27.4 What does AI education look like around the world? video
James:
Hello world and welcome to the podcast for educators passionate about computing and digital making. I'm James Robinson from the Raspberry Pi Foundation, the makers of the Hello World magazine. And today we're bringing you a conversation about AI literacy around the world. As we all know, AI is evolving fast and there is a risk that a skills gap could grow with it. Here at the Raspberry Pi Foundation, we're working to help close that gap through Experience AI, our free AI literacy programme designed to help all teachers, whether or not they have a computing background, confidently bring AI concepts to life for their students, preparing them to enter a rapidly changing workforce. In this episode, my colleague here at the Foundation, Ben Garside, speaks with three guests from our global Experience AI partner network: Leonida Soi, Learning Manager at the Raspberry Pi Foundation Kenya, Aimy Lee, COO of Penang Science Cluster in Malaysia, and Monika Katkute-Gelzine, CEO of Vedliai in Lithuania. Representing not just three different countries, but three different continents, they discuss the current state of AI literacy in their countries, the challenges educators face, and the power and practicalities of integrating AI and computer science into other subjects, from geography to history to literature. For more on how to forge these cross-curricular links, do read the most recent issue of the Hello World magazine, which focuses on this topic of integrated CS. Just head to helloworld.cc to subscribe and read the digital version. Enough from me, over to Ben and his guests to discuss what AI education looks like around the world.
Ben:
Let's get straight into it. So, Leonida, you're joining us all the way from Kenya, so welcome. How would you describe the current state of AI literacy in Kenya, especially to, kind of, young people and educators?
Leonida:
Yeah, there's an excitement about AI literacy, both from the learners and from the teachers. And, one thing is, also the government is coming in. We launched an AI strategy for 2025 to 2030. So it's a– sort of a scramble, everybody want to see where they are, and the education sector is going in. And when you talk to teachers, they are now getting positive and interested on how they can come in, and also the stakeholders now are seeing the positive way of how they can involve it in education. However, one thing to look into is we still have low digital literacy. As much as we are bringing in AI, if it is not bundled up together with digital literacy, th– there is also misuse, from both the learners and also the educators. So much is the foundational knowledge is needed before maybe taking it up in Kenya, but everybody's excited.
Ben:
Nice, thank you. Monika, what's the situation looking like in Lithuania?
Monika:
So I guess it's quite similar as everywhere as in terms of the word 'AI' started being loud only a few years ago with all the changes with, you know, open models and AI agents. But we've been teaching AI for the last five years, so I guess, I see a lot– a lot of opportunity in it but a lot of also, challenges not to get teachers, you know, overburdened with the noise and changes, and because they cannot follow all the new things that are coming up with AI. And as Leonida was saying, it's also about, you know, we expect the students and teachers suddenly become professional AI users without having the foundations in digital literacy, and some teachers will frog leap from no digital literacy to AI literacy straight, which is a very interesting experience and experiment to see, so I just see those two layers. One is AI becoming the official part of computer science curriculum that is, kind of, formal education in schools, so that's where Experience AI is a gift to Lithuanian teachers. But the second layer that is really missing on the national level is how do we help teachers go through the filter of AI in terms of, you know, quality of pedagogy, and kind of efficiency, relevancy of their skills, and– and ideas that they can– can come to the classroom and feel that they're actually delivering something relevant in the 21st century classroom.
Ben:
It's really interesting that you've been delivering AI literacy for such a long time, because I think in the past five years the difference in AI technology has grown vastly. So five years ago, we didn't have things like, you know, large language models or generative AI. So do you think that's been, you know, a hindrance or– or, you know, maybe an opportunity that maybe more people are now talking about AI, has that made– me– people more hesitant to get into AI education or do you think it's made them actually want to know more?
Monika:
So that's a very interesting part for me to watch and how trends come and go and all the– and I guess a lot of teachers' resistance globally also comes from this insensitivity to how pedagogy actually works in the classroom. So it's not like you throw things at kids. You need to understand them, be comfortable with them, and start playing and working in the classroom, and it has to be meaningful for your work. And usually, a lot of AI tools are not thoughtful enough to translate it into the school language that would be appropriate for the age of kids because it's hard work and rarely a technology company wants to do it.
Ben:
Aimy, you're joining us from Penang in Malaysia, so welcome. How would you describe the current state of AI literacy in Malaysia, especially to teachers and young people?
