Overview

Introduction

This document provides guidelines for using Intelligent Text for Enhanced Lifelong Learning (iTELL) for users. We cover the iTELL adaptation of Principles of Macroeconomics. The textbook was redesigned into an interactive web version by a team comprising a subject matter expert, a content and assessment developer, a multimedia and web developer, and an instructional designer from Georgia Tech.

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank the authors and contributors of the original textbook. We also appreciate Affordable Learning Georgia, the National Science Foundation, and The National AI Institute for Adult Learning and Online Education (AI-ALOE) for providing funds to support this project.

1. Getting Started

Surveys

BEFORE you start using iTELL, make sure that you have completed your intake survey and have been explicitly redirected to this page.

You are also required to complete an outtake survey AFTER you FINISH using iTELL. You will be automatically redirected to the outtake survey after you have completed all iTELL tasks. The outtake survey will require you to input a completion code which will be provided at the end of the task.

External Plugins

Please ensure that you have disabled all external plugins (e.g., adblock) before using this application.

Access the App

Use the url (https://itell-poe.vercel.app/) to access the web app.

Sign in

You can login with your Google account. Follow the steps below:

1. Click on the sign in button (1) on the top right of your screen.

2. You can use your Google account to log in.

2. Making Progress in iTELL

Pages

The textbook's contents are divided into Pages. You can access different Pages using the left-side navigation bar.

Below is an overview of what a Page in an iTELL book looks like.

(1) The progress bar (in (blue)) shows how far you have scrolled down the page. (2) The left-side navigation bar will have links to different Chapters and Sections within the Module. Pages with checkmarks mean that you have completed those pages. Pages with locks mean that you have to complete the preceding page to unlock those pages. (3) If you get stuck at any point, click on this Reset page button to restart your progress for the page. (4) Click on this quick link to move to the bottom of the page where the Summary-writing textbox is located. (5) Click on this quick link to move to the top of the page. (6) The right-side navigation bar will have quick links to different subsections within the page. (7) Click on this box to start engaging with iTELL's conversational AI.

Making Progress

In most Pages, you will be asked to 1) answer constructed response items and 2) write a summary. You will not be able to proceed to the next page without successfully completing all tasks on your current page.

1) Read

Most of the contents in a page will be blurred at the beginning. As you read through the page, click on the red button (1) that reads "Click here to continue reading" to unblur the next section (2) and continue reading.

2) Answer Constructed Response Items

Some parts of the text will have constructed response items instead of the "Click here to continue reading" button. These items are short written questions where you provide a brief explanation of a concept to demonstrate your understanding of the text that you have read.

3) Write a Summary

A summary text box is located at the bottom of each page. After you answer all constructed response items on your current page, you will be asked to summarize the contents of the page before you can move on to the next Section. Write a summary and submit it to have it evaluated by the AI tutor.

> What makes a successful summary

A successful summary will…

• Be within 50 ~ 200 words long
• Be written in English
• Be on topic
• Not be plagiarized
• Use appropriate language

> Evaluation

Your summary will be evaluated by the AI engine and give it a passing or a failing grade. The evaluation will be based on four different factors:

• Content: which will include main points, details to support those main points, and general organization of summary
• Language: which will evaluate the lexical and syntactic structures of your summary.
• Paraphrasing: which will include appropriate paraphrasing of text and using objective language
• Key words: which will include the use of important terms and phases from the text

> Feedback

If your summary fails to pass the evaluation, you will be given additional attempts to revise and resubmit your summary. Click on the Details tab to access more detailed feedback to help you write a better summary.

> Re-reading

If your summary fails to pass the evaluation, iTELL's conversational agent (iTELL AI) will analyze your summary and redirect you to a part of the textbook that you could re-read to write a better summary. Read more about this process below in the iTELL AI section.

> Notes

• Your past summaries will be accessible from your dashboard.

3. iTELL AI

Starting a Conversation

iTELL provides a conversational agent that will answer any questions related to the textbook. Click on the module located at the bottom right of the screen to start a conversation with iTELL AI.

Assisted Re-reading

If you submit a summary that does not pass the evaluation, iTELL AI will automatically redirect you to a part of the textbook that you should re-read to improve your understanding of the textbook and to write a better summary.

Make sure to spend enough time re-reading the highlighted text. Click on the I'm ready for question button when you are ready to answer a question about the passage.

Answer the question and engage in a conversation with iTELL AI to gain a better understanding of the passage. Once you feel that you have a better understanding of the text, click on the Return to summary button to go back to the summary module and rewrite your summary.After responding to iTELL AI's question, you can continue to engage with iTELL AI, or go back to the summary module

iTELL AI will only automatically redirect you for re-reading one time per page. If you submit more summaries that fail the evaluation, you will have the choice to manually engage in this re-reading activity by clicking on the See question button. Please note that this button will only appear if you submit a failing summary.

> Notes

• Like any other conversational agents, iTELL AI can make mistakes. Make sure to double check any important information.
• Some chapters in this iTELL volume will not support STAIRS

4. Dashboard

Statistics

Access your dashboard's statistics page by clicking on your profile icon at the top right and clicking on the Dashboard button.

From the statistics dashboard, you can access different learning statistics such as your progress (i.e., how many sections you have completed so far), summary statistics (the number of summaries you have submitted and the number of summaries that have passed the evaluation, etc.), and daily reading time. There will also be a quick link to your recent summaries available at the bottom right corner.

Summaries

You will be able to access your past summaries in the summaries tab (1) of your dashboard. Below is an overview of the Summaries page’s layout.

(1) Summaries tab. You can access the summaries page by clicking on this tab (or by clicking on your profile icon on the top right corner, then clicking on a separate summaries button) (2) Your past summaries are categorized by modules. Use this dropdown menu to access summaries from different modules (default is set to Module 1). (3) Click on this button to move to a specific section and write a new summary. (4) This part shows the time your past summaries were written on, and whether they passed (light blue check mark) or failed (light pink x mark) the AI’s evaluation.

Questions

In the Questions tab, you will have access to all the constructed response items that you have responded to while reading the text. Each row will contain your answer to a constructed response item. Clicking on the row will take you to the relevant chunk. The emojis to the right side denotes your score (poor, fair, excellent).

5. Other Features

Search Bar

iTELL has a search bar function that helps you find sections within the text that are most relevant to your designated search word. Access the search function by clicking on the search bar on the top right corner.

Clicking on the button will prompt a pop-up search bar where you can enter your target search word.

Notes and Highlights

You can leave notes and highlight parts of the textbook for future reference. Click and drag through the text to activate the notes and highlights function.

> Highlighting

Click on the Highlight button and the text block will be permanently highlighted unless you choose to delete it later.

> Removing highlights

Click on the highlighted text and you will be asked to confirm that you want to remove the highlight.

> Notes

Click and drag through the text to activate the notes and highlights function. Click on the Note button to open up a notepad on the right side of your screen. Type your note into the textbox and click on the return button (1) to save your note. The text color will change for the relevant part of the text.

You can also click on the created notes to edit them. You can change their color by clicking on (1) or edit the text contents by clicking on (2).

Dark Mode

Transition to dark mode by clicking on the sun icon on the top right corner (1) then on the Dark button (2). Switch back to Light mode by clicking on the Light button. You can also use your system setting by clicking on the System button.

6. Others

Notes

• The note feature might not function properly when there are multiple notes on the same line.
• The highlighting feature might not function properly when highlighting texts across different subsections.

Contact

• For technical issues or any other inquiries, email us at lear.lab.vu@gmail.com