The government’s announcement that it will leverage AI to transform productivity holds vast potential. But will this technological advancement equally benefit all societal sectors?
When we examine it through the lens of adult and community education and the HOLEX membership, the answer is more complex.
While AI offers enormous promise, it can also be overwhelming, especially for adults who haven’t grown up with this fast-evolving technology.
The reality is, without significant and targeted investment many adults risk being left behind.
As a recent Institute for Fiscal Studies report highlights, “by 2024-25, total skills funding will be 23 per cent lower than in 2009-10, with classroom-based adult education funding still over 40 per cent below 2009-10 levels.”
This severe underfunding directly affects the communities that could benefit most from learning, especially when adult education is key to boosting productivity, social cohesion and educational attainment.
The £50m overlooked the adult education sector
The recent announcement of an additional £50 million for the FE sector is a further disappointing blow to adult education.
While any investment in education is welcome, this funding is solely directed towards general FE colleges and sixth forms, completely overlooking the adult education sector.
This exclusion only deepens the divide and risks marginalising millions of adults who need essential skills development.
The decline in investment is widening the skills gap. Why is it so difficult for the government to commit to supporting the nine million adults in need of essential skills development?
These people are integral to achieving its ambitions in AI, health, construction and the green economy, yet are still treated as secondary to other educational priorities.
AI technology is complex, requiring an understanding of new tools and concepts. Many adult learners will need extra support to grasp AI’s potential, and adult education providers must be part of this investment.
We need flexible, local environments to ensure all adults can benefit from AI.
The so-called grey digital divide is another key challenge. Older adults with low digital literacy could greatly benefit from AI-enabled jobs but are disconnected from this digital transformation.
AI won’t necessarily replace jobs, but those able to use AI to enhance their performance will replace those who can’t. This widening divide is concerning.
Funding fight
My key arguments for government investment in adult learners during this revolution focus on four areas:
Digital literacy – Basic digital skills are necessary to fully utilise AI. Adults who are not digitally literate need support to improve their confidence and proficiency with technology.
Workplace adaptation – As AI transforms the workforce, workers need to adapt to new tools and processes. Training and support can help bridge the gap between traditional methods and AI-powered innovations.
The learning curve – While younger generations may seamlessly integrate new tech into their lives, adults often need help finding practical and meaningful ways to incorporate AI into their routines – whether for work, learning, personal use or hobbies.
Trust and security – Understanding ethical and other potential risks associated with AI is crucial. Support is needed to help adults make informed decisions, use AI responsibly, and feel empowered to navigate this new digital world. AI and fake news widens the digital deficit and harms social discourse.
Dipa Ganguli, principal of WM College and chair of HOLEX, recently said: “By recognising the role we play and actions we can take to arm and deploy adult colleges in the fight against disinformation, we can be an effective part of the arsenal against activities that undermine all that we – as educators – are trying to achieve in building a cohesive society”.
Ultimately, the goal should be to ensure that everyone can benefit from AI, regardless of age or background. Providing support helps level the playing field and empowers people to take advantage of the opportunities AI offers.
However, if the government continues to underestimate the investment required to engage adults in the AI journey we risk deepening the socio-economic and educational divide.
It’s essential to equip adults and educators with professional tools, resources and support to actively participate in this revolution, rather than leaving them as ‘at risk’ bystanders.
As well as educating and training individuals (of all ages) in using AI, we should also be creating parallel education opportunities to question the ethical, moral & economic arguments (amongst others). Without critical thinking, we’re in danger of being a troop of monkeys bashing the keyboard in ignorance.
For instance, you could take the view that ‘AI’ is a very loosely defined catch all phrase to lump together all sorts of pre-programmed tools. True artificial intelligence is yet to be proven to exist. From that perspective, current AI is just the latest shiny toy which may be distracting from other more pressing matters, such as the sustainability of a habitable environment in which we and our toys exist… Sure, AI may be presented as being a potential solution to that, but it could be likened to relying on the national lottery as a pension plan.
(that and the fact that Humans have a propensity to use toys as weapons, because there aren’t enough educational opportunities to understand ego and selflessness)