The University of Iceland and the language technology company Miðeind have entered into a partnership agreement that guarantees students who need additional support in their studies access to the foremost language technology and AI solutions for Icelandic. The agreement is part of an effort to utilise technology as an equaliser to meet the diverse needs of the university's students.

Access for all

The agreement was made at the initiative of the Student Counselling Centre at the University of Iceland and concerns its clients. These are students who face various challenges in their studies, such as dyslexia and other specific learning difficulties or physical disabilities. The aim is to provide students with tools that bridge the gap and enable them to pursue their studies on an equal footing.

The University of Iceland has adopted a policy which states that “[l]anguage technology shall be used to assist students and staff with the processing of Icelandic and to provide guidance on language use. Students and staff shall have the opportunity to use language technology tools for Icelandic, such as proofreading software, text-to-speech synthesisers, speech-to-text software and translation software. Emphasis shall be placed on language technology tools that are useful for disabled people in their studies and work”. The collaboration with Miðeind is part of implementing this policy, for the benefit of the university and society.

Supports the student but doesn't take control

The core of the collaboration is access to Málstaður (malstadur.is), Miðeind's language technology platform that puts the technology directly into the hands of the public and businesses. There, students are provided with a variety of tools, including a grammar checker, speech recognition (speech-to-text), machine translation, and text simplification and summarisation.

The technology is intended to support users rather than complete projects for them. By simplifying and proofreading texts or using speech recognition to get their thoughts down on paper, students can overcome technical and formal obstacles and concentrate on content and creative thinking.

Collaboration for continuous improvement

The University of Iceland will share students' experience of using Málstaður with Miðeind, which will use the feedback to further develop the tools. This will create an active collaboration where the needs of the university community shape the future of Icelandic language technology.

“We see this technology as a powerful equaliser. By giving our students access to these solutions, we are removing obstacles that might otherwise stand in the way of successful studies. It is important that the technology is used to activate the student and enhance their skills on their own terms,” says Svandís Sturludóttir, Head of the Student Counselling Centre.

“It is of great value to us at Miðeind to see our technology being used where it provides such tangible benefits as in this project. Our vision is that AI should be human-enhancing and support the Icelandic language. The collaboration with the University of Iceland ensures that we are developing solutions that meet real needs and help a diverse group of people to flourish,” says Linda Heimisdóttir, CEO of Miðeind.