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In 2025, China did something that should terrify every American parent.

They made AI education mandatory.

For every kid. Every school. The entire country.

You know what we did?

Basically nothing.

Only 18% of schools here have ANY AI guidance at all.

So picture this playing out.

Somewhere in China, an entire generation is being raised to command AI like it's a pencil. Millions of kids. By the time they're adults, it'll be second nature.

Meanwhile, here, most kids will graduate having never been taught how to use the single most important tool of their lifetime.

And the kids who'll get left the FURTHEST behind?

The ones who need the opportunity most.

Low-income families. Under-resourced schools. Kids whose parents can't afford a $2,000 "AI summer camp."

This isn't about test scores. This is about who gets to build the future… and who just gets to watch it happen to them.

China is betting on their kids.

The question is whether we're willing to bet on ours.

I already made my choice.

“We came to camp to learn how to use AI - so later on, we probably won’t be that anxious,” a 13-year-old participant at a Chinese tech giant’s summer programme told CNA.

From summer camps to big salaries: China’s AI talent race is starting young and going big AI talent is commanding a huge premium in China - and parents are betting that exposing their children to technology early could give them a headstart.

Model answers for the 2026 PSLE English Oral Day One:

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Q1. Do you think this is a good place to spend your free time at?

Yes, I think this is a very good place to spend my free time because it is convenient, lively and allows people of different ages to interact with one another.

For example, I could come here after school to play on the playground with my friends. I might even meet children from other blocks and make new friends, just like the girl in the picture who is shyly asking the two girls if she can join them. I think that is a good way for children to learn how to communicate and be more confident.

Another advantage is that the playground is right below the HDB block, so parents can easily keep an eye on their children. Younger children can play while older family members sit nearby and chat.

On the other hand, I don't think it would be a good place if someone wanted to spend quiet time alone. For instance, if I wanted to read a book or concentrate on my homework, the noise from children playing might distract me.

Overall, I think it is a great place to spend free time because it encourages people to get outdoors, exercise and interact with one another.

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Q2. How do you spend your free time?

I usually spend my free time doing a mixture of outdoor and indoor activities. I especially enjoy playing sports because it allows me to exercise while having fun with my friends.

For example, after school, I might meet my friends at a nearby playground to play a game together. Sometimes, we may even invent our own games instead of simply using the playground equipment. I think this makes our time together more enjoyable because we have to be creative and work together.

When I am at home, I also enjoy reading or playing games for a while. I think having some screen time is perfectly fine as long as I don't spend the entire day looking at a screen.

For instance, if I had three hours of free time, I wouldn't spend all three hours playing games. I might play for an hour, read for a while and then go outside. On the other hand, if I had an important test the next day, I would probably spend less time playing and more time preparing for it.

So, I think the best way to spend my free time is to have a balance between having fun, being active and doing something meaningful.

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Q3. Do you think children nowadays still have time to play? Why do you think so?

Yes, I think children nowadays still have time to play, but perhaps they have less free time than children did in the past.

One reason is that many children have busy schedules. Besides school, they may have tuition, enrichment classes, sports training and homework. For example, a child might finish school in the afternoon, attend a mathematics lesson and then have to complete homework before going to bed. By the time everything is finished, there may not be much time left to play.

However, I don't think that means children have completely stopped playing. For example, I often see children playing at playgrounds below HDB blocks, just like the ones in the picture. Some children may also play sports with their friends or spend time together during recess.

On the other hand, I think technology has changed the way children play. In the past, children might have spent more time playing outdoors, while nowadays some children prefer playing online games or watching videos on their devices. Although these activities can be entertaining, they are not quite the same as physically playing with friends.

For instance, two children playing a game together at a playground have to communicate, take turns and solve problems together. A child who spends all his free time alone on a device may have fewer opportunities to develop these social skills.

