AI is getting better and better, not just a support tool

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is one of the important tools in innovating and optimizing education activities globally. For learning foreign languages ​​such as English, AI brings benefits such as personalizing learning paths for each student, providing instant feedback, automatically grading, improving pronunciation and tracking student progress without direct intervention from teachers.

Sharing at the workshop “Application of AI in English teaching in Vietnam in the current context” on October 15, Associate Professor, Dr. Le Van Canh – Independent research and consulting expert on English teaching and Applied Linguistics – said that AI will change completely, radically and redefine all concepts in learning.

Thanks to new technologies, the classroom is no longer the only place to acquire knowledge. There is no difference in quality between face-to-face teaching and online teaching, and in the future, online teaching will become more and more popular.

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Associate Professor Dr. Le Van Canh said that AI will redefine all concepts in learning. Photo: DL

According to Mr. Le Van Canh, with rapid progress, AI is no longer a tool but will be a subject, an agent, a member of the community, collaborating with teachers in teaching activities.

Sharing the same view, Mr. Nguyen Minh Tuan - Director of the Institute of Training and Economic Development (ITED), Ministry of Planning and Investment - commented that technology in general and AI in particular are creating positive impacts on the interaction between students and teachers, with learning content, with themselves and with the community.

For example, in the past, interactions between teachers and students only took place in the classroom; today, they have expanded to cyberspace, in real time. Or, thanks to adaptive assessment technology, the test bank is no longer limited, but the computer will measure and give questions that are appropriate to the learner's ability.

Realizing the benefits that technology brings, some educational institutions have proactively used AI to serve online English teaching activities.

To prevent foreign language centers from being wiped out by AI

At the event, the speakers shared about the role of AI in education, the opportunities and challenges that AI brings, as well as the application of AI in management, training organization, testing, curriculum compilation, and online English learning materials.

“AI is very smart and quick, but it cannot replace the role of humans because we clearly cannot learn like a machine,” said Mr. Nguyen Tien Nam, CEO of SunUni Academy.

According to Associate Professor, Dr. Le Van Canh, what robots cannot do is replace emotions in human-to-human communication, and cannot fully understand the creativity and sophistication of language.

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Speakers shared their views on the application of AI in English teaching in Vietnam. Photo: DL

Despite creating many opportunities, robots do not motivate learners. Teachers are the ones who motivate, inspire, guide students in learning methods and information analysis.

If technology is abused, creativity, thinking and critical thinking skills will be stunted, making it impossible to integrate or perceive the multidimensional world.

Therefore, Associate Professor, Dr. Le Van Canh pointed out that priority should be given to training policies, instructing teachers on teaching methods using technology, and ethics in using and protecting personal data.

In the 4.0 era, how to collaborate with AI is a difficult problem. The role of teachers will not disappear but will change. "Teachers must change themselves, know how to accompany AI teachers".

Faced with the current issue of concern: with Google Translate and ChatGPT, is it necessary to learn English anymore, will foreign language centers be eliminated? Writer and journalist Hoang Anh Tu believes that this could happen.

Centers that want to survive in an AI society need to transform themselves into more “human” educational organizations – something that AI cannot do. For example, through talkshows and podcasts to connect parents with their children on their learning journey, creating more bonding moments in the family. “Instead of just racing into technology, think about connecting more,” said Mr. Hoang Anh Tu.