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Can Gen AI democratise learning?
While commuting in his school bus in Mumbai, 12-year-old Aarav pulls out his smartphone, not to play games, but to ask an AI chatbot to explain a complex math problem.
Meanwhile, in a rural school in Uttar Pradesh, Priya uses a similar tool to translate into English and practice pronunciation. Welcome to the new face of education, where Generative Artificial Intelligence of GENAI has the potential to transform India’s learning landscape. An August 2024 report by Gateway Consulting revealed that 60% of Indian children in cities over age 10 years used GENAI tools such as CHATGPT, Gem-ini and Claude at least once a week, primarily for educational purposes.
This statistic highlights a significant shift in how India’s next generation approaches learning and problem- solving.
The Promise of Generative AI
India’s education system serves over 250 million students and has long grappled with challenges related to access, quality, personal attention, and a customized approach. This is where GENAI offers a solution, significantly enhancing accessibility and personalization, enabling students to learn at their own pace and comfort.
Anuvadini Al, an indigenously developed GENAI translation plat-form aims at enhancing communication and education across India’s diverse linguistic landscape. Anuvadiní Foundation was established by the Ministry of Education to realize the vision in the National Education Policy 2020, of leveraging technology for teaching, learning, testing and translation.
The platform was primarily designed with the objective of bridging the gap between 22 regional Indian languages and several foreign lan-guages. It addresses the significant language barriers faced by 80% of the Indian population who speak native languages while navigating educational and professional systems primarily dominated by Hindi and English. Its advanced features can accurately translate entire books and documents into various languages while preserving their original formats. It can also produce high-quality Al images and instantly translate speech. This makes it a transformative tool for students, businesses and the government (for delivering citizen services). Children and students in rural and remote areas can now access quality education and coaching which was previously out of reach, thereby contributing to social equity.
The Global Context
Globally, the integration of Al in education is gaining momentum. U.S. schools are currently navigating a complex landscape as they consider how to incorporate generative Altools like CHATGPT into their curricula. The initial reaction was largely negative, with many institutions blocking access to these tools due to concerns about cheating and academic integrity. For instance, the Los Angeles Unified School District quickly restricted access to Openai’s website following the launch of CHATGPT, fearing it would under-mine traditional assessments. Several prominent universities in the UK, such as Imperial College London and the University of Cambridge had also issued warnings to students about the use of CHATGPT for cheating.
However, as educators have begun exploring the potential benefits of Generative Al, perspectives are shifting. Many teachers now see GENAI not just as a tool for cheating but as a resource that can enhance learning by facilitating personalized lesson plans, promoting media literacy, and making lessons more interactive. Polls indicate a significant rise in usage among both students and teachers, with nearly half of K-12 students and teachers reporting weekly use of Al tools.
In October 2022, the European Com-mission published ethical guidelines for the use of Al in education, emphasizing that educators should use Al critically. The guidelines encourage active involvement of educators in continuous learning about AI’S ethical implications and recommend schools to plan, pilot and monitor Al systems with clear policies and engage with the wider community including parents and students for better trust and understanding.
While several countries initially took steps towards implementing bans or regulating Generative AI in educational institutions, India has is yet to issue any model guidelines to educational institutions.
As these global trends unfold, it is crucial to recognize that despite the promise of GENAI in education, there are significant challenges that need careful consideration.
Challenges and Concerns
Despite its potential, adoption of GENAI in education raises certain concerns, including biases, lack of transparency regarding information
sources, over-dependence on technology, exposure to inappropriate content, and the inability to foster genuine human connections. In addition, there could be inaccuracies related to socio-political and socio-cultural matters that potentially influence children’s perspectives without proper context or critical evaluation. Furthermore, ambiguity surrounding the origin and credibility of information provided by AI systems raises questions about their accuracy and reliability, which may erode trust in Ai-generated content.
Additionally, the digital divide poses a significant challenge; while urban students like Aarav have easy access to Al tools, many in rural areas like Priya struggle with basic internet connectivity, risking further educational inequalities. The reliance on GENAI may also lead children to become less inclined to engage in research, learning, and problem-solving. This dependence could diminish their ability to rationalize, factcheck, and critically evaluate information, resulting in an incomplete understanding of complex topics. Moreover, children might view i-generated information as absolute truth without questioning its accuracy or source, leading to passive consumption of biased or misleading content that could impede their intellectual growth and development.
Concerns also arise from AI’S inability to understand social and emotional perspectives during interactions, raising doubts about its efficacy in fostering meaningful human connections and empathy in children. The potential substitution of genuine human interactions with Al could deprive children of essential social skills, empathy, and interpersonal communication abilities. Additionally, inadequate measures for age verification and ensuring child safety can lead to potential exposure to inappropriate content or topics not suitable for their age groups.
The Way Forward
As India stands at this technological crossroads, a balanced approach is crucial. The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 acknowledges the role of artificial intelligence (AI) in transforming education, highlighting its potential in personalized learning, assessments, and skill development. It also proposes the integration of AI and other emerging technologies into the curriculum to prepare students for a rapidly changing workforce.
However, the NEP was issued in 2020, and since then, the field of Al has seen significant advancements, particularly with the emergence of Generative AI. It will not be an exaggeration to say that the use of Gen AI by students will be the norm rather than the exception.
In light of these developments, it is important to recognize that the NEP may need updates to stay relevant, especially in how it addresses learn-ing and student evaluation systems. While the NEP provides a robust overarching framework, there are areas where refinements are necessary, particularly the manner in which educators and students lever-age Generative Al for various pur-poses. Adapting the NEP to incorporate these innovations will be key to making it fully relevant and implementable in the current educational landscape.
The integration of Generative Al in education would require a multi-pronged strategy. This approach would include, on one hand, educating teachers and parents on using Generative Al effectively and its integration by schools into the curriculum, teaching students how to use these tools effectively and ethic-ally.
The focus needs to be on using Al to enhance critical thinking skills, encouraging students to question and verify Ai-generated information. Developing model guidelines which are clear and ethical for AI’S use in education will be crucial to address various aspects including privacy, bias, content moderation, using authentic sources, copyright protection and the like. Finally, initiatives to ensure equitable access to Al tools across urban and rural areas are essential for bridging the digital divide.
By embracing this technology responsibly and thoughtfully, India can pioneer a new model of education that combines the best of human teaching with the power of artificial intelligence.
As young Aarav and Priya navigate their enhanced learning journeys, they represent the face of a new India one that is tech-savvy, globally competitive, yet rooted in its rich cultural heritage. The success of this educational transformation will depend on how well we guide our children to use these powerful tools, ensuring they become not just consumers of Generative Al, but creative masters of it. The challenge now is ensuring that every child, from urban metros to the remotest villages, can benefit from this resolution, creating a future where education knows no boundaries.