Computers Educ. Vol. 18, No. l-3, pp. 71-76, 1992 Printed in Great Britain. All rights reserved 0360-1315/92 $5.00 + 0.00 Copyright Q 1992 Pergamon Press plc zyxwvut CASCADE: INTRODUCING AI INTO CBT R. J. HENDLEY and N. JURASCHECK School of Computer Science, University of Birmingham, P.O. Box 363, Birmingham, England Abstract-This paper describes a 3-year project to investigate and implement the introduction of AI techniques into tertiary education. The project involved a substantial training component as well as the production of a number of pilot projects. The paper gives the rationale for the initiative, reports on the structure of the training, gives an overview of the pilot projects and summarises some of the lessons learned. 1. RATIONALE The training requirements of commerce and industry in the U.K. are changing rapidly, and will continue to do so over the next decade. The existing level of training is already a cause for concern: 70% of the current work force has received no training beyond the minimum school leaving age-a skill level which compares very unfavourably with that of other European countries, and with that which exists in many other parts of the world. Furthermore, demographic changes and the accelerating rate of technological change combine to cause a continuing increase in the amount of training required. The annual number of school leavers has declined since its peak in the middle years of the previous decade, and will continue to decline throughout the rest of this century. This demographic change will lead to an increase in the average age of the work force, and will mean that the traditional route for introducing new skills into the workplace will be restricted, just as it is most required. The rate of technological change is accelerating; it has been estimated that some two-thirds of the technology that will be in use in the year 2000 has yet to be invented. If industry and businesses are to compete effectively in a single European market, and internationally, they will need to take advantage of this technology. In order to do this they will need a labour force that is able to use and understand modern technology. It is clear from the above that the amount of training which takes place in the U.K. will need to increase dramatically in the course of the next decade. The target population is changing and will continue to change; currently most training is aimed at school leavers. In future more training will be directed towards the existing work force and towards other groups which need to be brought (back) into the workforce, e.g. the long term unemployed, or women returners. Thus there will be a need for radical changes to the structure and delivery of training, and in the training methods employed, rather than simply an expansion of existing training, following existing patterns. Changes in training requirements will bring about a need for changes in the methods of delivering training to trainees. Delivery of training by conventional methods will become more difficult because: l A large proportion of training will be in new technologies. In these areas there will, by definition, be a shortage of skilled personnel and a concomitant shortage of people able to deliver training. Where such people are available, labour costs (and therefore training costs) will be high. l Employers will want to minimise training costs. The direct costs of training will always be a concern, but the greater proportion of re-training (rather than initial training, e.g. of new employees) increases the potential costs incurred by loss of staff time. Thus there will be a greater requirement for training that is suited to the employer’s needs and which is delivered when and where it is convenient for the employer. These pressures on conventional training delivery methods will lead to movement away from large group, course-based training towards more individualised training. 71