AI is changing the way we work across a multitude of industries, and education is no exception. Agents—specialized AI assistants—take the power of generative AI a step further by allowing customization and the ability to work for you or alongside you. Agents in education can be tailored to support you with expertise in instructional design, unique student preferences, institutional data analysis, and many other tasks.
Transforming education with Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat
We believe there’s an opportunity to empower everyone with a copilot and transform education experiences with agents. That’s why we offer agents in Copilot Chat, available at no additional cost when referencing data from the web and on a pay-as-you-go basis when using institutional data. Agents are also available with a Microsoft 365 Copilot license.
You can build an agent using natural language and additional configuration in Copilot Chat or get started with an agent template. With Copilot Chat, agents can be accessed and managed directly in the chat and enterprise data protection helps keep your experience safe and secure.
Using Copilot Chat agents in education
Whether you’re building a custom agent or taking advantage of agent templates, there are numerous ways that agents in Copilot Chat can make a positive impact on your day-to-day activities. Here are some of the ways eligible students, educators, administrators, and leaders can benefit from agents in Copilot Chat:
- Provide immediate support – Answer commonly asked questions using your data sources and help navigate institutional resources in real-time. Agents can help troubleshoot IT issues, provide guidance from resources on school policies, programs, or processes like enrollment.
- Generate tailored content – Create the materials you need based on your instructions and reference resources whether it’s a study guide, lesson plan, professional development, or school communication. Upload your files like standards, curriculum documents, guidelines, or requirements to tailor your agent for the task.
- Test your knowledge – Build agents to help students succeed in their classes by designing them with specific instructions and materials. Agents can then support students as they study with custom quizzes, feedback, and practice through simulations of relevant real-world scenarios.
- Uncover and dive into insights – Instantly summarize, analyze, and explore insights across multiple files or a folder of knowledge. Understand and ask questions about trends in your data across areas like student performance, finance, operations, or community feedback.
Using agent templates in Copilot Chat
Microsoft 365 Copilot comes with a set of agent templates that are ready to use and perform a wide range of tasks to help support you. Here are a few existing agents that are ready to customize and use:
- Idea Coach – Enhance brainstorming with fun and engaging agenda and action plans.
- Prompt Coach – Create effective Copilot Chat prompts.
- Writing Coach – Refine your writing to boost effectiveness.
- Career Coach – Receive personalized career advice, goals, and action plans.
Select “Get agents” in the right-side panel of Copilot Chat to find agent templates, including the ones above. You can search for specific agents or simply browse the library within Copilot Chat to find additional agents that work for you. Additionally, your institution may have created tailored agents for you to use.
Creating agents in Copilot Chat
It’s quick and easy to create customized agents in Copilot Chat. Here’s how to start building your own agents:
- Create an agent. Select “Create an agent” in the right-side pane of Copilot Chat to open the agent builder. You can create and name your new agent or choose a provided template.
- Define your agent’s instructions. Use the chat to describe what you’d like your agent to do. You should also include the style and tone it should use while completing tasks. For example: “Create an agent to help students in my Intro to Business Comms study and prepare for the midterm.”
- Configure your agent. If you’d like to make improvements or changes to your agent, you can add documents, data, and files to its knowledge base. You can also edit your agent’s instructions at any time to adjust its responses.
- Publish the agent. When you’re happy with your agent’s output, you can publish your agent for you and others in your institution to use. As the needs of your institution change, you can continue to adjust your agent or create new ones for different purposes.
Here are some ways you can use your customized agents:
- Answering frequently asked questions.
- Helping new students navigate school resources.
- Giving feedback based on existing rubrics or frameworks.
- Explore insights from data in accessible ways.
- Tailoring lessons to specific content, standards, or student needs.
You can keep agents up to date by selecting “Create an agent” to open the agent builder and expanding the drop-down menu at the top to select “View all agents.” This will allow you to view, edit, and share agents within your institution and ensure they’re still meeting your needs.
Managing agents in Copilot Chat for IT admins
The key to successful agent management for IT administrators is understanding how agent usage is measured and billed. Each agent’s usage is tracked by the number of messages they handle, and the total cost for your institution is calculated based on the sum of these messages.
For IT admins, purchasing messages is straightforward. You can buy them through the Copilot Studio meter in Microsoft Azure, which offers a convenient pay-as-you-go option. Once you’ve got your messages, Microsoft Power Platform admin center is where you’ll set up billing and assign message capacity to Copilot Chat and individual agents.
It’s important to note that agent message usage can vary. Factors such as an agent’s complexity, how frequently they’re used, and the specific features they employ all play a role in determining their message count. See a quick walkthrough of agent management within Microsoft Power Platform admin center and learn more about agent management.
Agent innovation in education
Agents in Copilot Chat offer ways to enhance and streamline your daily activities. You can build one using natural language or start with an agent template. Managing agents directly within Copilot Chat is designed to be seamless, and enterprise data protection helps keep your experience secure. Discover how agents can provide immediate support by answering common questions and navigating institutional resources, generate tailored content like study guides and lesson plans, and uncover valuable insights from your data.
We’re excited to continue developing resources to support your use of AI in education. Whether you choose to create custom agents or use templates, Copilot Chat helps to ensure a secure and efficient way to make AI work for you. Explore how using agents in education can support your unique needs and help free up your time to focus on what matters most.