Aimy:
The general awareness of AI is growing at the moment. Because of how AI is more prevalent in the news and social media and so on, so forth. But having said that, AI ethics, AI literacy, responsible use of AI is still not there yet at the moment. At this point, mostly surface-level understanding. Deeper understanding is somewhat limited at this point in time.
Ben:
So Aimy what do you see as the biggest obstacles, you know, for example, is it devices, policies? Confidence, or is it something else?
Aimy:
I think at this point, because AI literacy education is not part of the formal curriculum, so there's still limited adoption of delivering the content. So that's one. The other thing is teacher readiness in delivering AI lessons. And also finally, a lot of teachers are burdened with a lot of things that they have to deliver in school. So right now how they're implementing it is they take any additional time that they have or like getting students to stay right after school to deliver these AI lessons, actually. So it's quite impressive that they do– still do that at this point.
Ben:
What I think's interesting is these similarities and differences between the different countries. I think in the UK we're in a similar situation to you, Aimy. It's not currently in the curriculum. We have– we're seeing some positive signs that we're currently going through a curriculum reform, and AI literacy is starting to be mentioned, so we got our fingers crossed that it's going to become a priority. So I think with that it releases time for teachers to be trained, you know, and– which is something that teachers are short on, is time, particularly in a busy curriculum, so I'm hoping that it will appear and then we can dedicate more time to supporting teachers in their journey to bring AI literacy education to young people. I think there's a danger that teaching AI literacy becomes the remit of computer science teachers or technology teachers. How important do you think it is to integrate AI literacy concepts into other subjects areas? So, Leonida, you and I spent a bit of time in Kenya and we saw a really good example of AI literacy being used in a– a different subject area. Would you like to talk about that?
Leonida:
Yeah. Truly, I think, it's time that AI literacy is looked at a broader view, not just in computing. And what the learners are looking is at– an eye through AI in all areas and in all the challenges they are having, so that it is not stuck and seen as just an entity in computing, but something that cuts across all the learning areas and also all career areas for our learners as they go to the upper areas.
Ben:
Yeah.
Aimy:
Absolutely agree. AI shouldn't sit in isolation. That– that kind of reflects a real world, actually. I mean, we– we encounter AI, day to day, and not just in computer science, not just in coding, not just in programming.
Ben:
Monika, what are your thoughts on this from your perspective from Lithuania?
Monika:
Yeah, I guess it's– I– I see just that we have literacy, something similar with the digital skills. So it's like a basic skills, like reading that's crosses over all other subjects, or– and there's the other part where AI becomes a building field, you know, where you learn the more difficult, complex things like, you know, machine learning, etcetera, and you can actually interpret data and build things with it and create things with AI, with the AI models. I feel like the entire education system needs to go through AI filter and come out of it with a bit more efficiency, with a bit more understanding, so it lives in a 21st century AI world and I see AI as a form of, you know, building and also as a co-worker for everyone in the future.
Ben:
Yeah, I like that idea of a co-worker a lot. I mean, I think I worry that young people might feel disenfranchised or– or disempowered by this idea that AI might be replacing them. So I think giving them agency and then seeing as a co-worker or a problem-solving tool, and I don't think we could achieve that in just one subject area, I think if– if it's been dotted around in different, you know, subjects, whether that be science or art or mathematics, they can see this applicability of this tool to support them in their futures. So Leonida, question to you. Where have you seen AI being delivered in a cross-curricular kind of way?
Leonida:
Yeah, we have religious education, kids from Nakuru County in Kenya. They did an activity modelling how you can identify the books in the Bible. And these are young kids. They are being introduced to digital literacy and the little knowledge they get in Experience AI, and you see how they are trying to integrate into other things that they are doing. And it was quite impressive to see these learners.
Ben:
Yeah, and I really like this idea of taking those skills that they've learnt. You know, the concepts about, you know, AI literacy and applying it in a different subject areas. Which- yeah, was really nice to see. Okay, so, Aimy. So if we're talking about AI literacy not being just for computer science, what interest have you started to see from you know, non-STEM teachers in wanting to deliver AI literacy to students, or is it the opposite? Do you feel like there's nervousness or hesitation?
