The Disagreement 19: AI Tutoring & K-12 Education
Oct 10, 2024
Niels Hoven, Founder and CEO of Mentava, discusses how AI could create personalized learning pathways, particularly for high-achieving students. Benjamin Riley, founder of Cognitive Resonance, offers a skeptical view, emphasizing the importance of collective learning and the risks of over-individualization in education. The debate touches on AI's limitations, the historical failures of personalized learning, and the need for rigorous evidence before fully embracing AI tutoring. Both explore the balance between AI benefits and the potential dangers of magnifying educational inequalities.
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History Shows Personalized Learning Failed
- Large bets on personalized learning over the last decade produced little student benefit despite huge funding.
- Benjamin Riley argues AI promises repeat the same failures because it misunderstands human cognition and collective learning.
True Personalization Means Pace, Not Equality
- Niels Hoven reframes personalized learning as allowing each child to progress at their own pace, not equal outcomes.
- He says personalization should let fast learners advance and slow learners take more time.
AI Lacks Reliable Theory Of Mind
- Ben emphasizes human cognition's complexity and that software can't reliably infer student mental states.
- He warns AI lacks 'theory of mind' to imagine what a student understands and why they err.
