Interview with Dr Alice Chui, AI technology expert: Teaching and learning in the new era
"Artificial intelligence has completely transformed traditional education models," says Dr Alice Chui, Chief of Digital Innovation and Strategy Leadership at Lingnan University's Teaching and Learning Centre. With over 28 years of experience in education and information technology, Dr Chui's research focuses primarily on applying artificial intelligence and big data in education. Her outstanding contributions have been recognised by the "Global Outstanding Chinese Award: Most Influential Chinese Leader" and "Global Outstanding Chinese Award: Most Influential Female", bestowed by Beijing. She has also represented Lingnan University in receiving the Outstanding Chinese Enterprise of the Year Award from the Global Academy of Innovative Enterprises.
"With my knowledge in AI, I hope to alleviate the workload of individuals and give teachers more time to spend with their students," says Dr Chui. Based on this, she explains the framework for grading criteria and course outlines through Generative AI workshops regularly hosted by Lingnan University, and says the results are much appreciated, adding that "months of our investigations are concentrated in the content of these workshops."
Dr Chui has also applied the GPT Prompts framework to simulate student interviews. "The system's feature lies in its ability to provide real-time scoring and reference suggestions based on students' tone, content, and response skills, so as to improve their interview success rate." By simply inputting designated commands, students can conduct simulated interviews online through ChatGPT, which effectively trains their responses - a practical skill to have.
Using generative artificial intelligence to improve work and learning efficiency is a current trend. In addition to the widely discussed ChatGPT, Dr Chui also describes other generative AI tools, carefully selected through continuous testing and comparison. "The generative AI tools recommended on our Teaching and Learning Centre webpage cover various areas, such as writing, graphic design, and video production." For example, QuillBot for writing short texts, D-ID AI for creating entire videos from a single image, and Canva's versatile graphic design functions meet the daily needs of teachers and students.
"I have been fascinated by information technology since I was a child. Over the years, as I studied and then started working, I developed over 200 systems. I have also designed a GPT framework that simplifies the content of academic papers, helping to improve students' learning efficiency." She frequently exchanges the latest information with global experts and says, "This is my hobby." Whether at work or at leisure, a new programme is like discovering a new toy. Dr Chui’s interests apply to her work too, and she derives immense satisfaction from digital innovation in teaching.
"Innovation in artificial intelligence never ceases," Dr Chui advises students who wish to enter the AI industry, and suggests choosing a field of interest for in-depth research, maintaining enthusiasm for new things and keeping up with the latest technology.
Dr Alice Chui recently receives the "Most Influential Chinese Leader" and "Most Influential Female" awards presented by the China Cooperative Trade Enterprises Association, Entrepreneur Daily, Huaxia Business Leaders Club, and the Organising Committee of the Global Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival Fellowship Event.
