Question <\/p>\n
I have four children in full-time education, including my eldest at university. They are all using AI models in various ways in their studies. <\/p>\n
To spend hours doing traditional academic work that can be generated by AI in seconds seems wasteful, but what learning is actually taking place nowadays \u2013 and what skills are young people acquiring in this new AI world? <\/p>\n
Answer <\/p>\n
What is the purpose of education in all its iterations, from being read to at bedtime as a young child, to completing research over several years at PhD level? <\/p>\n
Education facilitates our acquisition of knowledge, skills and competencies, enabling personal growth and development. It enhances critical thinking, creativity and communications skills. <\/p>\n
Learning in a collective structure through attending school\/college plays a critical role in socialising us into our culture and wider society. <\/p>\n
[\u00a0Leaving Cert AI reforms risk making a mockery of the principle of equalityOpens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n Through the acquisition of knowledge in a collective space over a 15-20 year period from age two\/three onwards, education prepares us for the world of work, giving us the skills and knowledge to participate successfully in a particular occupation. <\/p>\n By actively engaging in education from an early age, we also develop our critical thinking skills and cognitive abilities.<\/p>\n The problem which AI throws up is that it removes for young minds the requirement to plough through basic research, while the young still need to come up with answers to questions set by teachers or lecturers, or in formal examinations, for instance. In such scenarios, how can they acquire the skills to function effectively in the adult world? <\/p>\n It has been abundantly clear for many years now that children\u2019s access to smartphone technology has significantly undermined their person-to-person communications skills, to the point where many employers are providing training in basic human-to-human communication to young employees. Schools which ban smartphones entirely on school premises are finding a huge improvement in basic communications skills among students. <\/p>\n