I have been named a Jacobs Foundation CRISP Fellow, World Economic Forum Young Scientist, and Rising Star in EECS by MIT. I have received the McCandless Chair, the Moran Professorship in Learning Science, the 2024 SIGCHI Societal Impact Award, and numerous best paper awards. Before CMU, I was a visiting researcher at USC’s Institute for Creative Technologies and the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile. My research is supported by the Mastercard Foundation, National Science Foundation, Google, McDonnell Foundation, and Jacobs Foundation.

Email: aeo@cs.cmu.edu
Office: Newell Simon Hall 3527
Admin: Reenie Kirby

My Research

Access to computers at school has greatly increased worldwide and across socioeconomic groups in recent years. The potential of educational software lies in its greater ease of deployment and inherent flexibility over textbooks and other physical resources, and its human-like ability to provide personalized just-in-time guidance. My research informs the design of next-generation educational technologies, supporting both social and cognitive aspects of learning. My interests encompass several threads, including: cultural issues in educational technologies, engendering rapport and relationships with social technologies to aid learning, and supporting teacher professional development through classroom sensing, resulting in the development of new technologies as well as contributions to learning theory. Several of my lab's current research directions are described below.

Taking Educational Technology Worldwide

I look at how culturally-relevant technology can aid student learning and teacher practice (and also how virtual learning environments can be used for learning in the domain of intercultural communication!). Generally, development and evaluation of artificial intelligence-based systems has been limited to WEIRD (Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, Democratic) places. However, the implicit values and practices embedded in these systems may not conform to the cultural norms of other contexts. Given the opportunities for cheap dissemination of software worldwide, it is important that these systems are designed appropriately to be maximally effective across cultures and socioeconomic status. My lab investigates the deployment of ed tech in sites including schools in Cote d'Ivoire, Tanzania, Mexico, Costa Rica, Brazil, the Philippines and Belgium, working with local researchers and school districts. Through observation, interviews, learning assessments, and log data, we explore perceptions and use of these systems. This research identifies key design and operational attributes of educational systems designed for a global scale. Our goal is to re-imagine these technologies to respond to diversity in cultural and socioeconomic contexts.

Engendering Rapport

Virtual agents can put a "human touch" on educational technology through conversation that supports learning. A carefully designed agent can create an experience that is engaging, meaningful, and social - qualities that students rarely use to describe today's computer-aided learning systems. However, a truly effective agent must do more than just present appropriate educational feedback. As with a teacher or peer, developing a personal connection through the understanding and expression of social behaviors is of chief importance. By understanding how humans do this, we can develop digital learning companions with accurate models of behavior to sustain long-term interpersonal and pedagogical relationships with learners.

Classroom Sensing for Teacher Professional Development

Every year millions of Americans attend college in pursuit of a better life. For years, research has shown that moving away from large lectures and increasing student engagement and participation in classrooms significantly improves learning and broader learning outcomes. However, most colleges still rely on lectures where students passively receive information from a professor. My lab addresses this systemic problem through the development of a new genre of technology: smart professional development tools. This suite consists of an interconnected set of systems that support instructors in acquiring new, beneficial teaching practices that will support student engagement and learning through the provision of near-real-time classroom data. Our system draws on technical and socio-technical advances in sensing, computer vision, machine learning, intelligent environments, and personal informatics, as well as frameworks of professional development in higher education.

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