Preserving Human Agency in a World of Automation

“AI offers major opportunities, provided that its deployment in schools is guided by clear ethical principles. To reach its full potential, this technology must complement the human and social dimensions of learning, rather than replace them.”- Audrey Azoulay- Director General UNESCO. Despite the pronouncement from the United Nations regarding education being a human right; a significant number of students globally do not live this reality. Education offers children an opportunity out of poverty and a promising future. Unfortunately, about 244 million children and adolescents around the world are out of school; 617 million children and adolescents cannot read and do basic math; less than 40% of girls in sub-Saharan Africa complete lower secondary school and some four million children and youth refugees are out of school. The United Nations adds that their right to education is being violated and it is unacceptable. Unfortunately, inclusive and equitable quality education and lifelong opportunities for all continues to be an illusion for many. The generational cycle of poverty cannot be broken nor can gender equality be achieved if millions of children, youth and adults are being left behind. Under the theme “AI and education: Preserving human agency in a world of automation”, the 2025 International Day of Education encourages reflections on the power of education to equip individuals and communities to navigate, understand and influence technological advancement. Under the theme “AI and education: Preserving human agency in a world of automation”, As computer and Artificial Intelligence (AI) -driven systems become more sophisticated, the boundaries between human intention and machine-driven action often blur, raising critical questions about how to preserve, redefine, and, ideally, elevate human agency in an age of technological acceleration. In this new world of automation, machines and systems are widely being used to perform tasks previously done by humans, with minimal human intervention, signifying a heavily technology-driven environment where many processes are automated and run independently. For some this is rather frightening however, we cannot undo such automation, instead we must work to preserve our human agency and skills. As educators we must retool. Artificial intelligence must never replace the essential human elements of teaching and learning. Societies must redouble their efforts to ensure that artificial intelligence supports students and teachers through access to information and cutting-edge curricula and other learning tools. In Pursuit of Transformational School Leaders. Leadership is essential for quality education. It is considered the second most important factor influencing learning outcomes. Effective leadership occurs at various levels, including within schools and in government. Educational leaders are more than just managers. They are change agents, who need the time, trust and support to focus on setting a vision and developing the people they serve and work with. Regrettably, principalship remains unsatisfactory and many school leaders have become part of the myriad of problems plaguing the global education system. Leadership matters in education. Strong leaders are needed to help institutions; systems and societies change for the better. Strong leaders work in collaboration with other actors towards the same goals. At the school level, they are the principals but also those who surround them, in the school and in the community, in positions of responsibility. A significant part of this reflection must however turn the spotlight on the type of leadership in our schools. Those of us who are honest will agree that school leadership is woefully lacking in our schools at all levels. To make matters worse we have known this for decades from data- driven research; yet, those who make policies have not adequately addressed the elephant in the room. The elephant has now taken over the entire room. Sadly, this fractional solution is being applied will not be enough. Those who craft policies continue to be misled and in turn continue to mislead their populations regarding the state of the education system. School leadership involves steering educational institutions to achieve their goals, such as improving student learning and fostering a positive school environment (UNESCO, 2018). School principals bear responsibilities such as shaping an educational vision, aligning teaching practices with standards and student needs, encouraging professional development and collaboration, and ensuring student well-being and safety. Such responsibilities require them to both manage and lead under resource constraints and frequent education policy shifts. Principals have to address the needs of diverse student populations; respond to the exigencies of digital technology. School principals need to master a large set of skills to play these roles. They need to be able to use data, prioritize, plan, implement, supervise and assess to solve problems (Bouchamma et al., 2020). They need to communicate effectively to develop a shared understanding, mobilize teams around objectives and promote professional growth (Ramos et al., 2021). They need to have emotional intelligence, self-awareness, social awareness and self-regulation skills to build constructive relationships (Bouchamma et al., 2019). To what extent do you see these leadership traits within your principal? Globally, the educational landscape is dismal and the worse is yet to come. Did you know that school principals should not only set a path for their schools but should also share this vision with their stakeholders? School principals’ vision, values, philosophy, passion and knowledge determine their leadership practices and give their work meaning, enabling them to fully explore the potential of their roles. Principals are also expected to uphold moral and ethical standards in exercising their leadership, where possible inspiring and leading by example. The acquisition of a degree or specific training does not make one into a moral and ethical person. In fact, some of the most immoral and unethical individuals are school leaders. Some leaders in education will even go as far as swear on the Bible while embellishing the truth or protecting their cronies. While we continue to play school, guess who are the ones paying the price of our inaction? The students are always the ones held to ransom. We must continue to support the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as they continue to play a critical role in teacher empowerment and development. School leadership is often clothed in a culture of corruption and vindictiveness. The statuses of the students are hardly the priority. While, we must single out those school leaders who are both motivational and transformative, school leaders with these traits are few and far between. The empowerment of teachers should be one of the crucial roles of school leaders. Yet, this is not so. Many school leaders are clueless and in trying to find the pieces of the puzzle teaching and learning suffer. The educational outcomes of so many of our students are less than desirable. Ill Conceived Policy. The Caribbean region continues to perform unsatisfactory in the regional Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examination, especially in the core subject areas of English Language and Mathematics. One of the solutions which has been implemented in at least one Caribbean island surrounds the increase in the number of teaching sessions weekly for English Language and Mathematics to five hours weekly. This policy move has created another set of problems. The fact is there is a shortage of teachers of English in many schools. With this new policy directive teachers who are not trained to teach English Language are now timetabled to teach the subject. Such a policy is unprofessional. But then again professionalism has been sacrificed so many times that such a move is unsurprising. This policy directive is both a disservice to the students and teachers. This policy decree is rather ill conceived. Perhaps, it is based on the faulty premise that every teacher is a teacher of English. The continuation of such a policy is tantamount to educational suicide. The timetabled teachers of these subjects will become frustrated and burned out. The students will be ill prepared for both international and external examinations. Given that we are driven by data, the data will have the final say. There are no winners in this scenario. In many countries, principals lead plans to ensure teachers receive relevant training and support; and this should be encouraged. Artificial Intelligence and Gender Equality. The world has a gender equality problem, and Artificial Intelligence (AI) mirrors the gender bias in our society. Artificial intelligence (AI) can perpetuate gender inequality because the technologies surrounding AI are trained using data that oftentimes reflect existing biases. This can lead to biased decisions that reinforce stereotypes and discrimination. International collaboration on digital technology has focused on technical and infrastructural issues and the digital economy, often at the expense of how technological developments were affecting society and generating disruption across all its layers especially for the most vulnerable and historically excluded. Removing gender bias in AI starts with prioritizing gender equality as a goal, as AI systems are conceptualized and built. This includes assessing data for misrepresentation, providing data that is representative of diverse gender and racial experiences, and reshaping the teams developing AI to make them more diverse and inclusive. There needs to be more infusion of Artificial Intelligence into the lives of both our teachers and students. The world should not forget what is happening in Afghanistan to women and girls who have been excluded from receiving an education. On this the International Day of Education, let us be reminded of the critical role education plays in fostering global peace and sustainable development. In the words of UN Secretary-General António Guterres, AI and other tech innovations can significantly aid students and teachers by providing wider access to information and advanced learning tools. Wayne Campbell is an educator and social commentator with an interest in development policies as they affect culture and or gender issues. waykam@yahoo.com @WayneCamo © #InternationalDayofEducation #EducationDay #artificialintelligence