James Kon
“The time to adapt has arrived. Is AI a tool that will replace lecturers? Lecturers provide emotional support and empathy to students. The ethical and human dimension is very important,” said Minister Delegate Attached to the Prime Minister of Cambodia, Professor Dr Chhem Kieth Rethy in his presentation on Education in the Era of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) at Universiti Teknologi Brunei (UTB).
It is important for universities to cooperate and share experience on the use of artificial intelligence (AI) as AI is set to transform education.
“AI is here to stay and to grow. Universities and educational institutions need to establish guidelines and to enforce policies for their students to use AI instead of banning them,” he said.
He added that without addressing the challenges of AI and establishing proper guidance, professors and students will be lost. The method of teaching and assessment will need to change without being fully dependant on the computer,” Professor Chhem said.
AI is about data feeding, he said, “The more data that you give, the more that they can answer. The generated text came from the information they have already been provided with. Although, most AI is based on western knowledge, it may not be significant to our region.”
“AI can complement teaching through content creation. Therefore the best solution is finding a way to change the mindset of educators. Educators can make use of AI for content creation to free up time for more brainstorming and discussion.
During the question and answer session, Professor Dr Chhem said, “Are we educating our students learning for a job or learning for life? I believe if you teach only technical skills, it will become obsolete at an accelerating rate. Only transferable skills will help you go far. Re-skilling is another solution, if you train enough people who are capable to change to the demand of the market. It is important to provide education for life and not just for training skills. For a technical university, setting up a new course or programme to bring in industry players as well as kids from high school can provide for input. They may have the answers for the future.
“I believe AI machines should serve us, not the other way, “ he added.
The presentation was held at the Lecture Theatre 2 of UTB. Permanent Secretary (Higher Education) at the Ministry of Education Dr Haji Azman bin Ahmad was the guest of honour.
Assistant Professor at the Centre for Communication, Teaching and Learning (CCTL) of UTB Dr Malai Zeiti binti Sheikh Abdul Hamid moderated the lecture.
The event also saw the handover of 29 books donated by the Embassy of Cambodia comprising a diverse range of topics, including culture, cuisine, education, politics and foreign relations, science and history. The event concluded with the inauguration of the ‘Cambodia Corner’ at UTB library.
Also in attendance were Ambassador of Cambodia to Brunei Darussalam Lim Hokseng, High Commissioner of Bangladesh to Brunei Darussalam Nahida Rahman Shumon, Ambassador Of Turkiye to Brunei Darussalam Professor Dr Hamit Ersoy, Ambassador of Timor Leste to Brunei Darussalam Abel Guterres, and Acting Vice-Chancellor of UTB Dr Hajah Ena Kartina binti Haji Abdul Rahman.
