Int’l Education Day: Advancing Global AI Literacy, A Call for Pakistan to Catch Up

AI integrated education will have the ability to cater to needs of a diverse student cohort and will thus help in achieving quality education for all
Editor, Tayyaba Munir,AI literacy, AI in education, International Day of Education, human agency in automated world, education system challenges, personalized learning with AI, AI benefits in education, AI for special needs students, adaptive learning, SDG 4 quality education, AI curriculum integration, teacher training for AI, emotional intelligence in teaching, AI integration in classrooms, education policies in Pakistan, global education trends, digital learning, AI-powered education tools, Singapore Smart Nation strategy, AI in South Korea education, AI in China education, AI in India education, Finland AI education, Squirrel AI, Embibe Ed-Tech, ViLLE platform, automated grading systems, AI for student engagement, educational revolution in Pakistan, barriers to AI literacy, female education in Pakistan, challenges in Pakistani education, global AI progress, accessible education, AI and digitalization, educational inequality, future of education
Editor, Tayyaba Munir,AI literacy, AI in education, International Day of Education, human agency in automated world, education system challenges, personalized learning with AI, AI benefits in education, AI for special needs students, adaptive learning, SDG 4 quality education, AI curriculum integration, teacher training for AI, emotional intelligence in teaching, AI integration in classrooms, education policies in Pakistan, global education trends, digital learning, AI-powered education tools, Singapore Smart Nation strategy, AI in South Korea education, AI in China education, AI in India education, Finland AI education, Squirrel AI, Embibe Ed-Tech, ViLLE platform, automated grading systems, AI for student engagement, educational revolution in Pakistan, barriers to AI literacy, female education in Pakistan, challenges in Pakistani education, global AI progress, accessible education, AI and digitalization, educational inequality, future of education.
     Tayyaba Munir

Is it fair enough if in an examination, an elephant, a monkey, a dolphin and a cat are asked to climb a tree to pass? Obviously not! However the current education system where memorization is the sole focus instead of learning endorses the above scenario to be fair.

On the occasion of International Day of Education, the world is celebrating it with the theme of ‘AI and Education: Human Agency in an Automated World’. This celebration under the said theme is an embodiment of the fact that AI literacy is what can not only enhance the quality of education but also prevent the drowning of human agency in a world which is automated.

Currently, it can be witnessed how majority of the global population is clueless of the ways in which AI should be used and continues to use it without proper knowledge which is more or less similar to driving a powerful car without knowing where the brakes are. As a result a common belief came to surface that ‘using AI is unethical’. This is what happens when there is a lack of literacy on a particular topic and which leads to harmful consequences.

When specifically talking about AI in education, it gives rise to such a situation where AI becomes a challenge for human agency especially in a world which is automated and digitalized thus making AI literacy much more important. AI integration in education will prove to be productive when the relevant stakeholders especially the students and teachers are also AI literate. Generative AI in education will enable the educators to obtain automated grading and will generate customized feedback. However, this is not the only benefit as the main positive aspect is its ability to tailor learning material and activities according to individual needs of the students.

AI can identify the pace and learning behavior of a student and then provide assignments and other tasks accordingly instead of bombarding the same standardized task for all irrespective of their tendency to learn. Most importantly, AI in education can prove to be a game changer for students with special needs and learning disorders. AI integrated education will have the ability to cater to needs of a diverse student cohort and will thus help in achieving quality education for all.

Many countries in the world are working to incorporate AI in their curriculum which is enough of an evidence to motivate countries who consider it unimportant or impossible. Singapore’s Smart Nation strategy envisions becoming a global leader in AI by 2030 with one of its goal to educate the teachers and students for using AI in a productive manner. The country aims to tailor education material and activities according to the individual needs and abilities of the students by integrating AI in classroom. By using automated grading systems and providing an AI-enabled companion to students, Singapore believes that it will be able to identify how each student responds to classroom material and activities thus enhancing the quality of overall education.

