On Care, Compassion & Dialogue: Humanising AI in Education

This presentation argues for a fundamental reframing of AI's role in education, drawing on the work of Rupert Wegerif's Rethinking of Education Theory and Dialogic Pedagogies, Alison Gopnik's research on Care and Caregiving, and Martha Nussbaum's scholarship on Compassion. These perspectives suggest an alternative vision where AI serves not merely as a tool for individualised learning, but as a participant in collective dialogue that prioritises human relationships and community learning. Rather than positioning humans as passive elements "in-the-loop" of AI-driven systems, this approach places the learning community at the centre, with humans maintaining control while engaging AI in meaningful, caring, and compassionate dialogue. In this model, personalisation transforms into social learning as the fabric for education, creating educational environments where technology enhances rather than replaces the fundamentally human aspects of teaching and learning.