Experts urge caution as parents turn to AI apps for homework help

Tech experts are warning parents to beware of the pitfalls of AI technology used in a growing number of apps marketed to help children learn, even though their creators say turning schoolwork into online games is the way of the future.

While some parents have had positive experiences with the educational apps, concerns are emerging about data privacy and the potential for inaccurate information.

TeachingBlox is one such example of the educational apps. 

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It assesses a child's interests, strengths, and weaknesses through an AI-driven interview and tailors lessons into a video game format. 

"Most parents are busy. They're working," founder and chief executive Ross Paraskevas said. 

"They've got so much going on, so now they've got a dashboard that can say 'hey, did you do your homework?'"

The AI also monitors a child's emotional responses and learning patterns to adapt the content. 

"It's watching your emotions, it's watching how you're answering it and it's trying to figure out patterns," Paraskevas said.

"Let's assume you're excited about Barbie dolls, then it will look to use that excitement to bridge to, say, maths or to science."

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Jack Casonato's daughter, who is in year 4, uses TeachingBlox.

"Madeline's very good at doing her homework, but for the first time I heard her laugh while doing her homework," he said.

"It makes it more fun to do learning and it's easier to learn harder stuff," daughter Madeline said.

Under relatively new national guidelines, AI technology is currently being trialled in classrooms around the country, with the NSW government recently announcing it will become a permanent learning tool from years 5 to 12.

But tech experts are warning parents to remain on guard, particularly when it comes to giving chatbots personal information, and to remind their children that even the smartest technology can still get it wrong.

"They don't necessarily have the evaluative judgement to be able to determine if what they're being told is actually correct or not," Monash University's Professor Michael Phillips said. 

"AI involvement doesn't replace parents."

This article was produced with the assistance of 9ExPress.