Various AI applications in the classroom

From elementary to high school, teachers across the country are exploring different ways to bring artificial intelligence (AI) into the classroom, supporting both teachers and students on the teaching and learning journey.

Students actively explore the lesson

Master Pham Quynh Mai, a teacher at Dong Thanh Primary School (Nghe An), said that AI is a "powerful assistant" for both teachers and students in the digital age. For teachers, applying AI tools helps "ferrymen" accelerate innovation in teaching methods and quality as well as help manage classes more effectively. At the same time, AI also helps teachers save time creating tests and designing lessons, thereby reducing work pressure.

Applying AI in education creates excitement for primary school students to actively explore lessons.

PHOTO: NHAT THINH

To learn how to "master" AI, the female master has participated in AI application training programs organized by the education sector from school to ministry level, and has also studied on the internet. According to Ms. Mai, this is not only necessary for teachers to keep up with modern educational trends, but also helps teachers go beyond the role of lecturers, becoming creative and effective leaders in the new learning environment.

Currently, Ms. Mai uses many different AI tools, such as ChatGPT, Canva, Google Gemini, Google AI Studio, Microsoft CoPilot, Suno AI, and PixVerse AI.

According to her, applying AI in education creates excitement for primary school students to actively explore lessons, while helping them practice reading, writing, and solving math problems without having to depend entirely on teachers.

"In addition, AI support tools also create conditions for students to interact and ask questions, so they can gradually form independent and creative thinking," the female teacher added.

Also using AI quite a lot in the teaching process, Dang Phuong Nghi, a teacher at the Vietnam-USA Society English System (HCMC), informed that she often uses these tools to find ideas for warm-up activities before starting the lesson or to create more interactive games suitable for each group of students. The female teacher currently teaches students aged 5-16 and each group of students has its own characteristics, requiring appropriate adjustment of teaching methods.

"In addition, I also use AI tools to transform images in books into short videos with sound, making lessons more vivid and engaging for students. Thanks to that, students can both study and play, thereby focusing on class time and absorbing better than before," said Ms. Nghi.

Students should only use AI in learning as a tool, not as a compass that can solve all problems.

PHOTO: NHAT THINH

Ms. Nghi also emphasized that although AI has the ability to help teachers expand their ideas and provide many new pedagogical approaches, the role of teachers is still very important. Because sometimes the content suggested by AI will "not really be suitable" for students, or not be the focus of the lesson. Teachers must be selective and adjust accordingly.

"The most important thing is that teachers must know how to balance, only consider AI as a support tool and not a replacement for the experience and thinking of the teacher," Ms. Nghi said.

Teach with AI, instead of relying on AI to teach

Mr. Vo Nhat Dong, a master's student in English teaching in the joint training program between the Vietnam - UK Research and Training Institute under the University of Danang and Nottingham Trent University (UK), shared that the most obvious benefit of AI is reducing workload.

"AI helps me complete repetitive tasks quickly," Mr. Dong said, giving a specific example: he often asks AI to create tables, enter vocabulary and meanings, and how to use words to make game sheets for students to review, instead of having to sit and type each item like before.

As a teacher who is teaching IELTS test preparation, Mr. Dong informed that another benefit that AI brings is to help improve the critical thinking of both teachers and students, especially in the questions in the speaking and writing sections. "AI's ideas are not only diverse but also have a certain depth," Mr. Dong said, adding that the content provided by AI also helps him accumulate many ideas to "recycle" for other topics in the IELTS test.

"The above benefits also make me more careful with AI, because if we rely too much on it, when we actually teach and do exercises, we will often wait for a solution to appear naturally. My advice to my colleagues is to teach with AI, instead of relying on AI to teach," said Mr. Dong - a young teacher who achieved IELTS 9.0.

Sharing the same view, Mr. Nguyen Cong Minh, a math teacher at Nguyen Thi Minh Khai High School (HCMC), noted that tools like Gemini and ChatGPT are educational approaches and not the "main characters" in the classroom. Therefore, if students and teachers rely too much on AI, it will be no different from the prospect of "ChatGPT teaching and learning together," according to Mr. Minh.

"AI can help students do odd jobs faster, but to improve their thinking and core practical skills, they have to get their hands dirty learning and doing, because that's what they come to school for. This is something no AI can "cram" into students," Mr. Minh emphasized.

Mr. Do Hoai Nam, a marketing lecturer at VABIS - Xanh Tue Duc International College (HCMC), said that AI can support teachers in many professional aspects, for example, reducing the time spent preparing lesson plans, outlines and presentations used in class; helping to summarize lessons vividly with many activities and games, instead of just concluding with notes on the presentation...

This also creates opportunities for teachers to have more time to contact and interact with students; thereby better understanding their psychology and aspirations, Mr. Nam commented.

However, he also believes that AI does not only bring "rosy" colors to education, because many students are having their thinking ability limited due to the appearance of AI.

"Currently, when encountering a difficult problem, instead of thinking of a solution, the first thing students do is ask AI to help them. This reality causes students to lose the ability to connect data and solve problems. Therefore, we always emphasize that students should only use AI in their studies as a tool, not see it as a compass that can handle all problems," Mr. Nam confided.

AI Competency Framework for Teachers

According to UNESCO, by 2022, only seven countries will have developed AI competency frameworks or training programs for teachers, in the context that AI has "transformed" the traditional relationship between teachers and students into a new relationship of teacher - AI - students. This leaves many educators "lacking appropriate guidance", UNESCO said.

That is why UNESCO published the report "AI Competency Framework for Teachers" in August 2024, updated in August 2025, to identify the knowledge, skills, and values ​​that teachers need to master in the AI ​​era.

Developed on the principles of protecting teachers’ rights, promoting human autonomy and promoting sustainability, the report outlines 15 competencies in five areas: Human-Centered Thinking, Ethics in AI, AI Foundations and Applications, AI Pedagogy and AI for Professional Learning. These competencies are classified into three levels of progression: acquisition, application and creation.

Meanwhile, according to a study by Professor Le Anh Vinh and Master Tran My Ngoc published in the Vietnam Educational Science Journal in 2024, the long-term impact of AI can completely restructure the entire Vietnamese education system, which has many "traditional elements". "Many comments from educational discussions say that AI is the only tool capable of quickly narrowing the gap in competitive advantage between Vietnamese education and developing countries", the study said.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/muon-kieu-ung-dung-ai-trong-lop-hoc-185251113183800416.htm