Human-Centered Learning Engineering for the Emerging Intelligence Augmentation Economy

AbstractWe explore the intersection

We explore the intersection of human-centered engineering design methodologies, applied learning sciences, and data (instrumentation & analytics) realized in the practice of learning engineering in response to an emerging intelligence augmentation economy. As the nature of human endeavor and productivity changes with the advancement of HCI and AI technologies we predict an “intelligence augmentation economy” will replace the knowledge economy. Just like the industrial economy and service economies before it, the IA economy will fundamentally change the nature of work and what people need to learn to be its contributors and beneficiaries.

The demands of secondary and postsecondary education have already begun to shift from pre-career and preparation for life to mid-career adaptation, enrichment, and retraining [1]. The intelligence augmentation economy will require development of new skills for new kinds of collaborative work with intelligent agents. The lines between learning and working will blur, just as will the lines between the work of humans and the work of machines. Education institutions will be one source for life-long-learning in a world where work-embedded continuous adaptive learning is the norm.

The learning engineering process provides a methodology for educational institutions and work-embedded training partners to engineer new kinds of learning experiences suited to the needs of the intelligence augmentation economy. These new learning experiences will take full advantage of technologies such as augmented reality and intelligent agents.

We draw ideas from several chapters of the Learning Engineering Toolkit: Evidence-Based Practices from the Learning Sciences, Instructional Design, and Beyond [2]. We suggest a path to scaling HCI innovation through application of the learning engineering process to support a radically new future of learning and working in a new intelligence augmentation economy characterized by productivity gains through collaboration between people and intelligent agents.