World Economic Forum's Education 4.0 Report: Working alongside new technologies to develop creativity, critical thinking, problem-solving, collaboration, leadership, and AI skills

And a look at some new AI applications

This brief note highlights the major ideas in the World Economic Forum’s Shaping the Future of Learning: The Role of AI in Education 4.0.

DEVELOPING STUDENT SKILLS

*Education systems must adapt to prepare young people for tomorrow’s technology-driven economies and to help students learn alongside these emerging technologies.

*According to the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report 2023, employers’ top skill priorities for 2027 include cognitive skills such as analytical and creative thinking; technology skills such as AI, big data and technological literacy; and skills required for working with others, such as leadership, social influence, empathy and active listening. Additionally, many of the fastest-growing job roles are technology-related roles, necessitating digital proficiency.

*(Education 4.0) consists of four sets of skills that will be needed in the future – global citizenship, innovation and creativity, technology, and interpersonal skills – as well as four sets of learning experiences – personalized and self-paced, accessible, problem-based and collaborative, and lifelong and student-driven learning. Teaching and learning that incorporates technology, particularly AI, can not only help students achieve better outcomes on technology skills but can also facilitate and enable success in other areas within the framework.

*(M)ost education systems are lagging in closing the digital skills gap – a critical factor in ensuring the future employability of students as well as in developing in the next generation the necessary aptitude and ethical awareness for the responsible development and deployment of emerging technologies.

*While technology will never fully replace human teachers, AI and other emerging technologies can immediately address some of this gap. Many teachers already acknowledge the benefits of such support. For instance, in the United Kingdom, 42% of primary and secondary teachers used generative AI to aid with their schoolwork in November 2023, a significant increase from 17% in April 2023.

*AI can also lead to job displacement by automating the majority of tasks in some roles. Those lacking technological literacy are most at risk of displacement, while those up are able to reskill and upskill in a variety of skills – including becoming proficient in using, developing, explaining or applying AI – are most likely to make successful job transitions. To prepare workers and address global digital and skills shortages in the medium-to-long term, teaching about technology, including AI, must be emphasized in education. These future-ready digital skills should also include education about the use of new technologies as well as how to be safe and ethical producers and consumers of technology.

DIGITAL LITERACY

Digital and AI literacy goes beyond the mere ability to use digital tools and platforms; it also encompasses critical thinking, problem-solving, creativity and awareness of the ethical implications of AI. Integrating AI into education presents an opportunity to not only utilize AI tools in teaching but also to educate students about AI concepts and their broader societal impacts. Integrating AI into curricula does not imply that every student must become an AI expert. Rather, the emphasis should be on cultivating awareness, nurturing curiosity and establishing a foundational understanding – for example, by teaching students how to assess the reliability of sources and discern the accuracy of information presented on websites. One study found that digital literacy is indeed a good predictor of one’s ability to distinguish between facts and misinformation. This is a particularly important and urgent life skill as more people than ever in history will vote in 64 national elections in 2024.

*In the United Kingdom, for example, the Office for AI is currently conducting research to support primary and secondary schools to teach critical skills such as the limitations, reliability and potential bias of generative AI; how information on the internet is organized and ranked; and foundational knowledge about how computers work, connect with each other, follow rules and process data.

TRANSFORMING TEACHING & LEARNING, WITH SUPPORT

*(T)he automation and augmentation potential of LLMs for routine and repetitive administrative work in teaching opens up more time for educators to focus on creative tasks such as curriculum design and, of course, the essential educational aspects of interpersonal interaction. However, such a transformation would need to be carefully designed and enabled to ensure that teachers are able to manage the pace of automation or augmentation and be supported in their own upskilling, while they learn to focus on the more human-centric aspects of their jobs, such as refining their pedagogy, providing social-emotional support, individualized instruction and parent engagement.

ASSESSMENT

*Integrating AI technologies into educational assessments offers the potential for educators to gain real-time, data-driven insights into student learning trends, identifying areas of strength and weakness and assessing instructional effectiveness on a large scale. It also helps in evaluating non-standard tests more efficiently, informing instructional decision-making and curriculum development, and enhancing the overall quality of education delivery.

*Today’s models of standardized and informal assessment often exhibit linear and timeconsuming characteristics, as discussed in the first chapter. Similar to how human tutors can offer instant, personalized feedback, AI automation in assessments can allow for immediate feedback on a larger scale, aiding students in comprehending mistakes and supporting teachers in identifying areas for improvement. However, such analytics are best enabled in partnership with teachers. AI tools can be programmed with the support of teachers who can provide examples of feedback for AI to learn from, including in evaluating non-test assignments such as essays, project proposals and similar tasks.

