Blog by Evelyne Para, SI Representative at UNESCO.
At UNESCO, the International Day of Education on 24 January 2025 was dedicated to “AI and Education: Preserving human agency in a world of automation”.
This year’s theme invites us to reflect on the impact of emerging technologies on education, and to revisit the idea of lifelong learning in a world marked by several digital revolutions: the advent and proliferation of personal computers; the rise of the internet and search engines; the development of social networks and their influence; the growing ubiquity of mobile computing and connectivity; and more recently, the major emergence and exponential growth of artificial intelligence (AI).
These profound upheavals linked to digital technologies have radically changed the way we live, teach and learn. The progress of these new technologies, and in particular AI, seems to be accelerating, and the new worlds they are creating may seem promising, but at the same time, they disorient and terrify us, even when we know that they have the potential to enrich our lives, improve our relationships and open new horizons for education.
What impact is AI already having on education? How will this technology change our vision of human intelligence, the world and our relationships with others? Will we be able to preserve and defend the diversity of our knowledge systems, without submitting to the dominant models of machines and mega data hosting and processing Centers so coveted by new investors? How can we ensure that the creation of knowledge is not dissociated from human beings?
So many questions that we are asking ourselves today…
Having had the opportunity to participate in several working meetings at UNESCO on this theme, in order to prepare this International Day, I am happy to share with you some questions and reflections exchanged between representatives of Member States, political decision-makers, practitioners, researchers, representatives of several NGOs, and the Education sector of UNESCO, a sector headed by Stefania Giannini.
The power of AI
AI technology is impressively adept at mimicking the “pivot” of human civilization, what sets us apart from other animals: the language. Language is at the heart of our identity and cultural diversity. It is the foundation of everything we do in education and almost every other area of our lives. It is the basis of love and war. It can emancipate, but it can also influence and manipulate.
Today, machines, new generative AI models and software, such as ChatGPT, can now simulate advanced conversations that go beyond simple queries. AI seems capable of learning and doing things that go beyond the limits set by humans, by rapidly generating unique responses from machine-generated content.
The responses produced by AI do not originate in human minds. Rather, they come from a maze of calculations and algorithms so complex, and often lacking in humanity, that even the people developing the technology don’t fully understand them.
This technology can usher in a world where machine knowledge becomes dominant, and where AI models are elevated to the status of global sources of authority, even revered. These models emphasie certain worldviews and knowledge, and obscure others…
The impact of AI on the future of education
Advances in generative AI raise questions about the future of education.
They are driving profound changes in education and leading new ways for teachers and learners. From television and radio broadcasts to podcasts, social media platforms, massive open online courses and open educational resources, technology has dramatically expanded the horizons of informal and non-formal learning. It presents learners and educators with new challenges, as well as opportunities for empowerment and exploration. Now, with the advent of generative artificial intelligence and other AI applications, this trend is set to accelerate further.
AI is also impacting the world of work and the need for continuing education, in skills development, and in professional retraining. Understanding how automation and automated analytics can be useful is ultimately a challenge for education.
What will be the role of teachers once this technology is widely available? What skills will our education systems need to promote? How can they cultivate and assess analytical and critical thinking skills, or emotional intelligence?
All the participants in the UNESCO think tanks that prepared this 2025 International Day of Education are convinced that changes are needed, in schools and beyond, to help students prepare for a future in which human and artificial intelligence are likely to be increasingly intertwined and mutually supportive. Humans will no longer necessarily be the ones pushing the boundaries of understanding and knowledge. AI forces us to question the “known world” that education is generally based on. We must prepare ourselves for these changes. Especially since the speed at which generative AI technologies are being integrated into education systems without any checks, any rules or regulations is disconcerting. This is why, supervision is necessary.
For this purpose, guides have been developed by UNESCO, both for teachers and students. These guides help us to better understand these AI technologies and to determine in which context, in what manner and for what purpose they can be used safely for teaching and learning.
Since 2021, UNESCO Member States have also been keen to propose innovative solutions, by recommending digital platforms and ethical principles. A Global Recommendation on AI Ethics was approved.
Preserving our autonomy in education
While we must prepare for an increasingly automated world, AI also pushes us to rethink what we do in education, how we do it, and most importantly, why we do it. Education systems must re-empower learners and remind young people that we are still in control of technology. The future is not mapped out.
We must also be empowered to decide what our world should look like with AI. What role should this powerful technology play? Under what conditions? Who decides this?
We should be concerned about this, especially if AI models or platforms are self-regulated globally by only one or two powerful companies. Some are already in a quasi-monopoly situation, and they are further entrenching their dominance over our access to knowledge.
For learners, dogmas are seductive. They promise simple answers to complex questions, mental security in the face of the unknown. But this security comes at a price: that of suffocation. We are giving up our power to question, to discover the unknown, to be autonomous, our capacity for wonder and our creativity.
As AI continues to spread across our world, education sectors must preserve and defend the diversity of our knowledge systems, and develop AI technologies in a way that ensures that knowledge creation is not separated from human beings, their creativity, curiosity, freedom of critical thinking, and also from the values of inclusion, non-discrimination, reduction of inequalities, promotion of gender equality, solidarity, sustainability, and respect for human rights.
This is why UNESCO is working with several countries to help them develop strategies, plans and regulations to ensure that AI is used safely and beneficially in education. This has led to the development of a roadmap that sets out the directions for global policy dialogue with governments, NGOs, academics and civil society and private sector partners.
In conclusion,
The preparation of this International Day of Education 2025, dedicated to “AI and Education”, was an opportunity to continue the exchange at UNESCO on how technology can best serve teaching and learning.
Education plays a fundamental role in helping us determine which tasks should be entrusted to AI and which tasks should remain firmly in human hands. This International Day also reminded us of the purpose of education: to offer us opportunities to grow, to learn, to transcend ourselves, and to allow us to make informed decisions about how we want to build our lives and our societies.