Therefore, I believe children nowadays do still have time to play, but they need to make a conscious effort to protect that time. After all, play is not simply a way to pass the time — it is also an important part of growing up.

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Quick formula:
ANSWER → BECAUSE → EXAMPLE → CONTRARY EXAMPLE → CONCLUSION*
Add in connectors: `For example`, `On the other hand`, `However`, `For instance`, `Therefore`

Best of luck to the students undertaking the Day Two English Oral!

❤️

NUS makes AI courses compulsory, offers free ChatGPT Edu NUS mandates AI courses for all undergraduates and provides free ChatGPT Edu access to students and staff as part of a new AI strategy. Read more at straitstimes.com. Read more at straitstimes.com.

“Artificial intelligence means it’s much easier for us to make movies. It’s very much like sitting here saying, ‘Well, I believe the horse and the buggy is really where it’s at. These cars, they break down, they need gas, there’s all kinds of problems with them and pretty soon they’ll be making them into tanks, and then they’ll be killing people. It’s terrible.’ There’s nothing you can do about it. That’s progress, it’s the future.”

The Illusion of "Hard Work"

For decades, the "Singaporean way" relied on a linear equation: Rigorous Content + Standardised Testing = Success. We treated education like a ladder. But in 2026, the ladder is moving, and AI is the one pushing it.

Data from across the sector confirms the shift:

The Half-Life of Skills: In the 1960s, a degree lasted for nearly three decades. Today, the "half-life" of a learned skill is as short as 2 to 5 years.

The Cognitive Gap: While students can still solve quadratic equations, the world now demands the ability to question those equations, adapt them to new contexts, and use AI to synthesize information—skills that traditional rote-learning often suppresses.

The Efficiency Paradox: Students are caught in a system that prioritizes moving through the syllabus quickly, but AI-driven personalized learning allows students elsewhere to master concepts at their own pace—making the "one-size-fits-all" classroom feel increasingly archaic.

You are caught in a high-stakes squeeze. You want your child to be "future-ready," but you fear that using AI will turn their brains to mush, yet not using it will leave them behind.

1. The Fear of "Cognitive Offloading"
You worry that if AI does the brainstorming, your child won't develop their own "intellectual muscle." This is a valid, evidence-based concern. Research shows that over-reliance on AI can indeed become a crutch, preventing students from internalizing deep knowledge.

2. The Competitive Anxiety
There is a pervasive dread that someone else’s child is using AI to gain an unfair edge. This is the new "shadow competition." Parents are asking: If the system doesn't allow AI in exams, but the real world requires it, how do I build a child who can do both?

3. The Compass Crisis
You are bombarded by conflicting advice. One day, technology is a tool; the next, it’s a distraction. You feel the pressure to be a "perfect" digital-era parent, leading to significant emotional fatigue and the nagging suspicion that you are failing.

Is Traditional Education Obsolete?

Not obsolete, but fundamentally re-contextualised.

The school’s role has shifted from information transmitter to capability coach. The Ministry of Education (MOE) has acknowledged this by introducing AI literacy at the Primary 4 level—not to feed children answers, but to teach them how to critique and manage AI outputs.

The "obsolescence" is not in the school building, but in the fixed mindset that sees education as a finished product. If your child is still being taught to memorize facts that a chatbot can retrieve in milliseconds, they are being trained for a world that ceased to exist years ago.

Stop trying to prepare your child for a static "future" that you can predict—it’s a ghost. Instead, treat their education as a foundational training ground for agility.

Your goal isn't to protect them from AI or to force them to use it; your goal is to raise a child who is more "human" than the machine—a thinker who uses AI to handle the mundane, so they can spend their precious, finite cognitive energy on the one thing AI cannot replicate: judgment, empathy, and the courage to ask the questions that haven't been answered yet.

The machine can provide the "what," but your child must own the "why." That is the only edge that will never be automated.

The exact skillset our courses inculcate. It's never about JUST fiddling around with the AI tools.