Despite Artificial Intelligence (AI) gaining importance in education as it enhances the quality, accessibility and personalisation of learning, it comes with many risks. With this in mind, UNESCO unveiled a new AI roadmap for classrooms on May 26, 2023, to guide policy-makers and educators on how to use generative AI tools.
The roadmap focuses on the safe, ethical and inclusive way of using Artificial Intelligence. UNESCO is also developing policy guidelines on the use of generative AI in education and research, as well as frameworks of AI competencies for students and teachers for classrooms.
UNECSO will launch the new tools during Digital Learning Week, at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris on September 4-7.
MINISTERIAL MEETING
UNESCO unveiled the new AI roadmap at a ministerial meeting, attended by more than 40 education ministers from around the world. They discussed the opportunities and challenges of using AI in education. The meeting also revealed some common concerns, such as the quality, accuracy and bias of the information generated by AI, the impact on curricula and assessment, and the role and training of teachers in this new era.
The UN convened the first ever-global meeting with education ministers from around the world to explore risks and rewards of using chat bots in classrooms.
Less than 10 per cent of schools and universities follow formal guidance on using wildly popular artificial intelligence (AI) tools, like the Chabot software ChatGPT, according to UNESCO.
The ministers exchanged policy approaches and plans while considering the agency’s new roadmap on education and generative AI. “Generative AI opens new horizons and challenges for education, but we urgently need to take action to ensure that new AI technologies are integrated into education on our terms,” said Stefania Giannini, UNESCO’s Assistant Director-General for Education. “It is our duty to prioritize safety, inclusion, diversity, transparency and quality.”
Institutions are facing myriad challenges in crafting an immediate response to the sudden emergence of these powerful AI apps, according to a new UNESCO survey of more than 450 schools and universities.
RAPIDLY EVOLVING LANDSCAPE
The UN Agency said that governments worldwide are in the process of shaping appropriate policy responses in a rapidly evolving education landscape. They are developing or refining national strategies on AI, data protection, and other regulatory frameworks.
However, they are proceeding with caution. Risks to using these tools can see students exposed to false or biased information, some ministers said at the global meeting.
The debate revealed other common concerns, including how to mitigate the chat bots’ inherent flaws of producing glaring errors. Ministers also addressed how best to integrate these tools into curricula, teaching methods, exams, and adapting education systems to the disruptions, which generative AI is quickly causing.
WHY IS AI IMPORTANT FOR EDUCATION?
AI is important for education as it can enhance the quality, accessibility and personalization of learning. According to UNESCO, AI has the potential to address some of the biggest challenges in education.
It includes:
- Identifying struggling students and giving them personalized support. AI can analyze students’ learning histories, preferences and goals, and offer them tailored courses, feedback and tutoring.
- Enabling more students with diverse backgrounds to participate in a class or listen to a lecture. AI-based language translation can help students overcome language barriers and access educational resources in different languages.
- Helping students figure out how they best learn, and educators use that data to facilitate their learning. AI tools can monitor and assess students’ progress, strengths and weaknesses. It provides them with adaptive learning paths and strategies.
- Analyzing and interpreting data, enabling teachers and education administrators to make better-informed decisions. AI can help teachers identify gaps in their curriculum, evaluate their teaching methods, and improve their pedagogical skills. AI can also help education administrators allocate resources, design policies, and monitor outcomes.
- Making educational classrooms globally available to all students, even those with hearing or visual impairment or who speak different languages.
WHAT ARE SOME OF THE RISKS OF USING AI IN EDUCATION?
Privacy; the use of Artificial Intelliegnce in education involves collecting and storing a lot of data about students. This includes learning histories, preferences, achievements, and behaviours. This data can be sensitive and personal, and may be vulnerable to misuse, theft, or hacking.
Lack of human touch; While AI-powered tools can help provide personalized instruction, they cannot replace the human touch that is so important in the learning process. Students need social and emotional support, feedback, and guidance from teachers and peers.
Job losses; Artificial Intelliegnce in education may threaten the employment of some teachers and educators. Artificial Intelliegnce may also create new roles and tasks for educators, such as data analysis, curriculum design, and quality assurance.
Inequality; Artificial Intelliegnce in education may widen the digital and social divide between countries and regions that have access to advanced infrastructures and resources, and those that do not. Artificial Intelliegnce may also create new forms of exclusion and discrimination based on gender, race, ethnicity, language, disability, or socio-economic status.
Bias; Artificial Intelliegnce in education may perpetuate existing biases and stereotypes in education, such as favouring certain types of learners, content, or pedagogies over others. It may also generate false or misleading information, especially when using generative tools such as chat bots. Educators must ensure that Artificial Intelliegnce is transparent, accountable, and ethical in its design and use.
