Methods and standards for research on explainable artificial intelligence: Lessons from intelligent tutoring systems

Abstract

The DARPA Explainable Artificial Intelligence (AI) (XAI) Program focused on generating explanations for AI programs that use machine learning techniques. This article highlights progress during the DARPA Program (2017-2021) relative to research since the 1970s in the field of intelligent tutoring systems (ITSs). ITS researchers learned a great deal about explanation that is directly relevant to XAI. We suggest opportunities for future XAI research deriving from ITS methods, and consider the challenges shared by both ITS and XAI in using AI to assist people in solving difficult problems effectively and efficiently.