The Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Online Learning and Distance Education Processes: A Systematic Review of Empirical Studies

Artificial intelligence (AI) technologies are used in many dimensions of our lives, including education. Motivated by the increasing use of AI technologies and the current state of the art, this study examines research on AI from the perspective of online distance education. Following a systematic review protocol and using data mining and analytics approaches, the study examines a total of 276 publications. Accordingly, time trend analysis increases steadily with a peak in recent years, and China, India, and the United States are the leading countries in research on AI in online learning and distance education. Computer science and engineering are the research areas that make the most of the contribution, followed by social sciences. t-SNE analysis reveals three dominant clusters showing thematic tendencies, which are as follows: (1) how AI technologies are used in online teaching and learning processes, (2) how algorithms are used for the recognition, identification, and prediction of students' behaviors, and (3) adaptive and personalized learning empowered through artificial intelligence technologies. Additionally, the text mining and social network analysis identified three broad research themes, which are (1) educational data mining, learning analytics, and artificial intelligence for adaptive and personalized learning; (2) algorithmic online educational spaces, ethics, and human agency; and (3) online learning through detection, identification, recognition, and prediction.