Popular GenAI chatbots now include Study & Learn modes designed to support deeper learning rather than simply provide answers – but how effective are they? In this interactive session, participants will explore such modes in Gemini, Claude, Copilot, and Perplexity. Presenters will share findings from their recent study analyzing 3,000+ AI-led learning events and their alignment with Gagné’s Nine Events of Instruction. They will discuss how chatbots guide learning, scaffold understanding, and personalize instruction, while highlighting limitations such as cognitive overload, topic drift, and overly positive feedback that may create an “illusion of learning.” Participants will consider how these modes fit in educational settings and learn prompting strategies to improve AI-led learning. By the end, participants will be able to: 1) Explain how Study & Learn modes work; 2) Evaluate their educational value and limitations; 3) Apply prompting strategies to improve learning interactions.
Patricio Bastida Nava, University of Massachusetts Amherst