Advantages and disadvantages when learners use AI to generate

Generative AI technologies like ChatGPT are causing dramatic changes in the global education industry and in Vietnam.

Discussing the changes in global education, including Vietnam, due to the development of AI, Mr. Chu Tuan Anh, Director of Aptech International Programmer Training System, said that in addition to being a tool to support both learners and teachers, AI also contributes to educational equality.

Because each subject usually has only 1 or 2 good lecturers, mainly in big cities. Students in remote areas have difficulty accessing good experts. "With generative AI, no matter where they are, learners can interact with the "world's smartest experts" thanks to big data, eliminating geographical and time barriers," Mr. Chu Tuan Anh shared.

On the other hand, according to Mr. Chu Tuan Anh, AI will change the way of teaching and testing. Specifically, in the past, teachers tested whether students had grasped the knowledge; but when AI is widely applied, students can easily get the answers, teachers need to teach them how to choose the optimal solution from the answers provided by AI. Testing and testing activities will therefore also change, focusing on assessing understanding, choosing the optimal answer in each situation, instead of just grasping knowledge.

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Aptech experts believe that, with many obvious benefits, educational institutions should allow learners to use AI, even make it mandatory, so as not to miss out on the opportunity to pioneer technology. Illustration photo: N.Trang

For learners, emphasizing that generative AI brings many clear benefits, Aptech experts emphasize that educational institutions should definitely allow learners to use AI, even make it mandatory, so as not to miss out on the opportunity to pioneer technology.

Citing specific examples from his unit, Mr. Chu Tuan Anh said: At Aptech, students are encouraged to use AI every day. When encountering difficult programming knowledge in class that they do not understand, students will ask AI to explain it again in the easiest way to understand.

Or with programming exercises, AI helps create code, but more importantly, students will compare and analyze the answers to find the optimal solution. Moreover, students can also ask AI to act as an examiner, give test questions, grade, help know the level of knowledge and fill in gaps.

“However, the use of AI by learners needs to be controlled, because if we just copy solutions and knowledge from AI, we will face the risk of creating a generation without thinking - a disaster for the economy when human resources already lack knowledge, skills, and now also lack thinking,” Mr. Chu Tuan Anh stated his opinion.

Sharing the same view, Associate Professor Agnis Stibe, lecturer at the Faculty of Business, RMIT University Vietnam, said that besides the benefits, AI also comes with a big challenge: Easy access to everything can make learners overly dependent on AI when they need to solve problems or generate ideas, leading to stifling creativity and critical thinking.

Dr Anushka Siriwardana, a lecturer in Digital Marketing at RMIT University Vietnam, warns that the overuse of generative AI can lead to a “know-it-all” attitude among learners. They are used to receiving instant answers but are not motivated to delve into complex issues or develop arguments based on their own thinking.

Recommendations for effective use of generative AI

Referring to the issue of how learners can use AI effectively, Dr. Anushka Siriwardana said: By promoting a learning culture that emphasizes questioning and encourages learners to critically reflect on information generated by AI, educators can better equip learners to use technology consciously, thereby enhancing their critical thinking skills in an AI-supported learning environment.

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According to RMIT Vietnam experts, by teaching learners how to question, refine and analyse AI-generated content, educators can turn AI into a tool to encourage deeper learning and cultivate critical thinking. Photo: NN

According to Associate Professor Agnis Stibe, a practical way to promote critical thinking in learners is to design exercises that require the development of effective questioning skills using generative AI.

“This approach encourages students to think critically about the questions they ask and the subtleties of the information they seek. Through the exercise, students not only learn how to interact more effectively with AI, but also develop the ability to analyze and prioritize information, thereby improving their critical thinking skills,” Associate Professor Agnis Stibe shared.

Speaking with VietNamNet reporter, Mr. Chu Tuan Anh recommended that educational institutions need to drastically apply AI from management to lecturers, staff, and students; at the same time, integrate AI into teaching, specifically creating learning roadmaps, textbooks, and exercise repositories.

Teachers need to innovate teaching methods, from imparting knowledge to teaching skills using AI, critical thinking, choosing practical knowledge; using AI to evaluate exercises, detect copying, check understanding and optimal solutions.

As for learners, some notes for effective use of AI include: Equipping basic knowledge and practical skills before using AI; practicing working skills with AI, asking AI to re-teach knowledge, asking test questions, self-assessing gaps; consciously limiting copying, practicing critical thinking through comparing proposed AI solutions, thereby helping to improve thinking ability.