I read about Singapore introducing AI at P4 with deep concern
Apr 03, 2026
Feel free to use these questions to engage your child’s school if you are concerned about how your child is using AI in school.
I raised the issue at a recent podcast with MOE. See 12:41 onwards: https://youtu.be/TSN_k_SP9Fc?si=UwqhsrYHRBdEPjkB&t=760
Email Village Consultancy or Carol Loi if you are serious about doing something about it in the best interest of our children, or if you have a story to share about how your child in primary school has been exposed to AI in school. 
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“As a digital wellness educator, I read Education Minister Desmond Lee’s comments on introducing artificial intelligence at Primary 4 with deep concern (New committee to guide AI use in Singapore’s higher-education sector, April 1).
The minister said this will be done “under close supervision” and with “low exposure”.
But the conversation cannot be framed only around academic learning or classroom efficiency. It must include what neuroscience tells us about how children grow, learn and mature.
Ten-year-olds are still building the foundations for attention, impulse control, discernment, and the ability to persist through difficulty. These capacities shape how a child learns, relates and responds to the world.
Introducing AI systems – which are designed to respond instantly and reduce cognitive effort – into that window carries real developmental risk.
We have been here before. When social media spread rapidly through our children’s lives, the guardrails came years too late. We are still living with those ripples on youth mental health, sleep, attention and family life. Many countries are now restricting technology companies’ access to their citizens below 16.
International guidance is more cautious than many realise. In 2023, UNESCO called for regulation of generative AI in schools, data protection and privacy standards, teacher training, and an age limit of 13 for classroom AI tools.
The parents I work with are not anti-technology. They are trying to take responsibility for their children’s healthy development.
But 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗱, 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗶𝘁 𝗯𝗲 𝗸𝗲𝗽𝘁, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗿𝗱-𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘆 𝘃𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀? 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗯𝗲 𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘂𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻? 𝗪𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗯𝗲 𝗮𝗻 𝗼𝗽𝘁-𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗼𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗳𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘆𝗲𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆?
Before AI becomes the new normal in schools, parents need answers to questions like these.”