Aimy:
Definitely there's nervousness. We have trained English teachers, language– Malay language teachers, and also religious studies teachers in– through Experience AI as well. Initially, they were nervous and after going through what they have gone through, they are excited to apply it.
Ben:
Once they've gone through the training you feel like their confidence has built up, and they can start applying their own subject knowledge to the problems that can be solved, yeah.
Aimy:
So they start to think about, oh, how– how is this related to my subject? How can I integrate it? So we don't actually explicitly teach that, but they kind of arrived at whatever that they're doing on their own, really.
Ben:
Yeah, that's really nice.
Leonida:
Maybe to add on. It's quite exciting also in Kenya. At first you'll find these learner– computing teachers feeling the sense like this is not right for education, but when they go through their foundational courses on what is AI, what can AI do, I– they get excited and see in their learning areas how can we integrate AI. So it is more of awareness to this and training of non-computing teachers into it.
Ben:
Monika, I know you're at an earlier stage of your journey of training teachers on Experience AI but having, you know, been involved in AI education for quite a long time, what– do you have any thoughts on, you know, how do you see STEM teacher– or non-STEM teachers, sorry, interacting with AI literacy? MONIKA: I was really surprised to see that the first cohort of Experience AI teachers, 50% of them were non-CS teachers because I was really prejudiced myself thinking that it will be mostly CS teachers, but it's really fifty-fifty at the moment. And it– because to be honest, all teachers are starting at the same point. To all of them, it's new. It's a fundamental level. It's like reading and understanding a new theory, and non-CS teachers were actually saying that they finally understand AI, what– where it's coming from, and I think from this better understanding they will feel more confident to actually think about it in the future. BEN: I think that's really important to recognise as well, isn't it, that, you know, it is, as you say, very new for everybody. Even if you're a computer science teacher, it doesn't mean that you're trained in AI and know instantly how it works, so it's quite refreshing to hear that we're all coming from the same starting point. Doesn't matter what subject matter that is.
Monika:
It's interesting that AI is the– the– the language that helps bring– to bring other teachers into digital spaces.
Ben:
So since we have the three of you here together representing not just three countries but even three continents, is there a digital divide in your country? Aimy. AIMY: Yes, definitely. So Malaysia has both rural areas as well as urban areas, so definitely the digital divide is in the access to devices as well as access to high-speed internet connection. But the other thing is also in terms of like, train teachers as well, more teachers want to be in the urban areas compared to the rural areas, and that– does that exacerbate the digital divide. So how does that impact, you know, the– the education that you're able to deliver in terms of, you know, digital skills or AI literacy?
Aimy:
So like when you talk about AI, we talk about even digital skills, you do need the internet connection. You do need devices. So when you don't have enough, or you don't have sufficient devices, then there's limited access, right? So the– the more better-resource schools, better-resource areas get more access, but those with less resource and less trained teachers, they have less access.
Ben:
What's it look like in Lithuania?
Monika:
I think we're in a quite a privileged position in terms of having connectivity, and I would say that we have less of a digital divide, but bigger– I still see a lot of divide in the quality of teaching, depending on the area you live. But with AI, it's a totally different story, because I see that AI divide is really very sharp because kids in urban areas and bigger cities, especially with their parents work in ICT sector, are picking up it so quickly. And, you know, in the five years' time when they're entering real world, they have very different opportunities and their very different fundamentals. So I guess, you know, we can very quickly become AI divided rather than– because we can have irrelevant digital skills.
Ben:
Yeah. Thank you. And Leonida, what's it look like in– in Kenya?
Leonida:
In Kenya it's similar with Aimy. We have– in the rural areas, there is a little limited access not only to internet access, even access to this digital device. And, how do we support this in rural areas? Can we have unplugged activity even for them to have an idea of what the world is doing, what is out there? How can they interact with it so that we can bridge that gap and have an understanding in these young learners as they come in. So having this unplugged activity is opening a mindset of our learners to create that curiosity, to want to know AI, to want to grow in their computing skills as much as there's lack of these resources.
Aimy:
Sometimes it's also like, kids or young people in rural areas because of, like, their surroundings, they just don't think AI's all that important because they don't interact with it. So then they don't seek out knowledge about it, whereas in urban areas they see it, they see everybody using it as a– yeah– a little bit more curious about it.
