The promise of AI is often talked about in terms of accelerating productivity, innovation, and growth. The most meaningful possibility may be something even simpler. It means that childhood has regained its joy.
There are a lot of stars that have to align for AI to move in such a positive direction, but the fact that that possibility exists is frankly reassuring. As a parent and an educator, what excites me most is the potential for AI to transform the classroom into a place of education. It brings happiness and turns learning into an enriching experience rather than a prolonged ordeal.
As it stands, most children spend their most formative years in a system that daily dulls their characteristics and tries to fit everyone into the same mold. He is sentenced to 12 years in prison.
Our children wake up at dawn, travel long distances with heavy loads (physical and figurative) on their backs, transcribe barely understandable notes (and care less and less each year), return home tired, memorize, memorize, memorize, memorize, and then wake up and repeat the cycle all over again. For many, this becomes a life of quiet despair, followed by the repeated strain of tests and entrance exams.
India has spent years trying to improve its school system. Governments and private organizations redesigned classrooms, reworked syllabi, and introduced ideas for elective courses and school-level internships. Some have made some progress. But too many children still sit in joyless rooms where learning is rushed and small.
Most frustratingly, at the end of their school careers, they are left with no further knowledge of who they were or what the world wants them to be.
According to a survey, around 54% of class 8 students are unable to solve class 4 maths problems. Employers have lamented for decades that college graduates are not job-ready, even when it comes to soft skills like communication and basic logical thinking.
This is not surprising. In the classroom, teachers are taught to deal with a virtual average that is not only overburdened but also to the detriment of all children outside of that narrow zone. Such a system turns initial confusion into long-term disengagement.
Still, a defiant joy shines through. Children who are not good at reading will smile when they get the lines right. The boy, who was burdened with memorization, lights up when asked not only what he remembers but what he thinks.
Wave after wave of technology promises to foster this vibrancy and curiosity. Will AI be the wave that makes it work?
quick learning
Of course, that explosive force can do real damage.
Artificial intelligence threatens to weaken our naturally weak attention spans, impairing our reasoning and diligence. Adults and children alike are already entrusting their thinking to these new machines, creating a kind of cognitive debt. Research shows that within a few months, this can lead to changes in reasoning, communication, and even brain activity. (We'll talk more about this in a future edition of Wknd.)
But if we use it correctly and tune our hoops, AI could put a whole new world in our hands. Digital tutors can personalize learning by changing the unit of instruction from the classroom to the child, giving all young learners the opportunity to ask any questions without feeling embarrassed. Think about how much of a game changer this is.
Struggling readers and speakers of another language can build confidence word by word with the help of a system designed to identify where they are struggling and what instructional approach they will respond best to. The AI assistant can adjust pace, difficulty, language, and ratings in real time.
You can ask your child to explain the concept again and use different metaphors to explain it. Another person may be able to act sooner instead of waiting.
None can replace a teacher. In the classroom, the emphasis is less on reading textbooks and more on interacting with and responding to children as they learn and grow. Teachers can focus on the important human elements of engagement: dialogue, encouragement, challenge, and connection.
AI has fascinating potential, not as a technological shortcut, but as something that gives wings to young minds.
Although tools are becoming available, they still need to be tested and policies are developed to both enable and protect. There is no quick and easy path to AI-assisted education or AI-enabled learning.
What is certain is that this opportunity will be lost if AI is introduced as a sketchy new lab or another check-box exercise in a premature curriculum. If artificial intelligence is to help rebuild India's classrooms, teachers will need to play a key role in the change. We also need to educate parents on how to recruit and serve as stable guardrails, reinforcing effort, integrity, and balance.
That way, you can give your children what they want and need. Because an 8-year-old girl doesn't care that she has a room full of new machines at school. She's waiting for someone to explain fractions to her in a way that makes her grin.
Her happy childhood should not be put on the back burner. It can be the foundation that makes true learning possible.
(Kashyap Kompella is a technology industry analyst and author of two books on AI. Views expressed are personal)
