Indian policymakers specializing in artificial intelligence (AI), surveyed by tech giant OpenAI on AI risk perception, broadly state that the threat to education from AI is a uniquely high concern area in India compared to other countries. Ta. However, experts from government, industry and academia told The Hindu that they disagree with many of the findings of OpenAI’s risk perception survey. They said the threat of AI to education is overblown and misguided, failing to recognize that the benefits far outweigh the risks in India.
A private study conducted by OpenAI from September to December 2023 through surveys and expert interviews with dozens of policymakers across five countries found that “educational risks (e.g., sacrificing critical thinking skills) found that students who rely too heavily on AI tools are viewed as: “India is a notable exception, with Indian respondents ranking risks to education as their fifth priority area of concern, more important than geopolitical risks and coordination issues.” There is.”
OpenAI’s research did not explain why Indian policymakers found the risks of AI in education to be of particular concern. OpenAI did not respond to multiple requests for comment for this article.
The OpenAI study, obtained exclusively by The Hindu, focused on four broad categories: benefits and risks of AI, pace of AI development, AGI (artificial general intelligence) and existential risks, and AI risk management. This research implicitly focused on cutting-edge generative AI use cases, such as AI tools that generate new text, images, videos, etc., rather than the broader applications of artificial intelligence that have existed for many years.
OpenAI, the world’s largest and most popular generative AI company, has researched and found that the biggest dangers posed by this technology are “misuse/malicious use of AI” by bad actors and “economic risks” (automated (e.g., loss of employment). ),” according to policymakers surveyed in five countries: India, Japan, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
Meanwhile, OpenAI’s risk perception survey, which has not been made public, shows that “advanced research and discovery, and health advances” are cited by survey respondents in each country as the most beneficial application of AI over the next five years. It turned out.
OpenAI’s private survey surveyed 47 policymakers, including Indian government, civil society, and AI academics, with a focus on career employees from ministries as well as non-governmental organizations in India.
Advitya Sharma, chief growth officer at leading edtech company Schoolnet, disagrees with some of OpenAI’s findings, saying that the fundamental problem with using generative AI in education, especially in India, is that there is a lack of confidence. He emphasized that it is a lack of understanding and awareness that gives rise to lack and exaggeration. Issues related to technology.
“We have already worked with tens of thousands of teachers and students who are using AI in their schools, and the benefits outweigh the risks and dangers that exist,” said former Housing.com co-founder Genius Teachers is a quiz-based e-learning platform.
“The other four countries in the OpenAI survey are much more advanced than India in the use and understanding of AI in education and other areas, and India, which has been underutilized so far, should be more aware of the issue. “,” Sharma said. .
Sharma believes that if the OpenAI survey were to be conducted again in 18-24 months, the risk perception of AI in education in India would significantly increase with widespread use and awareness of the benefits and vulnerabilities of AI. He added that it would decrease.
Specific factors for AI policymaking in India that OpenAI investigated include pitfalls within the education sector and India’s growing optimism and trust in public-private collaboration mechanisms.
The potential for loss of critical reasoning among students due to the use of technology in Indian education is one of the most important considerations and threats, according to Indian educators and policy makers surveyed by OpenAI. That’s what it means.
For example, thanks to state-of-the-art generative AI tools, students may no longer have to think or reason about problems. Because technology provides instant answers, it can reduce students’ independent thinking and problem-solving skills.
Another potential concern for Indian educators is that, as students across the country use generative AI tools like OpenAI’s popular ChatGPT chatbot, schools are relying on machine intelligence rather than the students themselves. This means that educators may be faced with challenges in testing their assessment and assessment methods, which may force educators to change their assessment and assessment methods. Exam students.
“Although there are certainly some challenges, such as when AI tools produce inaccurate or misleading results, I am still very optimistic about AI in education because AI is great for brainstorming. and is a very useful knowledge co-creation tool,” said Krishnan Narayanan, research director at IIT. Center for Responsible AI in Madras, which is driving the ‘GenAI4Edu’ initiative.
“What we have to learn is how to design AI systems to be Socratic, not to automatically give students answers, but to let them come up with the answers themselves, or come up with answers themselves. It’s just about getting the technology,” says Krishnan, an award-winning author. Author of ‘Against All Odds: The IT Story of India’, former senior executive at Infosys.
