Symbiotic Learning

Symbiotic Learning is a conceptual framing introduced by Jiang et al. (CHI 2026) describing a mode of mixed-ability family learning in which parents and children mutually enable each other's participation and development through AI-mediated communication. Rather than positioning AI as compensating for a parent's disability or replacing parental guidance, the framing treats AI as a relational mediator that bridges perceptual asymmetry and supports co-constructed meaning-making. The lens builds on interdependence theory and guided participation, and is operationalized as a curve where moderate parental engagement with AI support produces the highest interaction quality, while hands-off or over-involved patterns collapse it.