Pedagogical agents communicating and scaffolding students' learning: High school teachers' and students' perspectives

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Pedagogical agents (PAs) communicate verbally and non-verbally with students in digital and virtual reality/augmented reality learning environments. PAs have been shown to be beneficial for learning, and generative artificial intelligence, such as large language models, can improve PAs' communication abilities significantly. K-12 education is underrepresented in learning technology research and teachers' and students' insights have not been considered when developing PA communication. The current study addresses this research gap by conducting and analyzing semi-structured, in-depth interviews with eleven high school teachers and sixteen high school students about their expectations for PAs' communication capabilities. The interviewees identified relational and task-related communication capabilities that a PA should perform to communicate effectively with students and scaffold their learning. PA communication that is simultaneously affirmative and relational can induce immediacy, foster the relationship and engagement with a PA, and support students' learning management. Additionally, the teachers and students described the activities and technological aspects that should be considered when designing conversational PAs. The study showed that teachers and students applied human-to-human communication scripts when outlining their desired PA communication characteristics. The study offers novel insights and recommendations to researchers and developers on the communicational, pedagogical, and technological aspects that must be considered when designing communicative PAs that scaffold students’ learning, and discusses the contributions on human–machine communication in education.