NP Impact

From a curriculum-grounded AI Tutor to an AI adaptive learning assistant, the partnership is exploring how technology can personalise learning to cater to every learner’s needs.

Learning does not stop when a class ends. For adult learners balancing work and school, full-time diploma students revising late at night, or learners grappling with difficult concepts on their own, timely support can make all the difference.

Recognising this, Ngee Ann Polytechnic (NP) partnered technology services firm NCS to develop AI Tutor, a learning companion grounded in NP's curriculum that provides on-demand support as students work through concepts, test their understanding and learn at their own pace.

First piloted with adult learners in selected Engineering and InfoComm Technology courses at NP's Continuing Education & Training (CET) Academy, the initiative combines NP's expertise in teaching and curriculum design with NCS' capabilities in AI engineering.

Support when learners need it

For Rosman Bin Yahya, an Assistant Service Engineer with PSA Singapore pursuing a part-time engineering course at NP, the AI Tutor has become a useful study companion after hours.

“Having 24/7, on-demand access to a reliable AI tool is invaluable,” he said.

When studying certain engineering theories, the tool helped him connect mathematical concepts and circuit diagrams with their practical applications in building automation. "Having the AI explain the practical application made the theory click immediately for me."

Designed to deepen understanding

Unlike general-purpose AI tools, AI Tutor draws on NP's approved course materials, ensuring its responses remain relevant to what students are learning.

“What differentiates AI Tutor is that it is not just reactive but pedagogically intentional,” said Ms Lynn Fong, Senior Director and Registrar at NP and Director of its Centre for Learning & Teaching Excellence.

“By anchoring AI Tutor in relevant materials, we guide learners in a structured and pedagogically sound way to arrive at an accurate conceptual understanding of the subject matter.”

Early results have been encouraging. Students who used AI Tutor recorded an 8 to 10 per cent improvement in examination pass rates compared with an earlier batch that did not use it. Learning analytics also give lecturers insights into where students may be struggling, enabling them to provide more targeted support.

Shaped by how students learn

AI Tutor has also evolved in response to feedback from the learners and lecturers using it. One important insight came from engineering learners, for whom diagrams and circuit-based problems are integral to understanding concepts.

“We initially assumed text-based inputs would be sufficient, but feedback quickly showed otherwise,” said Mr Wong Boon Kiat, Partner and Practice Lead of AI Mission Engineering at NCS. “That led us to build image upload capabilities so learners could submit diagrams, charts or problems and get meaningful explanations.”

Students can now upload visual problems and receive step-by-step explanations, allowing the tool to better support the way they engage with technical concepts.

From on-demand support to adaptive learning

Building on the pilot, NP and NCS are now scaling AI Tutor to more courses, while taking their collaboration further with the AI Adaptive Learning Assistant, which personalises learning according to each student’s level of mastery.

Rolled out to over 1,100 full-time diploma students this year, the AI Adaptive Learning Assistant assesses each learner’s mastery and adjusts the learning experience accordingly. Students who continuously used its adaptive quizzes recorded a 15 per cent increase in scores from their first to final attempts.

Beyond learning tools, the partnership has expanded to include AI-focused internships and curriculum initiatives that expose students to emerging technologies and industry practice.

As AI opens up new possibilities for education, the NP-NCS collaboration demonstrates how those possibilities can be shaped around the needs of learners.