According to experts who spoke to The Hindu, the majority of students in India have particularly low levels of engagement in learning and education. Most children do not do their homework or engage substantively with the course material.
This atmosphere creates a unique opportunity for cutting-edge technologies such as generative AI tools to improve learning outcomes and help students actively engage with the learning material, said the former Rajya Sabha MP and former B.J.D. said Amar Patnaik, party IT and technology cell chief.
“AI in education is a blessing in disguise as it forces and boosts critical thinking skills and creativity in students, which is severely lacking in India,” Patnaik said.
“While the OpenAI study says that AI in education can have a negative impact on students, I rather believe that AI will make more students interested in learning. School curricula will have to undergo major changes because of the AI tools that everyone will and should be using,” Patnaik added. .
Additionally, some educators say this technology will encourage students to learn in a digitally-friendly, evidence-based way in the near future.
“AI systems are beneficial in education because the more effort you put into your prompts and the more you explain your understanding of the problem, the better answers you will get from AI tools. We need to see this as an opportunity to use this technology to engage students more in subjects that they are not necessarily interested in,” said Krishnan from IIT Madras.
Another potential benefit of AI educational tools in India is that they could provide students with a better and more productive means to spend their free time, especially compared to social media platforms.
“With kids spending so much time on their devices and computers, AI systems offer a much better alternative to social media and other things they do on their devices. Using a fun educational AI tool like ours is far more beneficial than spending an hour on TikTok or Instagram,” said Schoolnet’s Sharma.
Nevertheless, educators, politicians, and technology company executives say that successful implementation and use of technology over the long term will require thoughtful and carefully considered guardrails and regulations. .
“Guardrails to ensure the accuracy, fairness, and usefulness of AI in education need to be taken seriously, because students are our future and we need to ensure they learn the right way. Because there is,” Krishnan said.
“If we do not provide students with thoughtfully designed generative AI educational tools that use a Socratic style and have other checks and balances, they will be exposed to many of the existing They will be forced to learn from problematic common AI tools and the internet at large,” Krishnan added.
Another challenge is to ensure that the data collected in India for creating and running Al tools in education and other fields is properly collected and students do not blindly follow the achievements of technology. .
“AI bias built into current datasets is a big problem, so if you’re making decisions based on flawed or biased datasets and corresponding AI tools, you’ll have worse or more problematic Action will be taken,” said Patnaik, a former Rajya Sabha member.
“In the Indian context, as civil servants and officials, we have experience that AI systems cannot be built solely on data collected through formal official channels such as government records, consumer purchases, and online behavior. Because many insights and answers to India’s problems come from street vendors, labor, unskilled labor and other informal sector entities through informal data channels,” Patnaik added. .
While OpenAI’s research highlights potential AI risks to education in India, some technology policy experts like IIT Madras’ Krishnan say there are other notable uses for the technology. is a major concern that deserves equal or greater attention in the coming months. Patnaik, a former Rajya Sabha member.
Krishnan said he was surprised that the results of OpenAI’s risk perception survey did not focus on threats such as the role of AI in military and warfare, while Patnaik said he was surprised that the results of OpenAI’s risk perception survey did not focus on threats such as the role of AI in military and warfare, while Patnaik said he was surprised that the results of OpenAI’s risk perception survey did not focus on threats such as the role of AI in military and war. He said he expected the study to reveal how it could be used to give rise to climate change.
EdTech executives like Schoolnet’s Sharma believe the future of AI in education is exciting, with the potential to democratize and expand access to world-class educational tools, including to the poorest schools and students across India. It is said to be full of innovation.
“Soon there will be AI avatars or teachers trained on Einstein, Aristotle, and Tagore. You know the best ones. Then every student will have access to a genius teacher.” Mr. Sharma said.
“For example, if a student gets stuck on a problem or has a complex question, they can rely on AI chatbots to deliver results similar to those of Einstein and other world-famous thinkers. Although the AI application is in early beta stages of testing, it has been implemented in several government schools in Jharkhand with some success.Of course, the more users and the more data they feed into the technology, the more the application will improve. It will improve.”
issued – December 26, 2024 3:39 PM IST
