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1) The AI Race Ramps Up
We’re now inundated with AI news on a daily basis. It feels like every time we
turn around, there’s a new model—OpenAI, Gemini, Claude, Grok—all competing for
attention. Not long ago, Elon Musk’s AI venture, xAI, introduced Grok3,
boasting 200,000 GPUs and a tenfold performance increase over their previous
model. In response, OpenAI updated GPT-4o, claiming major improvements in math,
science, and coding.
Over in China, DeepSeek has gone open
source, making it possible to run GPT-4-level AI on a personal computer that
costs roughly 3,000 dollars. The impact of that move seems set to continue
growing. Meanwhile, the media keeps reporting on how “AI is being applied in
all sorts of industries,” from translation to research to counseling—areas
that, until a few years ago, we could hardly imagine being tackled by machines.
This massive wave of AI development has begun to reshape education at its very
foundation.
2) Where Is Education Headed?
So in the midst of this AI competition, what will education look like? How will
schools, private academies, and even our homes adapt? We’re entering an era in
which artificial entities—not only resembling humans but, in certain ways,
outperforming them—are on the rise. This situation forces us to confront a
fundamental question: What exactly should we humans learn, and how should we
prepare ourselves?
In the past, students who excelled at memorizing
facts and showed endurance in repeating assignments often got the best grades,
which led to steady jobs. But now that AI can handle staggering amounts of data
at lightning speed, more and more people argue that simple memorization and
patience alone aren’t enough to remain competitive.
Given this, how should education evolve?
Can schools keep running the way they always have, with rigid timelines and
textbook-based curricula? Probably not. The skills that seem poised to become
new focal points are those in which humans still have an edge over AI: creativity,
the ability to think independently, and emotional connection.
3) Shifting Standards of Assessment
A certain degree of confusion is inevitable for now. After all, the criteria
schools use to evaluate students will start to diverge from the skills society
actually demands. Experts have been predicting a future in which “everyone can
freely use AI,” but how effectively people use it will differ drastically
according to their individual capabilities.
No matter how powerful an AI system may be,
if the user doesn’t understand the core of the problem, can’t organize the
information they want, or isn’t able to critically assess the final output, it
won’t make much of a difference. That’s why, from an educational standpoint, personal
intellectual capacity remains important. Instead of just drilling facts or
memorizing content, we need to encourage critical thinking—asking the right
questions, creativity—coming up with original approaches, and human connection—engaging
meaningfully with others. These attributes will likely be valued more and more.
4) The Question of “What to Ask?” in the
AI Era
When you type a query into an AI system, it can instantly sift through vast
sources of information and provide a finished product. But deciding what to
ask, why to ask it, and what you plan to do with that answer is entirely up to
your own reasoning and choices.
That’s why the concept of “What question
will I pose?” has become so vital. You need solid background knowledge to even
figure out which questions are relevant, as well as creative thinking to
connect those ideas and spot new possibilities. And rather than blindly
trusting whatever solution AI spits out, you should analyze its context—what
might need to be added, removed, or modified.
In other words, human abilities—the power
to think independently and act with purpose—have only grown more critical. It’s
no longer about saying, “AI can do it all; I don’t have to know anything.”
Instead, we should be asking, “How can I equip myself to create greater value
with AI?”
5) Why Human Connection and Charm Matter
Even More
Although AI has become extraordinarily powerful, there’s a good chance human
qualities will stand out in new ways. Take creativity, for instance. AI might
generate hundreds of ideas in a second, but turning those ideas into something
that truly resonates with people and fosters teamwork is still a very
human process.
Creativity: Even if AI processes big data
at breathtaking speed, that flash of insight leading to an entirely new
viewpoint still belongs to human intuition.
Critical Thinking: It’s essential to
evaluate whether the information AI offers is valid, relevant, or ethical. This
sense of scrutiny underlies real creativity.
Resilience: Bouncing back from setbacks—having
the will to pick yourself up after you’ve failed—springs from personal
experience and determination.
Emotional Connection: Forming empathy and
deep mutual understanding with classmates, teammates, and family members is a
uniquely human forte.
Ultimately, education needs to develop
along two lines: using AI effectively (treating it as a collaborative tool) and
digging deeper into what AI cannot do (those human strengths we should
cultivate). For a long time, education revolved around memorization and
standardized problem-solving. Now it must shift toward nurturing human
thinking abilities, interpersonal skills, and emotional insight.
6) What Will Education Look Like Going Forward?
In short, as AI becomes widespread, the ability to define problems, ask insightful
questions, and collaborate effectively will matter more than simply absorbing
facts. The traditional approach of “memorizing textbooks and answering set
questions” is beginning to lose its edge.
More students will identify their own
problems, utilize AI to find solutions, then present and discuss their process
in class.
AI can offer up mountains of data, but students
will have to interpret it, exchange viewpoints, and refine ideas together,
reinforcing the importance of teamwork.
No matter how advanced tech becomes, the
ultimate key to persuasion and engagement is empathy. Emotional connection and
character education could become even more central.
All of this underscores the notion that “the more AI advances, the more our humanity counts.” AI may be astonishing and convenient, but it can’t replace the innate strengths that make us human.
7) Conclusion: The Human Element Remains Central in the Age of AI
In a time of intensifying AI competition, the most significant challenge for
education is to ask, “What should humans learn, and how should we learn it?”
Throughout history, skills like thinking critically, creating, and connecting
with others on a personal level have required human effort. These are
the principles education must keep fostering.
Yes, AI will continue to evolve. But there will always be a human domain that AI simply can’t cross, and that fact is unlikely to change. It’s precisely this reality that promises an even more exciting and meaningful future for education.
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