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The Mainichi
18-07-2025
- Science
- The Mainichi
News in Easy English: Fukuoka high school girls win AI contest with study app
FUKUOKA -- A group of high school girls in Fukuoka made a special app to help students study. Their AI club at Fukuoka Girls' Commercial High School created an app that can quickly summarize study notes and books. This project won first prize at a national AI contest in March. The club has eight members, from first to third year. They learn about AI with help from a coach at an IT company. At first, they tried to make an AI to predict disasters, but they couldn't finish it. So, they decided to solve a problem many students have: not understanding their own class notes. One student, Nene Takeshita, 17, said, "I write down what's taught in class in my notebook, but I had trouble understanding it when I looked back at it later." Many other students had the same problem. So, the club made a web app called "AI Yoyaku-kun." With this app, students can take photos of their notes or books, or make audio recordings. The app then makes a short, easy summary. It can also help with hard words and make review questions. The girls showed their app at the GEN-AI Koshien contest in Yamagata. They competed with nine other schools and won the "research-theme AI" prize. On June 24, the club visited the Fukuoka governor to share their success. The governor said they had worked hard as a team. He also said, "I want to support your efforts." The app still needs some fixes, but the students want to keep learning about AI and make the app better. (Japanese original by Keisuke Muneoka, Kyushu News Department) Vocabulary summarize: to make a short, simple version of something app: a computer program, often used on phones or tablets coach: a person who teaches or helps a team contest: a competition to see who is best governor: the leader of a prefecture (area) in Japan review questions: questions to help you remember what you learned
The Mainichi
29-06-2025
- The Mainichi
Fukuoka Pref. girls' school wins national AI championship with summary app
FUKUOKA -- To solve a problem encountered in school life, the "AI club" at an all-girls high school in Fukuoka Prefecture developed an app that automatically summarizes study materials, a project that earned them top honors in the national AI championship. The AI club at Fukuoka Girls' Commercial High School in the prefectural city of Nakagawa won the "research-theme AI" division of the "GEN-AI Koshien" championship held in the city of Yamagata in March 2025. It achieved victory despite being only in its second year. Such clubs are uncommon in Fukuoka Prefecture. The eight-member club, consisting of first- to third-year students, learns the fundamentals and practical applications of AI with guidance from an external coach at an IT company in the city of Kitakyushu. Initially, members worked on developing AI to predict disasters from rainfall data, but faced difficulties completing the project. They then shifted their focus to addressing common school life issues. Third-year student Nene Takeshita, 17, revealed, "I write down what's taught in class in my notebook, but had trouble understanding it when I looked back at it later." A survey conducted on all students at the school revealed that many others also experienced the same problem, which led the club to focus on creating summaries. In about six months, they developed the unique web app "AI Yoyaku-kun." Users can upload photos of notebooks and textbooks or audio recordings, and the app automatically summarizes the content without requiring any written instructions. The app also paraphrases difficult terms and even generates review questions on its own. The members introduced this app at the fifth GEN-AI Koshien held on March 20, where they competed against nine other schools in the "research-theme AI" category, in which students present the results of their efforts in solving everyday problems. On June 24, the members visited the prefectural government office to report their achievements. Fukuoka Gov. Seitaro Hattori praised them, saying, "I believe you reached victory through trial and error, sharing ideas and working as a team. I believe in the limitless potential each of you hold, and I want to fully support your efforts." The app still has some issues, such as not using line breaks in its responses, which the team apparently plans to address. Third-year student Akane Narisue, 17, stated, "I want to fully understand the risks of AI and become proficient in using it."
