Leveraging Graph Retrieval-Augmented Generation to Support Learners' Understanding of Knowledge Concepts in MOOCs

TL;DR

This paper introduces a Graph RAG system that uses educational and personal knowledge graphs to enhance personalized learning and understanding of concepts in MOOCs, addressing limitations of traditional LLMs.

Contribution

It proposes a novel Graph RAG pipeline integrating EduKGs and PKGs for personalized question generation and knowledge-based question answering in MOOCs.

Findings

Graph RAG improves learner understanding of concepts.

Personalized question recommendations enhance engagement.

Expert evaluation confirms system's potential.

Abstract

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) lack direct interaction between learners and instructors, making it challenging for learners to understand new knowledge concepts. Recently, learners have increasingly used Large Language Models (LLMs) to support them in acquiring new knowledge. However, LLMs are prone to hallucinations which limits their reliability. Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) addresses this issue by retrieving relevant documents before generating a response. However, the application of RAG across different MOOCs is limited by unstructured learning material. Furthermore, current RAG systems do not actively guide learners toward their learning needs. To address these challenges, we propose a Graph RAG pipeline that leverages Educational Knowledge Graphs (EduKGs) and Personal Knowledge Graphs (PKGs) to guide learners to understand knowledge concepts in the MOOC platform CourseMapper. Specifically, we implement (1) a PKG-based Question Generation method to recommend personalized questions for learners in context, and (2) an EduKG-based Question Answering method that leverages the relationships between knowledge concepts in the EduKG to answer learner selected questions. To evaluate both methods, we conducted a study with 3 expert instructors on 3 different MOOCs in the MOOC platform CourseMapper. The results of the evaluation show the potential of Graph RAG to empower learners to understand new knowledge concepts in a personalized learning experience.