A positive aspect is that Singapore recognizes the dual role of AI as a tool and a challenge, therefore launching a national initiative to develop AI literacy through training among students and teachers of all levels by 2026. China and India are also expanding AI integration in their academic activities. For example Chinese government have invested in adaptive tutoring platforms such as Squirrel AI which help in improving the performance of students by using AI algorithm for tutoring students according especially for the standardized tests. Embibe, an Indian Ed-Tech company is using AI to help students solve and understand complex mathematical problems and scientific concepts by using 3-D imagery which allows visualization. With a strong national commitment Finland have also integrated AI by providing free online courses to its citizens. ViLLE is used as complementary resource to school books by majority of the Finnish schools where immediate feedback on student assignment is provided thus paving the path for AI literacy for teachers and students in the country.

South Korea aims to incorporate AI in their national curricula where KERIS is rapidly working on digitalization of education. The Future of Education Center of the Korean Ministry of Education also allow the visitors to experience the model classrooms enriched with advanced technology. The Korean Minister of Education is very visionary about revolutionizing the education system in the country. He envisions an education system where students are assessed on daily assignments instead of end of course exam. He elaborated that instead of memorization its important to provide deeper and personalized learning to students. South Korea has also implemented AI systems which have the tendency to adapt homework according to the learning behvaior and capabilities of each students. These countries are gradually progressing on the path of where the destination is a well educated society enriched with AI literacy while maintaining the dominance of human agency in an automated world.

Standing at fifth in global population ranking, Pakistan is far from achieving SDG targets specifically SDG 4 which aims for Accessible and Quality Education. Despite children being the future of a country, 26 million children in Pakistan are out of schools whereas around half population of women in the country are not able to read or write which is very alarming. It won’t be wrong to say that instead of focusing on bigger things like integration of AI in national curricula, a significant portion of country’s people are still stuck on the debate whether or not to give education to a female child. To bring an educational revolution in Pakistan, not only policies and laws are required but a gradual shift in the mindset is also needed.

Other then this a strict policy is also required at national level for the training of the teachers. This training targeting the teachers should not only focus on their teaching abilities but also on emotional intelligence, which a majority of them lacks or even aware of. The youth of Pakistan is not less than the youth of any other country however they are unfortunate when it comes to progressive policies which is not in their hands. Majority of the students cannot afford education institutions which actually work on AI literacy or emotional intelligence and thus are forced due to their financial constraints in institutions where they are thrown in front of untrained educators who then compel them to memorize without development of any conceptual understanding. It is a tragic sight for me at least to see so many young students lost in this vicious abyss when they deserve a very better environment, all children and students do.

On the occasion of International Day of Education where the world is progressing towards AI Literacy, Pakistan is grappling with the challenge of providing basic education to a large part of its population. It won’t be wrong to say that AI literacy remains a distant dream, or perhaps even an unimaginable concept for countries like Pakistan. However, there is always a silver lining as the efforts of other countries towards AI literacy acts as a strong reminder for Pakistan to take serious steps not only to achieve SDG 4 but also for promoting AI literacy among Pakistani students and teachers.

The writer Tayyaba Munir is a law graduate and Youth Ambassador of the FTO Pakistan.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Read Also
Islamabad High Court, Justice Sarfaraz Dogar, Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani, Justice Khadim Hussain Soomro, Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb, IHC reconstitution, Departmental Promotion Committee, IHC seniority list, Chief Justice Aamer Farooq, judicial transfers, judicial appointments, Pakistan legal system, IHC notification, judicial autonomy, Article 194, Judicial Commission of Pakistan, legal reforms, IHC judges, IHC administration, judicial protest Islamabad, judicial strike Pakistan, IHC chief justice, Editor, Khudayar Mohla, Shahbaz Shah, senior puisne judge, IHC judge transfer, Pakistan judiciary news, judicial commission meeting, February 10, 2025.
Courts

IHC Sees Flurry of Changes with Arrival of New Judges

Updated seniority list includes Justice Sarfaraz Dogar, Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani, Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb, Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri, Jus­tice Babar Sattar, Justice Sardar Ejaz Ishaq Khan, Justice Arbab Muhammad Tahir, Justice Saman Rif­fat Imtiaz, Justice Khadim Hussain Soomro, Justice Mohammad Azam Khan, Justice Mohammad Asif and Justice Inaam Ameen Minhas

Read More »
Categories
Open chat
1
Hello
Can we help you?