Regulation or ban? This is how AI should work in education

Education, like every sector, must face technological evolution. The use of artificial intelligence (AI) in this area can be viewed with suspicion, although it is also It is a tool that, according to experts, contributes to enhancing learning and qualitydepending on its use.

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While education can use it to evolve, the truth is that there is still an implicit distrust due to its scope. According to the learning stakeholders, the entire educational sector, from the student to the teacher and manager, They need training and involvement in this technology.

An example of this is the use of generative AI in the field of university education, which, in general terms, Its use supports a transformation at this educational level.

According to a report from the Observatory on Artificial Intelligence in Higher Education of the European University, there is a need for the use of this tool to be directed towards improving human capabilities.

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This, according to the Observatory, infers that ensure the protection of human rights and promote effective collaboration between people and machines to ensure sustainable development.

However, in conversation with different actors in Colombian education, the good use of this technology can translate into “great” advances for this sector of the country.

According to José Manuel Restrepo, rector of the EIA University, Artificial intelligence is one of the “most valuable” instruments that science, knowledge and technology have delivered.

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“There are two ways of looking at AI, as an object of concern, which I believe is not the right way to look at it, or as a great opportunity to enhance the educational capacity of educational institutions, not only those at a higher level.“, said the rector.

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Additionally, Restrepo highlighted that this tool not only contributes to higher education, but to any level of the sector, taking into account that it can become a mentor for any student, Therefore, this would be the path that institutions can adopt to strengthen the purposes of flexible and personalized education.

“AI allows us to go beyond the task of the teacher, which teaches critical thinking, analysis of the definition of questions, and knowledge of professional reality, but it also complements this with AI that becomes an instrument through which the student can go much further and does so in a personalized and flexible way.“, said.

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In this order of ideas, AI not only contributes to improving learning and capacity, but also to the role of the teacher within education and quality.

For Martha Patricia Castellanos, national academic vice-rector of the Andean Area University Foundation, making good use of artificial intelligence in education It leads to teachers having better capacities to understand the benefits, limitations and ethical considerations regarding the use of the tool.

“To do this, it is essential that teachers are AI literate and, at the same time, incorporate this knowledge into their classes, so that they guide students to know how to critically evaluate the information generated by AI and use it responsibly.and”, he stressed.

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Likewise, Castellanos says, its Teachers can take advantage of the personalization of learning that AI offers from feedback and guidancewhile involving students as key actors in the integration of this technology into knowledge.

“This helps empower them to be proactive participants in their education and conduct applied research to better understand the impacts of generative AI on learning outcomes and strengthening their disciplines.“, he added.

Another point that the directive highlights is that this development must be promoted in education because other sectors are already being permeated by that technology.

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“The disciplines must adapt to these trends, otherwise, people who respond to the urgent needs of the environment will not be formed. Likewise, it is essential that students train for a world in which they must coexist with technology, to enhance their work capabilities, and not be replaced by it.“, Castellanos explained.

Considering that many of the technological developments of artificial intelligence have been misused within the field of education, academics consider that, instead of prohibiting, This must be regulated to turn it into an instrument that goes in the direction of ethics.

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For José Manuel Restrepo, this is a path that the world has to take and is doing so, “But that is without prejudice to the fact that it is perhaps one of the most powerful instruments for the training process in the world of today and tomorrow.”.

Likewise, according to researchers at the European University, the development of AI is one of the greatest technological challenges that education has faced, Therefore, there is an emphasis on training and proper use of it, keeping in mind the speed of technological advances in general.

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Lawyer Danilo Romero, partner at Holland & Knight, highlighted that artificial intelligence, in the context of education, It is perhaps one of the topics that can be most developed in order to reduce the technological gaps that may exist between countries.

Romero added that international agreements or treaties can be reached for AIespecially generative, to create awareness and use, and for less developed countries to have access to these tools and be able to equalise their educational systems. However, he acknowledged that it is important to respect the privacy and other constitutional rights of each nation.

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“From the perspective of the use and access that students may have, it is important to emphasize that they must respect existing laws. That is why the issue of self-regulation will always be fundamental, at least in the early stages of addressing artificial intelligence, in a more in-depth way.“, he claimed.

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Finally, he indicated that we must not set aside regulating access to the same and to the connectivity tools that make AI exist, since in countries like Colombia, which has limitations on connectivity and technology, “It will be very difficult for us to have developments in terms of what the use of artificial intelligence implies.“he concluded.