AI and Education

In the beginning, there was chalk and talk. Our fathers, and their fathers before them, sat in dusty classrooms, eyes fixed on blackboards as teachers droned on about subjects distant and abstract. This was the way of learning, passed down through generations, like a well-worn cloth that had seen better days. But now, a new wind blows across our land, carrying with it the whispers of change. They call it Artificial Intelligence, AI for short, and it promises to turn our classrooms upside down, washing away the old and nourishing the new.

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Story Time

Let me tell you a story, for that is how we Africans best understand the world. Imagine a young girl, Zungulinda, sitting in a classroom in Kisumu. The teacher, a kind-faced woman named Mrs. Ochieng', stands before a smart board, her fingers dancing across its surface. As she speaks, words and images appear, responding to her touch like magic. But this is no magic; it is AI at work.

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Zungu raises her hand, a question burning on her lips. Mrs. Ochieng nods, and Zungu speaks. "Teacher, I don't understand how photosynthesis works." In the old days, Mrs. Ochieng might have sighed, sketched a crude diagram on the board, and moved on. But today, she smiles and says, "Let's ask our AI assistant to show us."

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With a few taps, a 3D model of a leaf appears on the screen. It rotates, zooms in, and begins to animate. Chloroplasts dance, electrons jump, and water molecules split. Adah's eyes widen with understanding. This is the power of AI in our schools -- it brings the abstract to life, makes the complex simple, and turns confusion into clarity.

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The Promise and Peril

But let us not be hasty in our praise, for every new tool brings with it both promise and peril. On one hand, AI offers us a chance to leap over the hurdles that have long held back our education system. It can tailor lessons to each child's needs, like a wise elder who knows when to challenge and when to nurture. It can free our teachers from the drudgery of marking endless papers, giving them more time to mentor and inspire. And it can open windows to the world, bringing the best knowledge from across the globe to even the most remote village school.

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Indeed, AI-powered platforms like Angaza Elimu,"Illuminate Education" in Swahili, is supported by UNICEF, are already providing personalized instruction to Kenyan students. Let me tell you why Angaza Elimu is so important, launched in 2018, Angaza Elimu uses AI to create personalized learning paths for each student. It's like having a tutor who knows exactly where a child struggles and where they excel. The platform adapts to each learner's pace, providing extra practice in areas of weakness and pushing forward in areas of strength. In a country where our children's learning outcomes have often fallen short of our hopes, Angaza Elimu offers a way to ensure that no child is left behind. Angaza Elimu steps in, like a wise assistant to our hardworking teachers.

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In its pilot phase, Angaza Elimu reached over 10,000 students across Kenya. The results were promising - improved test scores, increased engagement, and a newfound love for learning among many students. But this is just the beginning. As the platform grows and evolves, it has the potential to revolutionize education not just in Kenya, but across Africa.

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But on the other hand, we must ask ourselves: at what cost does this progress come? Will our children lose the art of mental arithmetic, relying instead on machines to do their thinking? Will they forget how to write in longhand, their fingers more accustomed to tapping screens than wielding pens? And what of our teachers? Will they become mere facilitators, their wisdom and experience overshadowed by silicon and algorithms? These are not idle questions, but are the riddles we must solve if we are to harness this new power without losing our souls.

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Before we soar into the future, let us glance back at the path we've trodden. Our education system, has flowed through different channels. We've moved from the 7-4-2-3 system, a remnant of our colonial past, implemented at independence in 1963, was designed to produce a workforce for the new nation but was criticized for its academic rigidity and lack of vocational training.

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In 1985, we shifted to the 8-4-4 system, a bold attempt to address the shortcomings of its predecessor. Introduced by Former President Daniel Arap Moi, whose goal was to create a more self-reliant and industrially oriented workforce. However, it struggled to keep pace with our changing world, often criticized for its heavy workload and emphasis on rote learning.

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Now, we stand at the cusp of - the 2-6-3-3-3 Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC), launched in 2017 designed to address the shortcomings of 8-4-4, comprises 2 years of pre-primary, 6 years of primary, 3 years of junior secondary, 3 years of senior secondary, and 3 years of tertiary education. CBC seeks to nurture not just knowledge, but skills - critical thinking, creativity, collaboration, digital literacy, and learning to learn. These are the tools our children will need to thrive in a world where machines can outthink humans in many ways. Introduced in 2017 by the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD), CBC seeks to nurture not just knowledge, but skills -- critical thinking, creativity, collaboration, digital literacy, and learning to learn. These are the tools our children will need to thrive in a world where machines can outthink humans in many ways.

