Pathfinder – AI Learning Compass

Guiding parents and students towards thoughtful, independent learning in the age of artificial intelligence.

◆ Overview

Artificial Intelligence is now part of everyday life, including education. While it can explain complex concepts and organize ideas, its greatest risk is replacing the learner’s own thinking.

Pathfinder is a roadmap for navigating this new landscape. It is designed to ensure that AI remains a compass that points toward understanding, rather than a vehicle that carries the learner to the finish line without effort.

Choose Your Path

Parents’ Guide: Support for parents of primary and lower-secondary children.
Students’ Guide: Empowering secondary students to use AI as a responsible study partner.
Tertiary Guide: Advanced strategies for higher education, focusing on research, integrity, and test prep.

◆ Core Principles

The "Compass" is built on four pillars of metacognitive learning:

✦ Diagnosis – Identify exactly where the learning gap is.

✦ Decomposition – Breaking overwhelming tasks into manageable steps.

✦ Prompt Engineering – Crafting inquiries that ask for guidance, not answers.

✦ Critical Evaluation – Validating AI output against trusted sources.

AI guides. You decide.

If you are viewing this on the web, use the sidebar to explore the specific sections. If you are viewing the source repository, the structure is organized as follows:

docs/
├── parents-guide/     # Early to Lower Secondary support
├── students-guide/    # Secondary school independent workflow
├── tertiary-guide/    # Higher Education & Research support
└── shared/            # The foundational framework for all guides

pathfinder-ai-learning-compass/
├── docs/
├── README.md           # Index Page        
├── parents-guide/              # For parents supporting children
│   ├── 01-introduction.md
│   ├── 02-framework.md
│   ├── 03-prompt-playbook.md
│   ├── 04-risks-checklist.md
│   └── 05-quick-reference.md
├── students-guide/             # For students working independently
│   ├── 01-introduction.md
│   ├── 02-toolkit.md
│   ├── 03-workflow.md
│   ├── 04-subject-strategies.md
│   ├── 05-integrity-checklist.md
│   └── 06-quick-reference.md
├── tertiary-guide/             # For tertiary students working independently
│   ├── 01-introduction.md
│   ├── 02-learning-support.md
│   ├── 03-assessment-support.md
│   ├── 04-assignment-guidance.md
│   ├── 05-research-writing.md
│   ├── 06-test-prep.md
│   ├── 07-integrity-checklist.md
│   └── 08-quick-reference.md
└── shared/                     # Common foundation
    └── 01-foundational-framework.md

◆ How to Engage

Parents: Begin with the Framework to understand how to guide with your child.
Students: Start with the Workflow to integrate AI into your daily study habits without sacrificing academic integrity.
Educators: These guides are open-access resources to help families navigate the AI transition.

◆ About the Project

Author: Jessel Sookha

Contact: jsookha@gmail.com

Pathfinder is a living project born from the need to protect authentic learning in a high-tech world. As this is a new initiative, your feedback is invaluable. Whether you are a parent seeing a change in your child's study habits, or a student finding a new way to tackle a difficult subject, I would love to hear your story. If you have suggestions for new "Prompt Playbooks" or workflow improvements, please reach out via email.

◆ Acknowledgements

This project synthesizes insights from:

▸ Cognitive psychology and the "desirable difficulties" of learning.

▸ Modern prompt engineering frameworks tailored for pedagogy.

▸ The collective experience of educators navigating the generative AI shift.

Pathfinder – AI Learning Compass is not a shortcut; it is a commitment to ensuring that learning remains authentic, independent, and resilient.