Bring on the future! What and why students want to learn about Generative AI in schools
“How do we use it well? What can we use it for? What are the pros and cons?” These are just a few of the elements secondary students want to learn about when it comes to Generative AI, with three quarters believing it’s important to learn about AI and the role it will play in the future.
With the ever-growing presence of AI tools like ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot, chatbots and image and music generation tools, it’d be naive for any of us to think that young people aren’t figuring out how to use Generative AI (GenAI) on their own.
In fact, findings from our third annual Pearson School Report released this summer, reveal that 38% of secondary-aged children are already using GenAI tools like ChatGPT every day in their personal lives. What’s more, over two-thirds (68%) would like to see GenAI being taught in schools.
A similar number of students (64%) say they believe AI will be an important part of their future careers and professional lives. This echoes insights already emerging across the globe. Last year, the World Economic Forum predicted that in the future, businesses would prioritise AI skills and that AI would augment tasks rather than automate them. A recent survey by accounting group Deloitte revealed over a third of adults in the UK have used GenAI – with many already doing so in the workplace. Pearson’s Skills Outlook also found that 40% or more of time spent on tasks for some white-collar roles in the UK could be done using GenAII. This highlights the importance of understanding the skills needed to use GenAI in the workplace and equipping students to do so.
Already left behind?
While ‘the future’ and ‘excited’ topped the list of words secondary students associated with AI (54% and 29% respectively), not everyone felt the same: just under one in three (29%) felt unsure and one in five (21%) felt concerned. In a world where AI is fast integrating into the norm, the findings highlight concerns from current learners that they are being ‘left behind’:
nearly two thirds (63%) of secondary students feel that they are not taught enough about AI at school
around half (48%) believing that other countries are learning more about AI than the UK
4 in 10 aren’t confident they have the appropriate skills to use AI well
nearly half don’t yet feel confident to judge the reliability and quality of AI-generated content.
“It’s important that students learn about AI. We’re becoming more aware and it’s becoming more important in our lives. It’s very important that we learn about the dangers but also the benefits of AI.” Roman, aged 17, from Derbyshire
Collectively, we must all endeavour to understand how to value the outputs of GenAI – what is fact, what is fiction, what can be trusted? And, importantly, what is the role of schools in ‘teaching’ this?
Looking to the future
When we asked teachers for their views as part of the 2024 Pearson School Report:
- over a third told us that if given the choice, they would add emerging technologies like GenAI into the curriculum
- only 7% believe today’s education system has enough digital emphasis to prepare learners for their futures
- more than half (55%) feel we need a better digital curriculum.
As GenAI evolves incredibly quickly, a key opportunity and risk for the sector is finding ways to incorporate AI literacy more broadly into learning without overburdening the curriculum or teacher workload with calls to simply ‘add more’. While best practice for ‘simple’ AI use may enjoy a longer shelf-life, but it’s likely that any other applied AI elements would need updating as soon as they are set.
Changes that’d embed GenAI from a curriculum point of view could take time. So how do we help digital-savvy, AI-influenced students in education now to demonstrate what they know, and develop more rounded skills when it comes to AI literacy for their futures?
We’ve spoken with teachers who are already incorporating discussions on AI, ethics and the future in their classrooms. But the appetite for more is clear. This need for practical approaches that teachers can implement straight away - without stretching workloads and resources - that provide students with a valuable accreditation and a strong basis for future learning, has been the thinking behind our EPQ:AI - a new pathway within our Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) that equips students to learn about and to critically evaluate GenAI.
About EPQ:AI
Giving A level students across the country the chance to study the role and ethics of AI as part of a qualification for the first time, the new learning pathway allows students to lead investigations into the benefits and limitations of GenAI across a range of real-life contexts and interest areas, critically analysing trending tools like ChatGPT and their outputs while gaining key skills for the future.
Equivalent to half an A level in size and attracting up to 28 UCAS points, the ‘EPQ:AI’ pathway comes as AI continues to transform workplaces and behaviours.
Taken alongside existing A level studies, interest in the EPQ:AI is mounting, with hundreds of students submitting projects around this topic this year alone – a figure we expect to see increase significantly amongst the 37,000+ students who now choose to do an EPQ each year.
Looking ahead, there's no doubt the sector will continue to discuss the broader question of how to incorporate GenAI literacy skills more fully into the curriculum, potentially in a range of subjects. In the meantime, let’s continue to look for opportunities for today’s students, today.
Les Hopper is Director of Digital and Assessment, Pearson School Qualifications.
Learn more about the work Pearson are doing to support schools in our Digital Learning and Innovation Hub.
Explore Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology through our Extended Project Qualification.