Why Education Needs Artificial Intelligence Now!
Artificial intelligence (AI) is no longer a distant dream of movies and our imagination; it is today’s reality. AI is automating jobs, streamlining workflows, and redefining the qualifications for today’s employment requirements. Education, long a stronghold of tradition, is not adapting to technology’s supersonic dominance of today’s world. AI must be integrated into educational institutions’ curricula for humans to remain productive and employable in today’s world.
A study conducted in February 2025 by University of Essex students Liza Buriak and Soozi Moffat [1]confirms this urgency. Surveying 100 students and lecturers/faculty at the University of Essex Colchester campus, the research revealed that 90% of respondents already use AI tools, 62% support greater integration of AI into education, and 57% believe AI will replace their jobs in the future. These results highlight an apparent demand for AI integration in education, with widespread usage, strong support for curriculum reform, and growing concern over future job security. If universities continue to teach outdated skills, they risk producing graduates for a job market that may no longer exist. This study’s results echo real-world trends.
In 2024 and 2025, major automakers like Tesla, Ford, and Volkswagen laid off tens of thousands of employees, citing automation and the rise of electric, driverless vehicles as the reason for phasing out human staffing in traditional roles.[2] However, new employment opportunities in the car industry demand updated training and education. Large-scale fleet management will become essential, requiring workers skilled in AI logistics and technicians specialising in advanced AI systems and autonomous vehicle technology.
In March 2025, the UK government announced plans to cut five thousand civil service jobs while investing heavily in artificial intelligence to modernise public sector operations. As part of this shift, 2,000 tech apprentices will be hired through a new “TechTrack” programme, with a target of 10% of civil servants working in digital roles within five years.
Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming the broadcasting and journalistic world, and media organisations are integrating AI tools into their workflows. The BBC uses AI for automated subtitling, content transcription, and metadata tagging to improve content discoverability. It has also introduced AI-generated sports summaries using data-driven narratives, particularly for match reports.
In academia, roles are shifting. AI-powered virtual teaching assistants, often called “All Day TAs”, are already reshaping how universities deliver student support. At Georgia Institute of Technology, the pioneering AI assistant, Jill Watson, built on IBM’s Watson platform, was used in online computer science courses to respond to student queries about assignments and course logistics. Students were unaware they were interacting with an AI robot until it was revealed at the end of the course, highlighting how seamlessly these systems can integrate into teaching environments. In the UK, Staffordshire University launched Beacon, a 24/7 digital assistant that helps students manage their timetables, access academic resources, and receive well-being support. These tools not only alleviate administrative burden on staff but also offer immediate, round-the-clock assistance to students illustrating the powerful role AI can play in enhancing both educational delivery and the overall student experience.
These shifts to AI rather than humans in those roles underscore a more profound societal challenge: education systems still prepare students for roles that may no longer exist due to automation.
Some universities globally are beginning to address this gap between education and catching up with qualifications needed for today and future employment. Prestigious institutions like the University of Oxford, UCL, and the University of Edinburgh have rolled out AI-focused degrees and interdisciplinary modules. Unfortunately, this AI education is minuscule in the scheme of mandatory change required for all educational institutions to provide an education for future job employability.
Experts say education needs urgent reform. Karthik Krishnan (World Economic Forum, 2020)[3] warned that schools still follow outdated Industrial Age models focused on memorisation and IQ-based performance, skills now handled more efficiently by machines. In 2024, former Google engineer Blake Lemoine stressed the need to train students as adaptable problem solvers who can thrive in AI-driven environments or face the risk of becoming obsolete.
The economic impact is just as profound. Professor Steven Spier of Kingston University reported that the UK loses £57.2 billion yearly due to digital and data skills shortages. The Essex University study from February 2025 shows students already use AI daily and want more explicit support, but education is slow to respond. Without modern curricula focused on coding, data analysis, digital content, and ethical technology, graduates risk getting qualifications for jobs already overtaken by intelligent systems and no longer exist.
Education now stands at a defining junction. As Neil Selwyn argued in his 2019 book “Should Robots Replace Teachers?”[4] Unchecked AI adoption could marginalise educators and devalue human-led learning. But with thoughtful integration, AI can enhance education, supporting teachers and students in creating more profound, flexible, and personalised learning environments for their future productivity in society. The question is no longer if AI should be integrated into education but how urgently and effectively it can be done.
[1] Buriak, Liza, and Moffat,Soozi.2025. “AI in Higher Education: Perceptions and the Case for Curriculum Integration.” University of Essex.
[2] Gartenberg, Chaim. “Auto Worker Wipeout: Why Car Companies Are Cutting Thousands of Jobs.” Business Insider, November 2024. https://www.businessinsider.com/auto-worker-wipeout-why-car-companies-cutting-thousands-of-jobs-2024-11.
[3] Krishnan, Karthik. “Our Education System Is Losing Relevance. Here’s How to Update It.” World Economic Forum. April 23, 2020. https://www.weforum.org/stories/2020/04/our-education-system-is-losing-relevance-heres-how-to-update-it/.
[4] Selwyn, Neil. 2019. Should Robots Replace Teachers?: AI and the Future of Education. Polity.
Soozi’s Grown Up Life 