A few years ago, before the emergence of various artificial intelligence (AI) applications and tools, there was little discussion about potential aids for school and university students in Egypt beyond the then available materials.
Concerns about students copying those materials loomed large, making plagiarism a problem for both students and professors. However, with the rise of AI applications like ChatGPT, Google’s Gemini, and others, questions arise whether these tools have further transformed the educational landscape and to what extent they can be accepted.
One of the AI tools is ChatGPT developed by OpenAI, a state-of-the-art language model designed to understand and generate human-like text based on vast amounts of data from the Internet. The model is part of the Generative Pre-trained Transformer (GPT) series, whose initial version was released in June 2020. The primary motivation behind ChatGPT was to advance natural language processing (NLP) capabilities, enabling machines to communicate more effectively and intuitively with users.
When ChatGPT emerged into the global arena, it redefined intelligence itself. Suddenly, AI was no longer a matter of science fiction, as it had become a new reality. Running models like ChatGPT is not only a technological achievement but also a significant financial burden. The operational costs are substantial, requiring immense computing power and placing a significant burden on the companies managing these models. As demand for AI services has surged, expenses have escalated, leading firms to question the sustainability of their operations.
While US tech firms poured billions into the race to develop AI, a Chinese counterpart, Deepseek, appeared at a lower cost and available to all users for free, something that triggered a stock-market selloff and impacted both Wall Street and Silicon Valley.
Meanwhile, Egypt has made a tremendous leap in terms of AI readiness, advancing to number 56 in the 2022 Government AI Readiness Index from 111. The country is now Africa’s second-best ranked country in terms of AI readiness, indicating its serious efforts to advance wider digitalisation.
AI has affected the Egyptian educational system in many different ways, and it is now common to find students feeling perplexed about the safe usage of AI in their assignments at school or university. Speaking to a group of students gathered around a laptop in a café in Alexandria recently, the present writer heard mixed opinions on the proper use of AI.
One of the students commented that “without AI, a recent task would have taken at least a month of work.”
One teacher at Cairo’s Grand Library, who preferred to remain anonymous, said that there were concerns about the lack of originality of work produced by AI. “This reflects a widening gulf: students view AI as a shortcut, while educators see it as a threat to traditional learning methods,” the teacher said.
“Parents remain uncertain about how to navigate this new technology. As Egypt’s education system struggles with outdated curricula, the rest of the world is racing ahead. The question is: will Egypt be able to catch up, or will AI remain an underused and misunderstood tool in the classroom?”
PARENTAL CONCERNS: During a school exam in Maadi in Cairo recently, parental discussions reflected strong concerns over the use of AI in education.
One mother expressed her fears by calling AI “demonic” and saying her son was using it too much. Her greatest worry was that AI would replace genuine human relationships, especially for vulnerable teenagers, she said. To her, it wasn’t just a machine; it was a tool for unseen forces beyond human understanding, which was why neither she nor her husband allowed it in their home.
“Teenagers are fragile and are searching for real connections. A lifeless screen offering false support could make AI feel closer than family, closer than real friends,” she warned.
Another mother expressed similar concerns about the use of AI inside and outside the classroom. “I’m against my daughter using AI, as I have a lot of concerns regarding privacy and her mental well-being,” she said.
However, Hanan, a psychologist and the mother of an adolescent, saw things differently. “AI has improved my son’s language skills and helped him overcome his shyness,” she said. But she stressed the importance of family guidance regarding the use of AI to balance any potential drawbacks. AI was a dish with a strong flavour, she said. Just because one ingredient is too much does not mean the entire dish should be discarded.
However, challenges persist. For Halima, an Arabic teacher at the Suez Industrial Secondary School for Girls, the insufficient integration of technology into technical education meant that students are not adequately prepared to meet the demands of the labour market.
“The digital transformation is something you hear about in the media. In reality, however, especially in education and technical training, it’s largely overlooked. Students are left to fend for themselves outside of school because what they are learning is not of value in the job market,” she said.
Teachers are increasingly concerned about the impact of AI on education. Not only could students rely too much on AI tools, undermining their critical thinking and creativity, but AI could even replace human teachers.
Ibrahim, a teacher at the Al-Safa Experimental School, said that AI could diminish genuine human interactions, making learning less personal and more mechanical and could disrupt the relationship between teachers and students.
Sixth-grade student Eyad explained how the school’s mathematics teacher had helped students to use AI in an effective way that could help them with their studies. “She teaches us how to use AI in our studies, shows us the free and paid tools, and guides us to protect our privacy online,” Eyad said.
A Japanese school in Cairo representative said that AI is not on the agenda for changes to the curricula at the school.
Many students now see AI as a useful tool for managing their time and studying independently. However, the challenge lies in using it without losing critical thinking skills. After an exam, one student was initially reluctant to discuss his experience. Eventually, he acknowledged that AI had helped him with his studying and research, but he quickly changed the subject when a teacher walked by.
The teacher was against the use of AI in education.
STUDENTS: At the Cairo International Book Fair (CIBF) that took place from 23 January to 5 February this year, the present writer met students who had varied experiences with AI.
Some schools had embraced it openly, while others had been slower to adopt it, they said. Many students in Al-Azhar schools were either prohibited from using AI or discouraged from using it. In contrast, Shereen Al-Sherif, head of Manhattan Schools Egypt in Maadi, asserted the importance of using technology to enhance problem-solving skills and core competencies.
This situation highlights the significant divide in AI adoption within the education system in Egypt, with some seeing it as a tool for progress and others concerned about its impact on traditional teaching methods.
A telecommunications and IT industry consultant who wanted to remain anonymous provided an interesting proposal. “Telecommunication companies have the tools to sponsor education. They may provide students with access to education websites using AI for free for several hours a day and at zero expense,” he said.
Another proposal came from a cyber security expert, who suggested the establishment of a national education app on an AI platform. “The app should be Egyptian, free, and at zero cost on the Internet. It could teach history, mathematics, and languages interactively. It would not be intended to replace teachers. Its role would be to help young minds interact with technology,” he said.
Iman Al-Iraqi, a professor at Tanta University, discussed her concerns about the misuse of AI, particularly in exams or where there are problems of plagiarism. However, she also highlighted its benefits in matters like translation.
“I train my students to use Adobe Premiere and was surprised to see my students using it in my class even without my telling them,” she said.
“One of my students submitted material completely out of context, however. I rejected it, only to receive her next task in the same manner — detached from my explanations and lacking creativity. Accordingly, I refused the whole assignment,,” she said, adding that the problem lay in the unacknowledged use of AI.
Al-Iraqi believes that some students are abusing AI. “I can always tell when they have been using AI as I receive 15 identical answers in tests, none of which come from the textbook or my lectures. Once I even tested the AI app myself with an exam question, and the answer came back just as I suspected — repeated and identical responses.”
Even so, she admitted to using AI herself. “I used it yesterday to translate an English media theory into Arabic, and it was absolutely brilliant. I have also used it to generate examples for my students during lectures,” she said.
A Spanish language student at Ain Shams University in Cairo had her own take on AI.
“I use AI to translate my assignments and prepare presentations quickly,” she said. “But only for subjects where the professors don’t know about it. The ones who use anti-GPT software are exhausting, as we end up flipping through dictionaries and old books in the library.”
* A version of this article appears in print in the 10 April, 2025 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
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