AI-assisted learning

I write this letter as Professor of Medicine, Sri Ramachandra Medical College and Research Institute, Chennai. While the article, “Beyond the red pen” (EducationPlus, August 24), has laid out well-known aspects of learning using Artificial Intelligence (AI) into a crisp model (PRISM-X), it does not address the practical difficulties a human brain may face when using AI for learning. The writers have rightly placed prompting efficiency first in the model since the first prompt in a conversation — which some call as the mother prompt — is critical . An AI model’s response is only as good as the prompt. I have observed that AI models are progressively designed in such a way that obtaining a good response requires longer and elaborate prompts. The bottleneck is “Reflective capability” in learning through AI. Assuming that the user has good prompting skills, handling the AI output is not that easy. Reflective capability requires extensive background knowledge, a deeper understanding of current concepts, and an awareness of misconceptions and future applications. For this, the learner has to spend considerable time reading traditional books, articles and observing real-world applications. So, it takes considerable time and effort for a person to challenge an AI model, identify misinformation and find wrong concepts put forth by the AI model. This means the world is perhaps stuck at the second stage of PRISM-X — not just students, but teachers as well. I fear that using AI without the skill for “Reflective capability” will, in the long run, erode learners’ thoughts and make them accept half-truths — something which AI models are very good at. We need to educate students on how to upskill on “Reflective capability” before attempting to implement methods to assess their use of AI.

Dr. Emmanuel Bhaskar,

Chennai

Vacant seats

The report, “Over 13,000 UG seats still up for grabs at Delhi University” (Inside pages, August 24), is not surprising. The vacant seats mirror the prevailing state of the education system in the country. Education no longer seems to guarantee employment or a livelihood. The National Education Policy needs a complete restructuring.

Balasubramaniam Pavani,

Secunderabad