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Straits Times

Forum: Human mentorship and AI can make learning meaningful and personalised for children

We refer to the Opinion piece 'Is AI the answer to bridging the tuition gap?' (April 30) and agree there is a place for artificial intelligence (AI) in self-help groups' tuition. In fact, we have been using AI-assisted programmes to help our students who come from low-income families. The Chinese Development Assistance Council (CDAC) provides academic tuition for eligible low-income students of all ethnic groups under the Collaborative Tuition Programme, which is run jointly with the Eurasian Association, the Singapore Indian Development Association and Yayasan Mendaki. Since 2022, we have actively introduced educational technology into our English and mathematics tuition curriculum. These learning platforms have AI features that personalise students' learning experiences and provide instant feedback. This integration has enabled us to reach a wider cohort of students and tailor our support more effectively. Over 600 students have benefited from this approach, with positive feedback on its impact. Also, the four self-help groups' annual Joint Learning Fiesta, launched in 2023, created further opportunities to spread the use of AI in learning to tutors. How do our students feel about the use of AI in tuition? A recent in-house CDAC survey revealed that while students liked the immediate feedback from AI, they would still prefer their tutors' personal touch. This confirms that while AI can enhance learning, it cannot replace the encouragement and care provided by tutors. That said, we firmly agree with the article's emphasis that emotion lies at the heart of learning. At CDAC, we place strong emphasis on nurturing relationship-based classrooms, where trust, encouragement and human understanding remain central. In line with this, we have established a Student Learning Support Team to address the holistic needs of our students, providing academic guidance alongside emotional and social support for students from more complex families. By combining human mentorship with AI-enabled customisation, we see a promising path forward – one that balances efficiency with empathy, and innovation with inclusiveness. For CDAC, this hybrid approach is not about replacing human tutors but enhancing their effectiveness, ensuring every student can access meaningful, motivating and personalised learning support. Pooja Trivedi Senior Director (Education) Chinese Development Assistance Council More on this Topic Forum: What readers are saying Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.