"The post-AI education world" in the fantasy novel "The Last Class"

On the afternoon of November 15, at the Southern Center for Education and Training Development (No. 3 Cong Truong Quoc Te, Xuan Hoa Ward, Ho Chi Minh City), An Publishing & Education (AnBooks) organized an exchange program to launch the work The Last Class by Dr. Hoang Anh Duc.

On this occasion, AnBooks also organized a discussion "Learning and asking in the AI storm - Preserving humanity in the optimal era" with the participation of experts such as: Dr. Tran Nam Dung, Vice Principal of High School for the Gifted - VNU-HCM; Dr. Nguyen Thi Thu Huyen, Director of Pathway School & Pathway Academy; Mr. Ngo Thanh Nam, Principal of B.School and author, Dr. Hoang Anh Duc, Research Scholar at RMIT University Vietnam.

Speakers at the program. From right to left: Dr. Hoang Anh Duc, Mr. Ngo Thanh Nam, Dr. Tran Nam Dung, Dr. Nguyen Thi Thu Huyen and MC Quoc Khanh. Photo: QUYNH YEN

Set in the year 2525, The Last Class unfolds in a seemingly perfect world where technology called Neural Tapestry allows people to download knowledge directly into their brains. Children no longer need school; books, teachers, and curiosity have all but disappeared. Society has achieved “absolute efficiency,” but has also lost what makes humans special.

One day, the Neural Tapestry system collapsed. The global knowledge network stopped working, leaving the world paralyzed and confused. In the midst of the chaos, 12 students were trapped in the Museum of the History of Education, a place that holds artifacts and memories of the last classroom on Earth from 500 years ago. With no data, no guidance, they were forced to learn from scratch: to think, to ask questions, to seek knowledge.

"The Last Class" is the debut fantasy novel by Dr. Hoang Anh Duc, an education researcher whose research focuses on education policy, curriculum, and professional development for teachers. Photo: QUYNH YEN

The Last Class is a work of fiction, but it is provoking much thought for readers, especially educators, parents, and policymakers grappling with the future of learning. It is a profound fantasy about the future of education and human nature in the age of artificial intelligence (AI).

Although the film is set in 2525, 500 years before the world is talking about AI, The Last Class is a serious warning that the trend of extreme machine integration can lead to a distortion of the nature of education. At the same time, it conveys the beauty of learning as open, freeing curiosity, where the learning process is about trial and error, not simply “downloading” knowledge.

Together with the author, Dr. Hoang Anh Duc, experts: Dr. Tran Nam Dung, Dr. Nguyen Thi Thu Huyen and teacher Ngo Thanh Nam had an open and engaging discussion about the AI approach in education, how to inspire students' learning motivation in the context of "everyone talking about AI"...

QUYNH YEN

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/the-gioi-giao-duc-hau-ai-trong-tieu-thuet-gia-tuong-lop-hoc-cuoi-cung-post823646.html