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From Pain Points to Products: How AICET Builds AI Tools for the Classroom
On 5 August 2026, AICET hosted a delegation of teachers representing elementary, middle, and high schools across the province and education officials from Jeju Special Self-Governing Provincial Office of Education, South Korea. The visit was hosted by Prof. Soo Yuen Jien, AICET’s Deputy Director (Pedagogy and Research). Setting the Tone: NUS’s AI Policy Prof. Soo opened by outlining NUS’s foundational stance towards AI in education: embrace it, rather than resist it, while paying close attention to considerations such as modality, keeping a human in the loop, and treating AI-detection tools as indicative rather than conclusive. From Knowing to Creating: A…
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“AI in Education: Boon or Bane?”: Prof. Ben Leong Delivers Keynote at HYPE@SST 2026
On 31 July 2026, AICET Director Prof. Ben Leong delivered a keynote at HYPE@SST 2026 (Humanities Youth Perspective and Engagement), a virtual session themed “AI in Education: Boon or Bane?”. Framed as “what I would tell myself if I were your age”, Prof. Ben’s talk spoke directly to the students in the audience, sharing a personal take on how AI is reshaping learning, work, and what young people should focus on developing over the years ahead. Cognitive Offloading and the “Copilot vs Autopilot” Problem Prof. Ben opened by naming a temptation familiar to any student: using AI to simply do…
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Copilot, Not Autopilot: Navigating the AI Frontier in the Public Service
On 30 July 2026, AICET Director Prof. Ben Leong spoke at a fireside chat at the Civil Service College during the Singapore Public Service Learning Fest 2026—themed One Public Service: Innovating for the Future: Harnessing AI and Innovation for Tomorrow’s Solutions. Beyond the Hype: The Reality of AI Adoption Addressing the pervasive sense of AI-driven Fear Of Missing Out (FOMO), Prof. Ben opened by cutting through the industry hype. Despite massive enterprise investments in generative AI, research shows that a surprising number of initiatives fall short of expectations. For instance, a 2025 MIT report revealed that 95% of GenAI pilots…
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AICET Welcomes Korean Educators for AI in Education Exchange
On 30 July 2026, AICET welcomed a delegation of elementary school teachers from South Korea, representing Dongin Elementary School, Dalseong Elementary School, Hwangguem Elementary School, and Suchang Elementary School. The visit was led by Prof. Soo Yuen Jien, AICET’s Deputy Director (Pedagogy), and Jonathan Chen, AICET’s Deputy Director (Engineering). Reimagining Pedagogy and Disciplines Prof. Soo opened the discussion by framing NUS’s approach to AI as one of open adoption paired with careful human oversight. He explained that educators typically transition through distinct phases of AI adoption: starting with basic tool awareness, moving into practical prompt and assessment design, and eventually…
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AICET Showcases ScholAIstic at UM-NUS Joint Academic Symposium
On 29 July 2026, AICET’s ScholAIstic platform was featured at the UM-NUS Joint Academic Symposium, as part of a research and project exhibition highlighting AI and educational technology work from both universities. Held at Capella Singapore, Sentosa — the symposium brought together scholars, researchers, and institutional leaders from National University of Singapore (NUS) and the Universiti Malaya (UM) to explore cutting-edge AI developments in healthcare, molecular modeling, robotics, and trustworthy multimodal AI. The event concluded in a prestigious Gala Dinner attended by distinguished guests, including Singapore President and NUS Chancellor Tharman Shanmugaratnam, NUS President Professor Tan Eng Chye, and UM…
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Pedagogy Over Pixels: Why Teachers Matter More Than Ever in the Age of AI
On 28 July 2026, AICET Director Prof. Ben Leong delivered a talk to educators at the E3 Cluster EdTech Network Learning Community (NLC) event, held at Dunman Secondary School. Prof. Ben shared a wide-ranging, personally-crafted take on how schools should think about AI’s impact on learning, the future of work, and what should be taught differently as a result. Cognitive Offloading and the “Copilot vs Autopilot” Problem Prof. Ben opened by posing a set of questions educators are grappling with today: To distinguish productive from harmful AI use, he offered a “Copilot vs Autopilot” framing: used well, AI plus a…
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Bridging STEM Education: Shanghai Educators Visit AICET
On 27 July 2026, AICET welcomed a delegation of 26 educators and programme staff from Shanghai, China, comprising STEM teachers from schools across the city alongside programme assistants and experts from Shanghai Normal University, East China Normal University, and UNESCO TEC. The delegation brought together teachers spanning a wide range of subjects — including Science, Mathematics, Information Technology, Computer Applications, English, and Technology & Engineering — drawn from primary, secondary, and high schools across Shanghai. The visit was co-hosted by Prof. Soo Yuen Jien, AICET’s Deputy Director (Pedagogy), and Jonathan Chen, AICET’s Deputy Director (Engineering). Reimagining Education and Disciplines with…
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Re-Envisioning Higher Education: Key Takeaways on Human-Centric AI Learning from HERDSA 2026
On 24 July 2026, National University of Singapore (NUS) News highlighted Prof. Soo Yuen Jien, Deputy Director (Pedagogy) at AICET, for his contributions to the Higher Education Research and Development Society of Australasia (HERDSA) 2026 annual conference held at NUS University Town. Prof. Soo was featured for his role in the panel discussion, “Re-envisioning Higher Education for Tomorrow’s Learners: How Can We Develop Human-Centric, Workforce-Ready Graduates in the AI Era,” which brought together Asia-Pacific higher education leaders to explore how universities can redefine learning in an AI-enabled world. Prioritizing Experiential & Human-Centric Learning During the panel, discussion centered on the…
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Empowering the Next Generation: AICET Director Shares AI Vision with ITE Senior Leaders
On 23 July 2026, AICET Director Prof. Ben Leong conducted a workshop for senior management and academic leaders at the Institute of Technical Education (ITE), held at ITE Headquarters in Ang Mo Kio. Centered on the theme “Deploying AI to Prepare Our Students for an AI-Driven Future,” this workshop builds on a collaboration initiated during ITE’s visit to AICET on 13 March 2026. Following a successful pilot of SoftMark in ITE’s General Education programme, senior leadership invited Prof. Ben back to share his insights, drawing on his dual background as an educator and technology professional. Inside the Session Prof. Ben…
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KouShi: AICET’s AI Chinese Oral Exam Platform Featured in Lianhe Zaobao
On 16 July 2026, AICET’s newest AI platform – KouShi – was featured in a Lianhe Zaobao article spotlighting how the tool is helping students prepare for PSLE Chinese Oral Examinations. Co-developed with Chinese language teachers, KouShi is currently being trialed by teachers from around 30 schools, and can respond to students’ spoken answers in real time — following up dynamically the way a real oral exam examiner would. From a Parent’s Challenge to a National Trial Prof. Ben Leong, Director of AICET, shared that the idea for KouShi grew out of his own experience helping his child prepare for…
