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SINGAPORE – Primary 4 students possess the necessary “executive functioning skills” to begin using educational AI tools under supervision, Education Minister Desmond Lee said in Parliament on May 6.

Explaining the rationale behind the age-specific roll-out, Mr Lee noted that by that age, according to research, students would have developed the planning abilities and self-evaluation skills required to navigate artificial intelligence responsibly.

“Schools will also teach students when they should not use AI, so that they do not take short cuts to get answers without actual learning,” he said, adding that students will also be taught how the technology works, how to be discerning about AI output and the importance of being responsible for the content they create,

Mr Lee was speaking in Parliament in response to questions from several MPs, including Mr David Hoe (Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC) and Mr Kenneth Tiong (Aljunied GRC), who asked for the rationale for introducing AI at Primary 4 and the safeguards in place.

Other questions focused on issues of data privacy, teacher and parental guidance, and monitoring long-term developmental impacts.

Earlier in 2026, Mr Lee said AI would be introduced gradually from Primary 4, with “low exposure” and supervision, prioritising learning of the fundamentals.

However, the roll-out has been met with caution from some parents. While many are open to tools hosted on the Ministry’s Student Learning Space (SLS), which features built-in guardrails, there are lingering fear...