From lesson planning to Arabic grammar checkers: How madrasah teachers harness AI to transform learning

When Ustazah Nurfatin Hamdan signed up for the first

Madrasah Teachers AI Prompt Challenge

, she certainly did not expect to finish among the winners.

The 29-year-old Arabic and Islamic Studies teacher at Madrasah Al-Arabiah Al-Islamiah still sees herself as an artificial intelligence (AI) newbie.

Despite being relatively new to AI, she was determined to build her skills. Two weeks before the Prompt Challenge, she completed the AI Ready Asean Master Trainer certification, a programme run in collaboration with AI Singapore and the Asean Foundation, supported by Google.org, where she worked closely with fellow madrasah teachers and learned practical ways to apply AI in the classroom.

Armed with that new knowledge, she and two colleagues spent the 90-minute challenge on Oct 9 crafting prompts to produce pedagogically sound materials. This included a lesson plan and a student worksheet, both tailored to integrate science lessons on cells – the basic building blocks of life – with Islamic values.

“The experience gave us the opportunity to see the limitations of AI and how we need to supplement the output with our own content so that the lesson plan aligns with the Ministry of Education’s Science curriculum,” says Ustazah Nurfatin.

Organised by the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (Muis) in collaboration with AI Singapore, the Prompt Challenge complements the broader work showcased at this year’s Madrasah Teachers’ Symposium on Nov 25, which gathered educators and partners to share best practices in technology-enhanced learning.

Wave of innovative AI use

At the Prompt Challenge, Mr Koo Sengmeng, AI Singapore’s director of talent development, was struck by the enthusiasm of the teachers as they used ChatGPT, Google Gemini and Claude AI, as well as Islamic-focused tools such as

Ansari Chat

and

usul.ai

.

“What we hope to achieve is for madrasah educators to see the benefits of AI in their teaching practices,” says Mr Koo.

AI Singapore will continue to work with Muis to develop AI capabilities among the 300 teachers at Singapore’s six madrasahs that collectively serve around 3,600 students across primary, secondary and pre-university levels.

Says Ustaz Mohamad Khidir Abdul Rahman, deputy director of Education at Muis: “Our partnership with AI Singapore represents a deliberate step towards strengthening our educational ecosystem – equipping our schools with tools that enhance teaching effectiveness and deepen learning experiences”.

One of the early adopters was Mr Mohammad Fauzi Azman, 42, who teaches English, geography and physical education at Madrasah Aljunied Al-Islamiah.

Mr Fauzi started experimenting with AI two years ago to streamline lesson preparation and quickly saw its potential.

“Preparing materials for a week of classes used to take me about 10 hours. With AI tools, it now takes less than an hour,” he says.

With time freed up, Mr Fauzi focused on designing a richer learning experience. He recently built a chatbot to analyse assessment data, which helps him identify patterns and intervene earlier when students struggle.

This approach reflects the broader philosophy shared at the recent Madrasah Teachers’ Symposium, where educators were reminded that innovation stems from their dedication to improvement. 

In a pre-recorded video address to the participants, Associate Professor Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim, acting Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs said: “Every time you prepare a lesson, try something new or help a student understand something better, you’re making that vision come true.

“Change doesn’t happen because of technology alone. It happens because teachers like you care enough to make it happen.”

The tool has now been tested and adopted by Mr Fauzi’s colleagues, enabling the school to produce visual dashboards and performance insights across subjects in minutes rather than weeks.

Mr Fauzi also guides students on the responsible use of AI. For certain assignments, they must show the full prompting process and explain how they refined the output. 

“Students know they cannot rely on AI to answer on their behalf. They need to question, analyse and think critically,” he adds. 

His work builds on a strong digital foundation within Madrasah Aljunied Al-Islamiah, which has digitised key learning resources and integrated technology more deeply into classroom practice.

AI as ‘teacher’s assistant’

For Ustaz Mohd Nasrullah Refa’ie, 39, AI has strengthened the feedback loop between teachers and students.

“Previously, students relied entirely on us to identify every mistake in their writing. Now, AI gives them immediate first-layer feedback so they can self-correct before we step in to guide deeper understanding,” he says.

The Arabic language teacher and department head at Madrasah Aljunied Al-Islamiah uses Qalam AI, a tool designed to help students review Arabic grammar, sentence structure and accuracy.

The immediate feedback from the AI tool has encouraged greater autonomy and reflection among learners. However, not all teachers were initially comfortable using AI in the classroom, with some worrying that excessive reliance on the technology might weaken students’ intuition or effort.

The madrasah addressed these concerns by adopting a collaborative approach, creating safe internal workshops, experimenting together, sharing prompts and reflecting on their AI journeys as a community.

For Singapore’s madrasahs, the responsible use of AI aligns closely with their mission of developing graduates who are strong in faith, grounded in values and able to contribute meaningfully to society.

“AI can support learning, but it can never replace the human heart of madrasah education – the cultivation of itqan (excellence), ikhlas (sincerity) and ihsan (compassion),” says Ustaz Nasrullah.

Still, Mr Koo notes that automation tools will increasingly assist teachers by taking over routine tasks, creating more space for mentoring and deeper learning.

“AI will change how teachers spend their time. Delegating routine processes allows them to focus on higher-order thinking and individual support,” he adds.

While individual schools experiment with various AI applications, Muis is supporting the madrasahs with the implementation of technology in their teaching and learning.

As part of Muis’ commitment to continuous upskilling, the winners of the Madrasah Teachers’ AI Prompt Challenge will attend an education-themed AI conference in Japan next year.

“At Muis, we see our role as guiding the madrasah sector thoughtfully into the digital future whilst preserving the essence of Islamic education,” says Ustaz Khidir.

Learn more about Singapore’s madrasahs here.