Data-driven cognitive technologies will enable personalised education and improve outcomes for students, educators and administrators. Ultimately, education experiences will be transformed and improved when data can accompany the students throughout their life-long learning journey. What is the future of education? Find out soon from our next #IBMfuturEd study.

1. Personalised education
From curriculum to career with cognitive systems

2. “A major difference between healthcare and education is
that if 50 percent of the patients died that entered a
hospital, they would close the hospital. In education, if 50
percent of kids drop out of a high school – to become the
‘living dead’ – they bring in the next class.”
- Michael Moe et al, Global Silicon Valley,
‘2020 Vision: A History of the Future’, Fall 2015
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3. Data-driven cognitive
technologies will enable
personalised education
and improve outcomes
for students, educators
and administrators.
Ultimately, education
experiences will be
improved when data can
accompany the student
throughout their lifelong
learning journey.
Personalised education: IBM’s Point of View
© 2016 IBM Corporation3

4. Student appetite for digital tools throughout education is strong – creating more memorable
and engaging learning experiences and exciting possibilities for students and educators.
Pressure is created for education professionals who are not always ‘digital natives’. Schools
experience many challenges adopting new technologies and few are making widespread use
of advanced analytics.
A number of leading practices have been identified
Some educators are achieving good results deploying digital services but there are hundreds
available. More help is needed.
© 2016 IBM Corporation
Education is evolving and, despite challenges, new digital services are being
embraced by educators
“The kids are very engaged with technology ….
When they’re hands-on with a piece of
technology, it sticks better using all modalities
of learning.”
USA High School
© 2016 IBM Corporation4

5. Education is a journey for us all. Cognitive systems will act as a roadmap
Imagine the benefit to Cordelia that a cognitive education assistant could have in providing a truly
personalised education experience which addresses her learning needs and informs her key
choices along the path.
At each stage in her lifelong learning journey cognitive systems will increasingly play a role in
unlocking potential and driving a seamless experience.
5
Primary Secondary University Work
Meet Cordelia. As a young student she faces many choices and
challenges. What if technology could improve her educational
experience to the extent that it delivered something tailored for
Cordelia, helping her attain higher outcomes and be better equipped
for the world of work?
© 2016 IBM Corporation

6. Personalised learning has
long been the goal for
educators and a new form of
(cognitive) technology could
contribute significantly.
Cognitive systems can
understand, reason and
learn. They interact with
humans naturally to interpret
data, learning from every
interaction.
© 2015 IBM Corporation
Data-driven cognitive systems will enable personalised
education and improve outcomes for all
“With technology it is easier to send each student down a different
track. Once you do that, there are huge levels of possibilities. You are
no longer restricted by just having one teacher teach 30 kids the same
thing”
Digital services vendor
© 2016 IBM Corporation6

7. Most countries have an electronic health record. Education could benefit from a similar idea.
Two scenarios exist – personal data to support lifelong learning and aggregated anonymised
data for cognitive assistants to help educators choose the best options for a student.
Authenticity, context, privacy and security challenges need to be addressed – probably by
governments. Once students see value they are more likely to share their data.
© 2016 IBM Corporation
The education experience will be improved when data can accompany the
student throughout their lifelong learning journey
“Deeply immersive interactive experiences with
intelligent tutoring systems can transform how
we learn”
Satya Nitta, Cognitive Sciences and Education, IBM Research
© 2016 IBM Corporation7

8. Today’s millennial generation believe that man plus machine will be greater than either on
their own.
98% of students we surveyed see the need to keep learning throughout their working lives.
This pathway to career longevity will be focused on skills such as communication,
leadership, teamwork, problem-solving, people management and critical thinking.
© 2016 IBM Corporation
The world of work and education in 2056 is a reality for students entering the
job market today
“In 40 years time I think skills in the workplace will revolve
around the ability to be able to understand, use and have
had experience with cognitive services. Employees will
need to be able to adapt quickly to changing markets and
job requirements, changing technology and the changing
needs of clients.”
UK intern
© 2016 IBM Corporation8

9. How do we see the journey from curriculum to career with cognitive systems?
Education as an industry and the educational professionals within it
are being challenged by the storms of digital disruption to prove their
relevance, to maximise value for stakeholders and find ways to
reinvent.
Educators will need to evolve by embracing cognitive systems to
deliver personalised learning and just-in-time pedagogy to drive
improved outcomes for all.
“The 21st-century learner will demand and deserve no less.”
…and so will Cordelia!
© 2016 IBM Corporation9
To learn more follow us on Twitter @IBMEducation
#IBMFuturEd

10. In this research we set out to find out how educators are using digital education services and
cognitive systems to deliver personalised education. We wanted to cut through the industry
hype and understand from early adopters how it worked in real life. What are the challenges,
what can we learn from successful implementations and what are the results? What did vendors
think was possible and what did students actually experience?
The paper is based on four research inputs:
(i) In-depth interviews with 47 educational providers and 6 vendors in the USA, India, South Africa
and the UK
(ii) A survey of 126 IBM interns based in the UK
(iii) Interviews with 3 IBM Watson partners focused on the education sector
(iv) Social listening from over 150,000 tweets relating to conversations around education
To learn more follow us on Twitter @IBMEducation
#IBMFuturEd
© 2016 IBM Corporation
About the research
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11. About the authors
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Mike King is the worldwide leader for the IBM Education Industry with responsibility for strategy, marketing and sales across schools
and higher education. Mike can be contacted on LinkedIn and at mdking@us.ibm.com.
Richard Cave is a Principal with IBM Market Development and Insights. He conducts primary research and develops insight into
emerging business and technology trends for forward thinkers. Richard can be contacted at LinkedIn and at
richard_cave@uk.ibm.com.
Mike Foden is a Consultant with IBM Market Development and Insights who has 20 years’ experience in market analysis across IT,
retail and consumer behaviour. He currently specialises in emerging and strategic business and technology topics. Mike can be
contacted at LinkedIn and at mike_foden@uk.ibm.com.
Matthew Stent leads IBM’s Market Development & Insights Digital Horizons team in Europe and has a long-held passion for
championing market intelligence and insights within IBM. His past fields of expertise are broad, covering a variety of industries,
geographic regions and technologies. Matthew can be contacted on twitter @mjstent and at stent@se.ibm.com.
Key Contributor: Katharine Frase
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References in this publication to IBM products and services do not imply that IBM intends to make them
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© 2016 IBM Corporation
© Copyright IBM Corporation 2016
Produced in the United Kingdom