Growing numbers of students may not see school as a “legitimate use of their time” if the education system undervalues AI, a report has warned.
England’s education system is trying to teach for an “AI-less world that no longer exists” as most young people already use AI, according to a report by historian Sir Anthony Seldon and tech entrepreneur Tim Bunting.
Young people are concerned by the “failure” of their education to adapt and prepare them for the AI economy and society, it states.
The report, which draws on a survey of 4,021 young people aged 11-24 in England, finds that nearly nine in 10 have used an AI tool.
But the survey, carried out in August, suggests only 9 per cent believe schools and universities are preparing them very well for a world with AI.
AI trusted over humans
The report states: “Education has not kept pace with how - and how much - young people are already using AI, and that gap is starting to show up as a loss of perceived value in the institution itself.
“That is a very dangerous place to find ourselves in. In the absence of a robust, human response to AI in education, young people are placing their trust in AI.”
Nearly half of young people trust AI over a person to check a fact, and young men are even more likely to trust an AI tool with fact-checking than a human, according to the survey from policy body Public First.
The report says: “If home, work and wider culture become saturated with AI whilst schools and universities behave as if AI were a temporary contaminant to be fenced off, then the legitimacy of the system begins to erode. Students, parents and employers will see the gap.”
This will make education look less like a “serious preparation” for work and life, and more like a “protective fiction”, it adds.
If AI adaptation is treated as optional, the education system will lose “authority and legitimacy”, the report warns.
It adds: “It is possible that alongside physical absenteeism, we will see a rise in psychological absenteeism.
“There is a risk - currently underpriced in policy debate - that a school system which stubbornly undervalues AI at scale will lead to more families and students not recognising it as a legitimate use of their time and effort.”
Government inaction
The report calls on the government to adopt a 10-point action plan for AI in education, which includes establishing a rapid-response AI unit within the Department for Education and forming a network of 100 “AI champion schools and colleges”.
Sir Anthony, who is also a former headteacher, said: “Despite warnings, education has always been Britain’s Cinderella sector when it comes to technology, and with AI we are repeating the mistake at even greater speed and scale.”
He added: “Schools, colleges and universities’ uncertainty about how to respond hasn’t been helped remotely by a vacuum in leadership from government.
“Britain has the assets to lead the world on AI in education - what it has lacked is the urgency and the leadership.”
A government spokesperson said: “AI is a fast-moving, emerging technology that presents significant opportunities and challenges, which we take incredibly seriously.
“The new education secretary is leading the reform of the education system to equip young people for lives and careers in this rapidly changing world.”
This includes a “refreshed curriculum” that will place an emphasis on oracy and mathematical literacy to ensure young people have digital skills such as spotting disinformation, the spokesperson added.
They said: “We are introducing new, high-quality vocational pathways so every child has a route to a successful career and are helping schools harness the benefits of AI by building new safe AI tutoring tools, as well as investing £23 million to understand which technologies have the most impact.”
