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Wednesday, January 14, 2026

Chapter 5 - Age-appropriate Use of GenAI.pdf

https://go.gov.sg/ai-chapter5

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-6hO7OZzBBRDF7QLUgP2EJrKCdZu1h0S/view

🎬 SHORTENED VIDEO SCRIPT — “Generative AI Guide: Age-Appropriate Use”

OPENING
Narration:
“Generative AI is changing learning. But not every student is ready to use AI in the same way. Here’s a quick look at age-appropriate AI use in schools.”

On-screen:
Generative AI Guide – Chapter 5
#Gen-AI #Age-Appropriateness


OVERVIEW
Narration:
“To eventually use AI wisely, students need knowledge, values, self-regulation, and metacognitive skills. The goal is to use AI in ways that support development, safety, and long-term learning.”

On-screen points:
• Foundational knowledge
• Values & ethics
• Self-regulation
• Metacognition
• Human vs AI awareness


PRIMARY 1–3
Narration:
“Younger primary students are still developing cognitive, social-emotional, and executive skills. They learn best through physical and social activities. Unsupervised or open-ended AI use is not advised.”

On-screen points:
Pri 1–3
• Supervised only
• Awareness of AI in daily tools
• Teachers review AI feedback


PRIMARY 4–6
Narration:
“From Primary 4 to 6, AI can be introduced under teacher supervision. Students must complete the Basic Module on AI in SLS before using AI tools.”

On-screen points:
Pri 4–6
• Basic Module required
• Teacher-supervised AI tools
• Role-model how to interpret AI feedback
• Highlight that AI is not human


TRANSITION
Narration:
“As students move into secondary levels, their readiness varies. Intentional scaffolding becomes important.”


SECONDARY 1–2
Narration:
“Lower secondary students start taking ownership, but still need structured guidance to avoid cognitive offloading. After completing the Basic Module, they may interact with chatbots for targeted tasks, within time limits.”

On-screen points:
Sec 1–2
• Basic Module required
• Controlled chatbot use
• Teachers review chatlogs initially
• Responsible use routines


SECONDARY 3–4/5
Narration:
“In upper secondary, students gain stronger mastery and executive function. Teachers gradually release responsibility for independent use of AI.”

On-screen points:
Sec 3–4/5
• Gradual release
• Clear lesson objectives
• Ethics + metacognition
• Compare human vs AI contributions


PRE-UNIVERSITY
Narration:
“At Pre-U level, the focus shifts to using AI to augment human intelligence. Students reflect on how they use AI, critique its output, and avoid cognitive offloading.”

On-screen points:
Pre-U
• Critique AI
• Evaluate + integrate output
• Maintain agency


CLOSING
Narration:
“Across all levels, the aim is not just to use AI, but to develop thoughtful, ethical, and independent learners. Age-appropriate design ensures students work with AI without losing their own thinking.”

On-screen:
Generative AI Guide – Chapter 5
#Gen-AI #Age-Appropriateness







GENERATIVE AI GUIDE CHAPTER 5


#GEN-AI #age-appropriateness


use of Generative AI for Education


Pri 1-3


Pri 4-6


Sec 1-2


Pre-

University


Students have developed executive function

and strong knowledge foundations

Students are empowered to:

Use AI as a collaborator, with continued

focus on metacognition

Guard against cognitive offloading


Learning experiences include:

Ethical discussions

Developing novel applications of AI

Demonstrating how AI can augment human

intelligence while maintaining human

agency


Students take greater ownership of how they use

AI to support their learning, i.e. gradual release

for independent use of AI.

Students must complete the [Secondary] Basic

Module on AI and AI-enabled Features in SLS

(go.gov.sg/ai-sec) as part of the PDLP

onboarding.


Strong focus on use of AI to scaffold

metacognitive development to guard against

cognitive offloading.

Learning experiences (LEs) embed

opportunities for students to reflect on how

and why they use AI, manage emotional

responses, and apply ethical reasoning.


Sec 3-4/5

AGE GUIDANCE TO THE USE OF AI


Priority to develop foundational cognitive,

executive functioning and socio-emotional

skills through physical and social interactions.

Direct use of AI tools for teaching and

learning (T&L) in an unsupervised manner

and/or for open-ended tasks is not advisable.


Students should be made aware of AI's

presence in their daily lives such as in smart

devices or digital assistants.

Teachers can use AI-enabled Feedback

Assistants to support marking and provide

feedback to students. However, open-ended

feedback should be reviewed by the teacher

before releasing to students.


Age-appropriate AI tools to be directly used by

students introduced gradually under teacher

supervision.

Students must complete the [Pri 4-6] Basic

Module on AI and AI-enabled Features in SLS

(go.gov.sg/ai-upper-pri) before using any AI

tools (whether within SLS or COTS).

AI literacy incudes progressive students’

responsibility over time as they develop

ethical and purposeful approaches to using AI.


Level of teacher supervision will depend on the

technology powering the tool (less supervision

needed for rules-based vs closer supervision

for GenAI), and the use case (e.g. less

supervision for single exchange like marking

tools vs closer supervision for iterative tasks

like digital content creation). Close

supervision should be required for the use of

dialogic agents at this age.


Independent use of GenAI tools with emphasis

on strong lesson design to ensure students

learn.


Continuing emphasis on metacognitive

development to guard against cognitive

offloading, and ethical use of AI.


OVERVIEW


Learning experiences (e.g. concrete,

collaborative, abstract) which are

appropriate for their ages


Foundational knowledge of different

disciplines and how AI works. Students

need content before they can critically

analyse AI’s output and synthesise with


their own.


