BLADE: Better Language Answers through Dialogue and Explanations

Fuente: arXiv
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Autores principales: Jayaweera, Chathuri, Dorr, Bonnie J.
Formato: Preprint
Publicado: 2026
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author Jayaweera, Chathuri
Dorr, Bonnie J.
author_facet Jayaweera, Chathuri
Dorr, Bonnie J.
contents Large language model (LLM)-based educational assistants often provide direct answers that short-circuit learning by reducing exploration, self-explanation, and engagement with course materials. We present BLADE (Better Language Answers through Dialogue and Explanations), a grounded conversational assistant that guides learners to relevant instructional resources rather than supplying immediate solutions. BLADE uses a retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) framework over curated course content, dynamically surfacing pedagogically relevant excerpts in response to student queries. Instead of delivering final answers, BLADE prompts direct engagement with source materials to support conceptual understanding. We conduct an impact study in an undergraduate computer science course, with different course resource configurations and show that BLADE improves students' navigation of course resources and conceptual performance compared to simply providing the full inventory of course resources. These results demonstrate the potential of grounded conversational AI to reinforce active learning and evidence-based reasoning.
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publishDate 2026
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spellingShingle BLADE: Better Language Answers through Dialogue and Explanations
Jayaweera, Chathuri
Dorr, Bonnie J.
Human-Computer Interaction
Computation and Language
Large language model (LLM)-based educational assistants often provide direct answers that short-circuit learning by reducing exploration, self-explanation, and engagement with course materials. We present BLADE (Better Language Answers through Dialogue and Explanations), a grounded conversational assistant that guides learners to relevant instructional resources rather than supplying immediate solutions. BLADE uses a retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) framework over curated course content, dynamically surfacing pedagogically relevant excerpts in response to student queries. Instead of delivering final answers, BLADE prompts direct engagement with source materials to support conceptual understanding. We conduct an impact study in an undergraduate computer science course, with different course resource configurations and show that BLADE improves students' navigation of course resources and conceptual performance compared to simply providing the full inventory of course resources. These results demonstrate the potential of grounded conversational AI to reinforce active learning and evidence-based reasoning.
title BLADE: Better Language Answers through Dialogue and Explanations
topic Human-Computer Interaction
Computation and Language
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2604.03236