ENG1502 Assignment 3
(COMPLETE ANSWERS)
2025 - DUE 22 August 2025
For assistance contact
Email:
, AI in Education: Does it Bridge or Budge South Africa's Learning Divide?
The advent of artificial intelligence (AI)
presents South Africa's education system with a revolutionary but demanding challenge. The
nation still grapples with entrenched inequalities based on historical and socio-
economic cleavages expressed in terms of varying resources, quality teachers, and
student performance. The most important question is
whether AI integration can be an effective tool to bridge these gaps or, on the other hand,
exacerbate current inequalities and create a new form of
technological divide. Although AI holds enormous potential for customized learning and
administrative efficiency, its equitable and effective application is far from guaranteed and
hinges on wise policy, infrastructure investment, and the building of human capacities.
Its supporters argue that AI can be a great equalizer. AI-based learning systems can engage one-
on-one, adaptive, and individualized learning experiences, tailoring content, pace, and difficulty
to each student's unique needs. In a country where classrooms are overpopulated and teachers
are scarce, this individualized approach might provide the sort of individualized tutoring that
was once reserved for privileged few. Second,
AI software can handle administrative functions for teachers, such as automated grading and
lesson planning. This will free teachers up to devote more time to mentorship and one-on-
one assistance to students, increasing the overall quality of teaching.
For disabled students or students whose first language is not the one used for instruction, AI
translation and text-to-speech features offer a degree of accessibility never imagined before,
making instruction more inclusive than ever before.
However, careful scrutiny of the current scenario reveals significant threats that can widen the
learning gap. The most critical threat is the deep digital divide plaguing South Africa. Rural
and impoverished urban learners lack access to bare minimum technological infrastructure,
including reliable internet connectivity and digital devices. Without these foundational facilities,
AI-driven education is beyond reach. The cost of implementing AI solutions and training staff
to work with them is also a major hurdle. Wealthy, well-endowed schools can afford these
technologies, leaving behind under-resourced public schools, creating a new "AI
divide." Also critical is the pressing need for "AI literacy" among learners and teachers
alike. Unless the teachers are well trained, they will not be able to implement these
tools effectively in their practice, and the learners might not be ready to use them ethically or
productively. Finally, there is a genuine risk of algorithmic bias. Unless AI is trained on data sets
that sufficiently mirror South
Africa's multilingual and multicultural context, then they will reinforce currently existing biases
and embed a Western-facing curriculum.
Ultimately, AI's role in the South African education system is not predetermined. It will be a
powerful equity accelerator, or it will be a new method of extending inequality.
The decision is up to a shared commitment from everyone involved. The government's
strategic plans, like the National AI Policy, must be converted into feasible actions—
(COMPLETE ANSWERS)
2025 - DUE 22 August 2025
For assistance contact
Email:
, AI in Education: Does it Bridge or Budge South Africa's Learning Divide?
The advent of artificial intelligence (AI)
presents South Africa's education system with a revolutionary but demanding challenge. The
nation still grapples with entrenched inequalities based on historical and socio-
economic cleavages expressed in terms of varying resources, quality teachers, and
student performance. The most important question is
whether AI integration can be an effective tool to bridge these gaps or, on the other hand,
exacerbate current inequalities and create a new form of
technological divide. Although AI holds enormous potential for customized learning and
administrative efficiency, its equitable and effective application is far from guaranteed and
hinges on wise policy, infrastructure investment, and the building of human capacities.
Its supporters argue that AI can be a great equalizer. AI-based learning systems can engage one-
on-one, adaptive, and individualized learning experiences, tailoring content, pace, and difficulty
to each student's unique needs. In a country where classrooms are overpopulated and teachers
are scarce, this individualized approach might provide the sort of individualized tutoring that
was once reserved for privileged few. Second,
AI software can handle administrative functions for teachers, such as automated grading and
lesson planning. This will free teachers up to devote more time to mentorship and one-on-
one assistance to students, increasing the overall quality of teaching.
For disabled students or students whose first language is not the one used for instruction, AI
translation and text-to-speech features offer a degree of accessibility never imagined before,
making instruction more inclusive than ever before.
However, careful scrutiny of the current scenario reveals significant threats that can widen the
learning gap. The most critical threat is the deep digital divide plaguing South Africa. Rural
and impoverished urban learners lack access to bare minimum technological infrastructure,
including reliable internet connectivity and digital devices. Without these foundational facilities,
AI-driven education is beyond reach. The cost of implementing AI solutions and training staff
to work with them is also a major hurdle. Wealthy, well-endowed schools can afford these
technologies, leaving behind under-resourced public schools, creating a new "AI
divide." Also critical is the pressing need for "AI literacy" among learners and teachers
alike. Unless the teachers are well trained, they will not be able to implement these
tools effectively in their practice, and the learners might not be ready to use them ethically or
productively. Finally, there is a genuine risk of algorithmic bias. Unless AI is trained on data sets
that sufficiently mirror South
Africa's multilingual and multicultural context, then they will reinforce currently existing biases
and embed a Western-facing curriculum.
Ultimately, AI's role in the South African education system is not predetermined. It will be a
powerful equity accelerator, or it will be a new method of extending inequality.
The decision is up to a shared commitment from everyone involved. The government's
strategic plans, like the National AI Policy, must be converted into feasible actions—