*Furthermore, the adoption of game-based assessment technologies can alleviate pressure on both teachers and students by eliminating the need to conduct one-off, high-stakes exams. Through automated, regular feedback mechanisms, students can engage in meaningful, enjoyable learning activities where all learning is analysed in real-time, rather than relying on periodic formal assessments. This shift from traditional assessment methods to dynamic, real-time analytics has the potential to significantly enhance the educational experience, fostering adaptive learning environments that cater to the diverse needs of students.

PERSONALIZED LEARNING

*A study by education psychologist Benjamin Bloom found that the combination of one-to-one tutoring alongside regular tests and feedback led to student performance that was two standard deviations – about 98% – above those of students who receive standard classroom instruction.20 The research concluded that “there is a great difference in student cognitive achievements, attitudes, and academic self-concept under individual tutoring compared with the group method of instruction”. Providing personal tutoring dramatically changed the distribution of education achievements in the class. A more recent study by Stanford University researchers found that even short tutoring interventions, as brief as 10 minutes a day, result in significant improvement in young student’s literacy skills.

EXAMPLES OF LEARNING RESOURCES

*The Ministry of Education of the United Arab Emirates – in collaboration with several partners, including Microsoft, ASI and teachers, among others – has developed an AI-powered tutor to enhance the education landscape in the UAE and promote equity in a context where private tutoring is on the rise. The project aims to significantly improve students’ academic performance, resulting in higher test scores, better comprehension of subjects, and enhanced critical thinking skills through AI-powered personalized learning. The project employs adaptive learning algorithms, continuous assessment, 24/7 availability and data-driven insights to achieve its goals. It aims to create a more engaging and interactive learning experience, promoting self-directed learning and eliminating barriers related to time and location. While the project is in its infancy and pilot stage (the first version is scheduled to launch September 2024), the intended evidencegathering methods for skill development include ongoing data collection, assessments and evaluations on personalized learning, critical thinking, problemsolving, self-directed learning, digital literacy and communication skills.

*Kabakoo employs an AI-enabled virtual mentor to provide 24/7 support to learners. This virtual mentor offers guidance, resources and advice whenever needed, supplementing human mentorship. The AI mentor also provides personalized feedback on learners’ assignments. After submitting their selfie video on a specific module, learners receive a personalized response via WhatsApp. Recognizing the linguistic diversity in Mali, Kabakoo is working on developing an AI-powered model to provide training in Bambara, the most spoken language in the country. In applying AI to address language barriers, Kabakoo promotes personalization, accessibility and inclusivity. The use of gamified virtual tokens (Kabakooins) and cloud-based resources contributes to a dynamic and robust learning environment.

*Scores show performance in Brazil and Latin America below the OECD average. The Letrus Program is an AI-based literacy development initiative implemented in middle and high schools across Brazil and currently benefiting 170,000 students in 670 schools. The main objective of the programme is to narrow the literacy gap between low- and high-income students. It incorporates proprietary natural language processing AI technology to offer real-time constructive feedback in reading and writing.

*The Ceibal Computational Thinking and Intelligence programme operates in 80% of urban public schools and 250 rural schools in Uruguay. The programme’s key objective is to teach computational thinking and AI in an interdisciplinary way with other areas of knowledge such as mathematics, language and science. It also includes an active intervention to reduce the gender gap in these skills. The programme focuses on teaching students to be ethical producers and knowledgeable consumers of AI, covering topics such as how a machine learning model works, how data is used and analysed, and the biases that may exist.

*3D Africa for Girls aims to transform the continent from “Aid to Africa” to “Made in Africa”. It provides high-quality STEM education in Nigeria that enables young girls ages 10-18 to design, prototype, market and sell their 3D-printed products and solutions. By doing so, it teaches and models girls to develop innovative STEM-based solutions to real-world problems, and teaches marginalized, low-income youth, girls and women how to sell those products in global, online markets. The programme leverages a combination of targeted job-shadowing and mentoring, and 3D Design and prototyping.

*JA Europe — The curriculum enables youth to develop a foundational understanding of AI, including ethics, data literacy and operations. Equipped with this foundational knowledge and practical skills, participants are poised to devise economically viable solutions – leveraging AI and associated tools – that address local and global challenges. Over the long term, this curriculum aims to support a future in which all youth are AI natives. While the programme has just completed its pilot phase, JA Europe recently expanded the curriculum to 10 additional countries, which will enable it to reach 30,000 youth in the next two years, combining the application of AI with improvements to entrepreneurship and employment in the agricultural sector.

*The Ministry of Education in South Korea has unveiled plans to introduce AI-powered digital textbooks in local elementary and secondary schools starting in 2025. The initiative aims to meet the growing demand for diverse learning content and utilize AI and other emerging technologies to enhance the educational experience for students. This innovation in South Korea’s education system aims to address educational inequality, reduce reliance on private education and transform the nation’s hypercompetitive education culture. The Ministry of Education plans to continue refining the initiative, incorporating feedback and ensuring the development of diverse and creative AI digital textbooks.