Ben:
Yeah that's fascinating. Even though exposure to that in their daily lives, if they don't see it, then there's no kind of like, curiosity to want to explore it, yeah. I– I think there's a danger. I– I've heard so many times that they think that AI could like, democratise education. And I think there's a potential there, but, you know, for example, teachers can use it, create these lesson plans for them and give them that, but ultimately, you know, we're seeing if they haven't got access to support, you know, maybe at home they've not got device at home compared to the ones that do, or maybe even device in the classroom, there is a separation being created.
Monika:
Yeah. And it's changing so fast. You know, like the World Economic Forum is saying that by 2030, 70% of job skills you need will be changed. So it's going to happen in what, five years? It's a massive shift. And it's– it's not only that you're coming into a totally different job market. So it's kind of a– with– it's a– it's a very fast process.
Ben:
Last question. If you could look ahead and you had the ability or power to make any big change, to accelerate AI literacy education in your country, what would that be? Monika, can I start with you please?
Monika:
Oh, of course, I already– always have a vision, for things, so, for me, I guess it will be, you know, starting from kind of fundamentals of making sure teachers first experience the benefits of AI in their daily work as professionals. And then we create a full curriculum starting from grade 1 to 12 and different curriculum for age groups. So it's just the path, that is always there. So AI upskilling is not an event. It's just a normal part of formal education. Your skill set is growing up with it.
Ben:
Aimy, can I ask the same question to you, please?
Aimy:
Yeah, I think regardless of whether the teacher's going to be teaching AI literacy to their students or not, I feel like every teacher should be trained in AI literacy, like they should know what are the impacts, you know, ethical use of AI, and things like that. So whether they are going to teach that to the students or not. But at the same time too, like we spoke about earlier, integrating AI into like, all subjects. My wish is for them to also be trained on that too, so that they know how to implement that.
Ben:
Thank you. And over to you Leonida.
Leonida:
I think fundamental literacy skills in AI for teachers and also how these teachers are going to implement is something that it should be for every educator in Kenya. And as much as we are doing for every educator in Kenya is to see how it cuts across all the learning areas and not just computing, because as much as it comes in, in Kenya, it's really segregated to be– it's a computing concept. So an idea of having it cutting across from the beginning so that we don't have a misconception.
Ben:
And finally, if you're a teacher who wants to get involved in AI literacy education but maybe feels a little bit nervous or overwhelmed, what advice would you give them to help them get started?
Aimy:
Start small. Cover one topic at a time, one concept at a time, don't feel the need to cover everything all at the same time.
Ben:
And what do you think Leonida?
Leonida:
You'd find also teachers, those who are trained in Experience AI can do a mentoring to others and community of practice where they can share amongst each other, and where they can encourage others who will still feel they are not confident enough to get it into the classroom.
Ben:
I really like that idea that, you know, you're partnering with somebody to kind of learn together because this is new for all of us, right? So we are still learning what are the right pedagogies when it comes to AI. So, I really love this idea of community. You know, it's not just, you know, us as partners working together and building a community of AI trainers and resource creators, but also the teachers creating their own community to support each other on that journey of bringing AI literacy because I think we all learn a lot from each other, and as I said earlier, we're all at the start of this journey together, so hopefully, you know, people, teachers can build that community of practice and kind of build each other's confidence and knowledge at the same time.
Monika:
I'm actually leaving with these two words – community of practice, because it's the first time I hear them and use them in kind of a– in this setting, so it's something new that's coming to my, you know, field of thinking, so very grateful.
Ben:
So thank you so much for joining me for this chat. I found it super interesting, and particularly as you've travelled such a long way to be with us. Your perspectives are really valuable, so thank you. ALL: Thank you.
James:
I hope you enjoyed that conversation. We'd love to hear your thoughts. What barriers to AI education do you see in your classroom, community, or country? Who's being left out and what do you think could help them feel included, engaged, and empowered? We'd really love to hear from you. There's more about our Experience AI programme in the latest edition of the Hello World magazine. Head to helloworld.cc to subscribe, read the digital version, and if you're in the UK, request a free print copy delivered straight to your door. That brings us to the end of our current podcast series. We hope that you've enjoyed watching it as much as we've enjoyed creating it. If you'd like more practical tips for teaching computing and digital making, we've got a whole back catalogue of episodes. Just search 'Hello World Podcast' on YouTube and click 'Subscribe' so you don't miss any future episodes. Thanks so much for watching. Goodbye.