Values to guide ethical and

responsible use of AI and

contextual knowledge to

differentiate humans and AI


Self-regulation skills to manage their

emotions, time, focus and motivation

to help them use AI as a tool to

support learning rather than relying

on it to do the work for them


Metacognitive skills to reflect on

their own thinking and learning

with AI, including questioning when


and why to use AI


To become learners who can eventually

use AI wisely, students need...


Use AI in a manner

that considers

students’ cognitive

and affective

development,

safety and

long-term learning.


AGE-APPROPRIATE


Correct as at 12 Sept 2025 Official (Closed) \ Non-Sensitive


Considerations for age-appropriate use of AI


GENERATIVE AI GUIDE CHAPTER 5


#GEN-AI #age-appropriateness


use of Generative AI for Education


Primary students are still developing core skills:

🧠 Cognitive: memory, attention, reasoning

🎯 Executive function: planning, self-control

💬 Social-emotional: empathy, teamwork, emotional understanding

How they learn best:

Through physical, sensory, and social experiences

Struggle with abstract ideas or complex digital tools

Tend to see AI as a friend or person, which can lead to emotional

attachment

What teachers should do:

Always supervise AI use in class

Use teacher-in/over-the-loop strategies


Why is this important

for the Primary level?


Progressively start students on the use of AI and technology while bearing in mind the


developmental sensitivity of these younger learners


Use Gen AI tools in a safe and

closed online environment

such as SLS, where safety

and pedagogical

considerations have been

incorporated in its design.

Students must complete the


Basic Module on AI and AI-

enabled Features in SLS


(go.gov.sg/ai-upper-primary)

before they independently

use highly scoped AI tools like

Adaptive Learning Systems or

feedback tools.


When using AI chatbots, teachers should remind

students that they are not humans, even if they

give responses that are human-like. Teachers

should also supervise the in-class use and be

able to monitor students’ interactions with AI,

e.g. through Data Assistant in SLS, a monitoring

dashboard, or students’ screens.


Look out for signs of distress, disruptive

behaviour or distractions and intervene in a

timely manner.


Given the developmental

sensitivity of younger

learners, it is especially

important to adhere to

terms of use when using

Gen AI tools, and be guided

by MOE’s AIEd

Implementation Guide and

Checklist.


AIEd Ethics Implementation

Guide and Checklist


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PRIMARY 4-6


Create avenues for students to know about AI and understand how AI works


Demonstrate use of simple AI tools and role-

model how to use AI’s output meaningfully.


E.g. Guide students on how to interpret and

use AI’s feedback via the Learning Feedback

Assistants in SLS to revise their work. Avoid

allowing students to directly interact with

chatbots.


Use teachable moments to highlight AI’s presence in

COTS* tools used during lessons (e.g. Google, Padlet)

and in common apps (e.g. Siri, Netflix), and that AI output

may not always be accurate, and there is always a need

to check.

*COTS: Commercial Off-the-Shelf


PRIMARY 1-3


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Pri 1 & 2: Light use of tech, prioritising

concrete learning experiences

Pri 3: Progressive increase of use of tech

Pri 4 to 6: In-class supervised use of tech

General guidance to use of EdTech


AGE-APPROPRIATE


Correct as at 4 Sept 2025 Official (Closed) \ Non-Sensitive


GENERATIVE AI GUIDE CHAPTER 5


use of Generative AI for Education


Development of our students is uneven:

Cognitive, executive functions, and social-emotional skills mature

at different rates.

Students have varied readiness levels, especially at lower

secondary. This calls for the need for more intentional scaffolding

(e.g., reflection routines, guided questioning).


Why is this important

for the Secondary

and Pre-U levels?


Balance independent use of GenAI tools with a continued emphasis on the ethical and

responsible use of AI and metacognitive development to guard against cognitive offloading


Teachers should continue to emphasise strong lesson

design guided by e-Pedagogy, and reiterate the role of

the student in their learning.

Make learning objectives of AI-facilitated activities

clear to students before enabling independent use of

AI.

Students should co-create with teachers, rules around

the ethical and responsible use of AI in the classroom.


“How is the use of the AI tool intended to

sharpen my understanding?”

“What are my expected contributions versus

the AI tool in this activity?

When and how am I expected to critique or

improve upon AI output?

Possible objectives


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Sec 3-4/5


Help students take greater ownership of how they use AI to support their learning,


i.e. gradual release for independent use of AI


Sec 1-2


Correct as at 4 Sept 2025 Official (Closed) \ Non-Sensitive


AGE-APPROPRIATE


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After students have completed Basic Module on AI and

AI-enabled Features in SLS (go.gov.sg/ai-sec), they

could be allowed to interact independently with

chatbots for a specific and well-defined lesson task,

within a limited time frame.


For a start, teachers should review students’ chatlogs

to identify inappropriate behaviour. Gradually, as

teachers reinforce AI Literacy, teachers may identify

specific students or learning tasks to review chatlogs.


Lessons involving AI should strongly focus on

responsible student use of AI to avoid cognitive

offloading. E.g., teachers designing lessons that allow

students to use AI tools should also include lesson

routines for students to reflect on and critique the use

of AI. Students should be reminded of the responsible

use of AI and the potential risks that their learning

could be compromised if they do not use it well.


Sec 1-2: Use of tech both in and out of class, with guidance on

homework time and screen time for homework. PDLP introduced at

Sec 1, with mandatory DMA installation in all PLDs.

Sec 3-5: Independent use of tech and Gen AI with focus on student

independent learning and agency.


General guidance to use of EdTech


#GEN-AI #age-appropriateness


Facilitate student-GenAI collaboration that helps augment human intelligence


and retains student agency


Students generally have strong executive function and subject mastery. Teachers can guide students on

metacognition and guard against cognitive offloading, such as:


Reflecting on how and when they use AI

Evaluating and responding critically to AI output

Assessing how AI enhances their final work

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