Education is facing a curious convergence. International measures of student performance have weakened in several areas as generative AI becomes increasingly accessible to young people. The OECD's PISA 2025 Results report that average OECD mathematics scores fell 22 points between 2015 and 2025, while reading fell 28 points. The findings suggest that the challenge surrounding AI may sit within a wider question about how effectively students are developing the ability to read, reason, evaluate information, and engage deeply with ideas.
That question reaches beyond technology itself. The World Economic Forum's 2026 report describes a growing gap between the speed of AI adoption and the ability of education systems to adapt curricula, assessment, governance, and learning practices. From this perspective, AI may be revealing tensions that were already present in conventional schooling, especially where learning remains organized around standardized content, fixed schedules, and compliance-oriented assessment.
