The future of education looks bright, thanks to AI. Edtech has the potential to bridge the gaps in learning, and bring more citizens into the fray of active nation building. Top experts from across the globe in the fields of education and AI presented some innovative ideas during RAISE 2020 to address any doubts that stakeholders might have as the education sector is undergoing a massive AI transformation. Read on to have a renewed perspective of AI education, and see how you can benefit from these valuable insights.

• Media and AI can propel education and skilling: David Kenny put forth an interesting idea in suggesting the combined role of media and AI for driving education and skilling. Given the long hours that Indians spend on their smartphones and other devices each day, combined with the understanding of how they spend this time facilitated by deep learning models used by research companies – such as Nielsen – he suggested “the right programming of educational content” and “using entertainment for retention.” Kenny is CEO and CDO at Nielsen.
• AI can help to cater to the learner’s unique needs: Dr. Roger Schank pointed out the fundamental flaws in systems of formal education, presenting a strong case for personalised education enabled by AI, saying, “What there is to do in education is understand and identify who are you dealing with.” He dismissed the test-dominated, one-size-fits-all education system as ancient and obsolete, adding that students should be encouraged to tinker with what they’re really passionate about because they “learn by doing.” Schank is CEO at Socratic Arts.
• Digital education enhances, not diminishes, the teacher’s role: Anthony Salcito addressed the fears of teachers as we shift to digital learning environments, saying that the teachers’ role was enhanced rather than diminished as “educators play a vital role in inspiring and coaching students.” On the growing adoption of EdTech and AI in education, he said that, “Learning needs to be in the hands of individuals and not institutions.” Salcito is VP for Worldwide Education at Microsoft.
• Nurturing a child’s creativity is vital to education: Mala Sharma highlighted the importance of creativity in education. She also spoke on the role that AI plays in democratising creativity through easy-to-use softwares, such as those offered by Adobe. Sharma is VP and GM for Creative Cloud Product, Marketing and Community at Adobe.
• Skilling should be a main focus in education: Aditi Avasthi spoke about the need to shift focus of education on developing the 21st century skills such as problem solving and coding, and to make accessible and affordable tools that can enable this transition. Avasthi is Founder and CEO at Embibe.
• Indian youth are uniquely suited to innovate using AI: Vishal Sikka implored the Indian youth to invent and innovate using AI, to “develop the ability to see what is not there” and to “have the conviction of bringing it to life.” Pointing to the immense opportunities that lie in the field of AI, he added, “We have a new generation of people who aren’t afraid of AI. India is uniquely suited because of our emphasis on software and our cultural emphasis on education.” Sikka sits on the Board of Directors at Oracle and is Founder and CEO at Vianai Systems Inc.

Click here to watch the session 'Shaping young minds with AI' from RAISE 2020

Image from pxhere