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Envision AI tutors that can explain concepts in any of our 68 languages, preserving our linguistic diversity even as we embrace global knowledge. This is not a distant dream - companies like Google are already working on AI models that can understand and generate human language with unprecedented accuracy. In the coming years, we might see these technologies adapted to support our local languages.

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The future of education in Kenya is not just about AI in classrooms. It's about reimagining the very concept of a classroom. Virtual and augmented reality technologies, powered by AI, could transport our children to the Maasai Mara to study ecology, or to the heart of Nairobi to understand urban planning. By 2030, experts predict that VR and AR will be commonplace in education, offering immersive experiences that make learning more engaging and memorable.

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Lest we forget the digital divide that cuts across as in our cities where children play with smartphones before they can walk while in our villages, many schools still lack electricity, let alone computers. If not careful, AI could widen this gulf, creating a new class of digital have-nots. As of 2021, only 22.6% of Kenyans had access to the internet. This is the challenge we must overcome if we are to realize the promise of AI in education.

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As Mumbe Mwangangi, CEO of Nyansapo AI, a pioneering Kenyan startup using AI to improve education outcomes, reminds us, "Let us not forget that we are living in a country where some schools do not have electricity and maybe they were given the tablets but teachers are weary about using the tablets." Mwangangi's words carry weight, coming from a leader in the field of AI education in Kenya. Her company, Nyansapo AI, has been at the forefront of developing AI solutions tailored to the Kenyan context, working to bridge the gap between technology and our unique educational needs. This digital divide she speaks of remains a significant obstacle to the equitable implementation of AI in our schools.

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For as Paul Akwabi, founder of Tech Kids Africa, reminds us, "AI is reducing that particular gap and taking it into classrooms; it will be more exciting to learners, improve their critical thinking, and help them design their future and the world they want." Akwabi's words carry the weight of experience. As a pioneer in technology education for children in Kenya, his organization has been instrumental in introducing coding and robotics to thousands of Kenyan children, preparing them for a future where AI will be ubiquitous.

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This is where our government must show wisdom and foresight. They must invest not just in technology, but in infrastructure and training. Every school must have power and internet. Every teacher must be trained not just to use AI, but to understand it, to question it, to harness it for the good of our children. The Ministry of Education's Digital Literacy Programme, launched in 2016, was a step in this direction, but its implementation has been fraught with challenges.

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Looking ahead, we see a future where AI not only supports learning but also helps in education management. Predictive analytics could help identify students at risk of dropping out, allowing for early intervention. AI could optimize resource allocation, ensuring that our limited education budget is used most effectively. By 2035, it's estimated that the global AI in the education market will reach $3.68 billion. Kenya must position itself to benefit from this growth, developing homegrown solutions that address our unique challenges.

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And what of our culture, our values, our African way of life? Will AI, born in the labs of the West, understand the importance we place on community, on the oral traditions that have carried our stories through generations? This is where we, as Kenyans, must take the lead. We must not be passive consumers of AI, but active creators. Our programmers must infuse AI with our values, our ubuntu, our worldview. Only then can it truly serve our needs.

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We must also be vigilant about the ethical implications of AI in education. As Felix Malobe, executive director at STEAMlab Africa, warns, AI platforms need to be closely scrutinized to prevent the misuse of student data. Malobe, a respected voice in STEM education in East Africa, has been instrumental in promoting hands-on, practical learning experiences for Kenyan youth. His organization, STEAMlab Africa, has been at the forefront of introducing cutting-edge technologies to Kenyan classrooms while emphasizing the importance of ethical considerations. We must heed his warning and ensure that our children's privacy is protected, and that AI systems do not perpetuate or exacerbate existing inequalities in our education system.

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Let me end with a proverb, for that is how we Africans like to cap our thoughts. "The young bird does not crow until it hears the old ones." As we embrace AI in our schools, let us not forget the importance of our human touch. Let AI amplify our teachers' wisdom, not replace it. Let it enhance our children's minds, not substitute for them. Let us embrace AI not as a panacea, but as a tool in our ongoing quest for knowledge, growth, and self-realization.