Coley Nicholson: Focus on physical schooling over AI

WESTERN BUREAU:

Attorney-at-law Helene Coley Nicholson, president of Lawyers’ Christian Fellowship Jamaica, is encouraging educators to prioritise interpersonal interaction with students to develop their critical-thinking skills, rather than relying on artificial intelligence (AI), which she says may risk degrading a child’s cognitive development.

Coley Nicholson, who was addressing the just-concluded 62nd annual conference of the Jamaica Teachers’ Association (JTA) at the Ocean Coral Spring Resort in Trelawny, said there is an increasing call among schools overseas for greater emphasis on physical books and writing skills, including in countries that previously championed the use of digital technology and AI in the classroom.

“It has been noted in a number of countries that widespread adoption of screens, ed-tech [educational technology], and AI in schools is detrimental to the child’s cognitive development and well-being. There is emerging advocacy for an analogue education, centred on human teachers, physical books, and handwriting,” said Coley Nicholson.

“There is now a troubling trend where elite schools overseas, where they pioneered the technology, are returning to paper-first policies, while many public schools are increasingly reliant on digital tools and chatbot tutors. The conclusion of the matter is that we must prioritise human mentorship and character-forming subjects like literature, history, and philosophy, to ensure our children develop the autonomy and critical-thinking skills required for the future,” Coley Nicholson added.

The use of AI and digital technology in Jamaica’s schools has been an ongoing subject of public discussion, with Education Minister Dr Dana Morris Dixon advocating earlier this year for the strategic use of AI to transform Caribbean classrooms while upholding the core human aspects of education.

CALLS FOR POLICY ON THE USE OF AI

In July, the JTA called for a national policy on the use of AI in schools, following the Caribbean Examinations Council’s (CXC) decision to overhaul its School-Based Assessment (SBA) framework in response to the rapid growth of generative AI.

However, countries such as Sweden, Finland, and Denmark have championed a renewed focus on physical books, paper and pens in classrooms in response to concerns about falling literacy levels and the distractions that digital devices may present for students.

Coley Nicholson told the conference that students are more likely to retain knowledge from engaging with physical learning materials than from digital learning.

“There is evidence suggesting that reading from screens is less effective for retention than reading from physical books. Drawing on neuroscience, it is said that handwriting engages the brain more holistically than typing, thereby supporting better organisation of information, of thoughts, and a deeper connection to the subject matter, and that AI in classrooms risks bypassing the arduous but necessary process of learning to think and analyse independently, essentially hindering a child’s cognitive maturity,” said Coley Nicholson.

She also suggested that schools should ensure that devotional exercises are regularly held to build students’ moral and spiritual development, in keeping with Section 18 of the Education Act.

“It is time to put God back in our schools, as mandated by the Education Act and supported by the Constitution. Devotional exercises remain a valued tradition in many Jamaican schools and continue to contribute to the moral and spiritual development of students. We ignore our spiritual heritage to our children’s and the nation’s peril,” said Coley Nicholson.

christopher.thomas@gleanerjm.com