KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 4 (Bernama) -- Higher education institutions need to integrate artificial intelligence (AI) across all fields of study, including the humanities, to ensure their curricula remain relevant to technological developments, said Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir.
He said AI had become an integral part of the learning process and should be incorporated into teaching methods and curricula.
“AI is no longer just a tool but has become part of the entire process. That is why we use the term ‘embed’, meaning it should be incorporated into all learning methods, curricula and so on,” he told reporters after officiating the NVIDIA DGX Spark-powered AI Supercomputing Lab at Asia Pacific University of Technology & Innovation (APU), here today.
Zambry said AI use should not be limited to technical fields but could also be applied in areas such as international relations and management.
“I am very impressed by the ability to integrate this technology into humanities studies. During the briefing earlier, including on the International Relations course, I saw how the technology was being used as part of the teaching approach,” he said.
He also expressed pride in APU’s development and achievements, particularly its efforts to incorporate technology across various fields of study and attract students from 120 countries.
Zambry said the rapid pace of technological advancement required higher education institutions to reassess their teaching approaches and curricula to prepare students for changes in the workplace.
However, he stressed that AI should be used responsibly and not at the expense of students’ ability to think critically, write and develop their own ideas.
“Using AI in daily life, including as a learning tool, is a good thing, but it must be used in moderation and should not overshadow students’ ability to think critically, write and develop their own ideas,” he said.
Meanwhile, APU chief executive officer Datuk Parmjit Singh said the establishment of the AI Supercomputing Lab was in line with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s call for Malaysia to move beyond being merely an AI user and develop its own capabilities to compete in the global digital economy.
“AI literacy today must go beyond knowing how to use readily available computational tools. By putting AI supercomputing power directly into the hands of our students, we are focused on four key goals: widening access, building Malaysian AI talent, strengthening sovereign AI capability and enabling our students to move from simply using AI to creators of AI with purpose,” he said.
-- BERNAMA