At the forefront of technological innovation lies Artificial Intelligence (AI) where it revolutionizes various facets of society including education. The recent development of AI technologies pave the way for future learning where AI is not just a tool but a seamless extension of human’s capabilities. Although not novel, the idea of human-machine synergy is constantly developing. The guest editor of this issue of SingTeach NIE Associate Professor Chen Wenli sheds some light on the profound impact of AI on education while also addressing common challenges and concerns in AI for Education (AIED).

Understanding the Human–AI Synergy

In March 2024, Education Minister Mr Chan Chun Sing mentioned in his speech at Leading the Era of AI that Artificial Intelligence (AI) is more than just technology and if harnessed well, it will help the nation in its economic progression (Ministry of Education [MOE], 2024).

The notion of human–AI synergy in education encapsulates the harmonious collaboration between human learners/educators and AI systems which leverage the strengths of both to better achieve educational objectives. Working together, a human–AI partnership can achieve better learning outcomes than either one working alone. Unlike traditional approaches where technology merely augments human efforts, human–AI synergy denotes a seamless integration where AI complements and enhances human capabilities, and vice versa.

“For this human–machine collaboration to be successful, one must be mindful that AI should empower the individual to become a better master of AI instead of a servant of AI,” Associate Professor Chen Wenli, who is also Head of the Learning Sciences and Assessment Academic Group at NIE, explains. “The research and development on AI for education examines ways for humans and computers to work synergistically, rather than focusing on whether humans or AI have a better control on achieving complex educational goals.”

In the classroom, this human–AI collaboration manifests in various forms, from personalized learning platforms that adapt to individual student needs to AI-powered teaching
assistants that provide real-time feedback and support. By leveraging AI algorithms and data analytics, educators can gain deeper insights into student learning patterns, enabling targeted interventions and tailored instructions.

“To take full advantage of this collaboration, we need to understand how AI can enhance what humans do best, how humans can effectively augment machines, and how to redesign AI technology and pedagogy to support the partnership in order to bring meaningful learning experiences to the students,” Wenli adds.

Enhancing Effectiveness of Teaching and Learning

The meaningful integration of AI into education yields various benefits, significantly enhancing teaching and learning processes and outcomes. One notable advantage of AI in education (AIED) is on personalizing students’ learning experiences by playing the role of a student’s personal tutor, providing immediate feedback on learning progress, and suggesting customized learning resources to students. One example of such AI-infused technology is ChatGPT in which it can provide personalized and immediate feedback to students based on information provided by them or the teachers (UNESCO, 2023).

“In the human-AI collaboration, human learners’ agency is important and humans are the key decision makers for various aspects of collaborative learning,” Wenli explains. “It is critical to understand that humans play the essential role in the process of learning, while AI complements it by enhancing efficiency for human learners’ through the provision of additional information, feedback and identifications of learning patterns.”

As such, it becomes crucial that educators also focus their efforts on facilitating this meaningful human–AI collaboration in designing and implementing AI-integrated lessons. This can be done by helping students to ask good questions, evaluate the reliability and validity of info provided by generative AI (GAI), and compare their own ideas with that of GAI’s as a form of reflective learning.

“The idea is to encourage our students to reflect, critic, build upon and rise above GAI’s ideas,” Wenli shares. However, this human–AI collaboration is not without its challenges. Navigating the intricacies of this partnership presents numerous challenges, ranging from ethical dilemmas to technical hurdles.

Common Challenges and Concerns

Despite the transformative potential of AI, especially GAI, in education, there exists misconceptions or concerns regarding its integration into teaching practice.

“First, the capabilities of AI and learners on human–AI collaboration need to be further enhanced as there has always been concerns about whether AI systems are really able to understand human’s goals and intentions,” Wenli says. “Some AI algorithms may lack interpretability and transparency which results in its inability to provide reasonable explanations for their decisions. Some biased AI systems which were trained using datasets that were imbalanced with respect to demographics or cultural background may diminish rather than augment human intelligence in collaborative decision-making.”

According to Wenli, this lack of interpretability and transparency may create a significant barrier to trust between human learners and the AI systems. Without transparency, humans cannot verify whether the decisions made by the AI system are fair, accurate, or aligned with ethical principles. This lack of verification undermines trust because users cannot assess the system’s biases.

In addition to that, there is also a need for human learners to improve their capability of working with AI more effectively. “This raises the issue of AI literacy, which includes the knowledge, skills, competencies and dispositions on using AI for learning. To engender effective collaboration, human leaners need to specify their intent with regards to what AI system should do in the collaborative task by communicating their intention as executable instructions,” she adds.

This includes being able to provide appropriate prompts when interacting and collaborating with GAI systems like ChatGPT, and resolve the possible conflicts between human learners and AI that may occur during the collaboration.

Future Potential of Generative AI in Education

The advent of GAI holds immense promise for transforming teaching and learning experiences. This implies that educators’ roles and responsibilities in the classroom have changed from that of traditional instructors to facilitators of learning and champions of innovation.

“Educators now need to be able to design meaningful learning and assessment tasks supported by technology, rather than designing tasks surrounding technologies,” Wenli says. “AI’s larger impact is in complementing and augmenting human capabilities, instead of replacing them.”

GAI’s potential to enhance curriculum development and instructional design processes can empower students to engage in self-directed learning, critical thinking, and creative expression, preparing them to thrive in the complex and rapidly evolving digital age.

However, it is also important to note that realizing the full potential of generative AI in education requires thoughtful integration, ethical consideration, and ongoing research and development efforts to address technical, pedagogical and societal challenges.

“While human-AI collaboration has been investigated in domains such as healthcare and business, there is limited research on human–AI collaboration in teaching and learning,” Wenli claims. “More research is needed to look into the design, develop and implement human-AI collaboration to help learners use AI in creative, critical, ethical and responsible ways to learn better, deeper
and faster.”

Wenli envisions that with appropriate implementation, GAI can also address wider learning areas from cognitive to social emotional learning, and from content knowledge to 21st century competencies. As Singapore continues to embrace AI-driven innovation in education, the future of learning promises to be more adaptive, inclusive and empowering than ever before. 

References
Ministry of Education [MOE]. 2024, March 6. Speech by Minister Chan Chun Sing at Leading the Era of AI. https://www.moe.gov.sg/news/speeches/20240306-speech-by-minister-chan-chun-sing-at-leading-the-era-of-ai#:~:text=First%2C%20

UNESCO. (2023). ChatGPT and Artificial Intelligence in higher education: Quickstart guide. https://www.iesalc.unesco.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/ChatGPT-and-Artificial-Intelligence-in-higher-education-Quick-Start-guide_EN_FINAL.pdf