Didn’t make it to the ICLCA x Tailo webinar? No stress. We’ve got you covered with the key takeaways, the biggest audience questions (and answers), and a quick link to watch the whole thing back.
Let’s get into it 👇
Who Was There?
-
Mark Woolwine — Assistant Director of Learning Resources, University of Louisville
-
Chris Hughes — CEO & Founder, Estendio
-
Patrick Wheeler — CTO, Estendio
-
Naval Varghese — Product Marketing Lead, Tailo
Together, they tackled one of the biggest questions in higher education right now:
Can AI help students without compromising academic integrity?
Spoiler: Yes. But only if it’s done right.
5 Takeaways You Might Have Missed
AI isn’t going away – but students need more than just answers.
Chris put it best:
“We want students to actually learn — not just get a shortcut.”
Tools like ChatGPT are everywhere, but they’re not built for learning. Tailo is. It’s designed to coach students through reading and comprehension, not write the work for them.
Academic reading is a bigger challenge than we admit.
Post-COVID, reading ages are down. PDFs are dense. Students are overwhelmed. Tailo helps by breaking texts down into manageable pieces and guiding students through them – especially helpful for learners with reading challenges.
Guardrails matter.
Patrick highlighted how Tailo is engineered to avoid AI hallucinations and align with university policies:
“We’re focused on reinforcing learning — not replacing it.”
There’s still a gap between student usage and faculty familiarity with AI.
Mark shared stories from his own classroom where students readily admitted they use AI once the fear of penalty was removed. But faculty? Many still hadn’t even tried it.
Universities need better tools to match their AI policies.
A lot of institutions have rules, but no way to implement them. That’s where Education-First tools like Tailo come in – built from the ground up for the classroom.
Top Questions from the Audience – Answered
Q: Can students save documents they’ve read to revisit later in the semester? Are there annotation tools?
A: Yes. Students can save as many documents as they need and annotate freely – highlight, tag, and even mark things for follow-up in tutoring sessions.
Q: Can AI really help students with developmental reading levels (e.g., 3rd grade)?
A: Tailo isn’t a replacement for foundational reading instruction, but it can scaffold comprehension. It helps break down complex text, explain terminology, and guide students through summaries – building stamina over time.
Q: Can I try Tailo in a sandbox if I’m not ready to pilot yet?
A: Yes. Tailo offers sandbox access so you can explore features and understand how students engage – without committing to a full rollout.
Q: ChatGPT can summarize articles. What makes Tailo different?
A: Tailo is built for learning. It doesn’t just spit out answers – it walks students through reading, comprehension, and reflection. It’s aligned with academic integrity and designed to reinforce study skills, not shortcut them.
Q: How do you motivate students to use a tool like Tailo if ChatGPT is quicker and easier?
A: Tailo works because it’s embedded in how students actually learn. It saves them time without skipping the process, and the interface is built to reduce overwhelm (think: less tab-hopping, more focus). The result? Better confidence, stronger outcomes, and fewer “I’ll just ask AI to do it for me” moments.
Q: Who chooses what students see in Tailo? How do you prevent bias in the content?
A: Tailo gives institutions control. Tutors can preload readings and link materials to specific learning objectives. Guardrails like RAG (retrieval-augmented generation) and source verification reduce hallucinations — keeping AI output grounded in real academic sources.
Q: How do you help faculty realise they’re also teachers of reading?
A: This came up in a powerful audience question. Tailo works with study skills tutors and support centers to create tools that can be embedded across disciplines. The goal? Help students understand how to learn, not just what to learn – and support faculty in building that mindset into their courses.
Ready to See Tailo in Action?
We’re inviting a small number of forward-thinking universities to pilot Tailo, an education-first AI tool designed to help students deeply engage with research.
To register your interest in piloting Tailo, sign up here.
Schedule Your Pilot Planning Call
Reserve your spot today to discuss how Tailo can transform your university’s educational experience. Our team is ready to guide you through the pilot setup process. Spaces are limited. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to innovate with us!