TITLE: Chinese Parents Use AI to Monitor Children's Homework

Parents across China are adopting artificial intelligence chatbots to supervise their children's homework, providing remote monitoring and tutoring as economic pressures mount and government policies curb private education spending.

Lu Qijun, a television journalist in Guangdong province, positions her smartphone on her son's desk during busy periods. The device's camera activates, and Dola, an AI chatbot developed by ByteDance — the parent company of TikTok — issues gentle reminders. If the boy slouches, Dola advises him to sit upright. Fidgeting with a pen prompts a suggestion to stop, and slowing progress elicits encouragement to speed up.

Ms. Lu is among approximately 172 million monthly users of the Dola app, according to data from Chinese analytics platform QuestMobile. Beyond supervision, the tool functions as a tutor, allowing parents to upload trusted study materials for personalized guidance. It reviews homework, identifies errors, explains corrections and generates practice questions based on mistakes.

Social media platforms in China buzz with videos of children interacting with the AI, shared by parents like Ms. Lu. Her posts, showing her son's reactions to the chatbot's prompts, have garnered thousands of views. "Dola can keep an eye on him for me," Ms. Lu said, highlighting its convenience.

Economic Pressures and Policy Shifts

The rise of such AI tools coincides with China's decelerating economic growth, prompting families to scrutinize education expenses. Beijing's 2021 crackdown on the for-profit tutoring industry sought to alleviate burdens on students and parents, while encouraging higher birth rates by cutting family costs. Private tutoring, once ubiquitous in urban middle-class homes, now faces stricter regulations, even as children devote hours daily to schoolwork and extracurriculars.

"Parents are anxious about spending heavily, only to end up with a 'rotten-tail kid,'" Ms. Lu noted, invoking a meme for young adults who remain unemployed despite significant parental investment in their upbringing. For many, AI offers a cost-effective alternative to human tutors.

In traditional Chinese education, parental involvement extends far beyond school hours. Teachers assign homework and provide feedback via WeChat group chats, expecting parents to monitor progress and submit updates. This is particularly demanding for working families, many shaped by the one-child policy and now supporting aging relatives while raising children. Mothers often bear the brunt, balancing careers, households and educational oversight.

Avoiding Family Conflicts

AI supervision also helps mitigate tensions at home. Wu Yuting, a mother of two primary school children in Henan province, described how she and her husband previously sat with their kids during homework, often leading to frustration. "My children behave better in front of AI," Ms. Wu said. "They think I talk too much."

The chatbot's calm, patient tone contrasts with the exhaustion that can strain parent-child dynamics after long days. Dr. Qi Jing, an associate professor at RMIT University's Social Equity Research Centre, explained that AI language is engineered to be encouraging. However, she warned, "If parents use AI as part of children's learning, they may be avoiding conflicts that need to be addressed. [Children's] brains need conflict, struggle and challenges to develop properly."

Education remains a cornerstone of Chinese family values, viewed as the primary route to social mobility and security. Students routinely invest extensive hours preparing for high-stakes exams, such as the national university entrance test, with parents waiting anxiously outside testing centers.

Tools with Limitations

Dola's learning-focused variant, Dola Aixue, boasts 8.76 million monthly active users, per QuestMobile data, signaling AI's expanding role in education. Yet parents like Ms. Lu use it judiciously. She restricts the AI's verbal prompts to avoid distracting her son and prefers direct involvement when possible. "He's still very young. I don't want him to treat it as a companion," she said, concerned about emotional dependency.

Elaine Zhou, a Shanghai mother in international education, allows her two sons to use AI for querying doubts and verifying homework but remains wary of full supervision. She cites risks of overuse, privacy breaches and exposure to inappropriate content. "For children, AI is highly efficient and easy to use," Ms. Zhou said. "But it can also reduce the process of thinking they do."

Experts advocate for boundaries. Dr. Qi emphasized AI's inability to grasp context, noting that actions like pen-fidgeting or brief pauses might aid concentration rather than indicate distraction. Jeannie Paterson, co-director of the University of Melbourne's Centre for AI and Digital Ethics, stressed that child-oriented AI products must incorporate time limits, age-suitable language and protections against harmful material. "Excessive interaction with AI could weaken [parent-child bonds]," she cautioned.

As adoption grows, the balance between technological aid and human oversight will shape China's educational landscape, ensuring AI enhances rather than supplants familial support.