Date
Publisher
arXiv
In recent years, synthetic media from deepfake videos have emerged as a new interesting technology, whether that refers to cloned voices, multilingual translation models, or more recent applications of avatar tutors into higher education. As such, these technologies are rapidly becoming part of the multilingual distance learning model and, more recently, MOOCs worldwide. This article is a scoping review that focuses on recent international literature published between 2020 and 2025 to explore the usage of deepfake and synthetic media tools and methods in multilingual MOOC content and assess the influence of these technologies on social presence and participation. Similarly, we focus on ethical and political issues that are closely connected with the adaptation of these technologies, and upon analysing educational technology and policy documents, such as UNESCO's Guidelines and the EU AI Act, we pinpoint that the use of synthetic avatars and AI-generated videos can diminish production costs and assist multilingual learning. Evidently, concerns arise regarding authenticity, privacy, and the shifting nature of the teacher-learner relationship that are thoroughly discussed. As a result, the technical merit of this paper is the proposal of a policy framework that, in an effort to address these issues, focuses on transparency, responsible governance, and AI literacy. The goal is not to replace human instruction but to integrate synthetic media in ways that strengthen pedagogical design, safeguard rights, and ensure that multilingual MOOCs become more interesting and inclusive rather than more automated robotic processes and unequal
Study at a glance
- Question: How are deepfakes and synthetic media used in multilingual online courses, and what are their pedagogical and ethical implications?
- Setting and data: 37 peer-reviewed and policy publications published between January 2020 and June 2025, heavily concentrated in Europe, North America, and East Asia.
- Method: Scoping review adhering to JBI and PRISMA-ScR guidelines with thematic analysis.
Why it matters
Synthetic media can make multilingual online courses more accessible and cost-effective, but deepfakes also raise major concerns about authenticity, privacy, and teacher-learner relationships.
Key findings
- AI-generated instructional videos and avatar tutors produce learning test scores comparable to human instruction, but students often experience lower social presence and emotional connection.
- Multimodal speech-to-speech translation and voice-cloning tools show strong promise for multilingual accessibility, yet they raise serious issues around accent representation and cultural nuances.
- Only a minority of reviewed empirical studies disclosed to participants that instructors were synthetic avatars, creating risks regarding deception and informed consent.
Summary drafted with AI from the full paper and may contain errors. See the full paper for details.
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