Dauntsey's School on the partnership with AI

John Davies, Head Master of Dauntsey’s, reflects on how schools must embrace AI as a partner in redefining education for the future

Over the past 20 years, education has repeatedly been promised ‘revolutions’ driven by new technologies. Some of these innovations create what we might call ‘threshold moments’ – times when a technological leap compels us to pause and reconsider whether the purpose of education, its content and its methods, have been fundamentally altered.

I recall being an eager early adopter of iPads in classrooms, attending training sessions that heralded these devices as transformative. Yet, personal device technologies, while immensely helpful during the pandemic, fell short of the profound impact many had predicted. When classrooms returned to ‘normal’ post-pandemic, there was a collective sigh of relief. For many, the robustness of traditional education felt like a reassuring anchor in an unpredictable world – a reminder that perhaps the world hadn’t changed as much as it seemed.

Now, however, the meteoric rise of AI, specifically Large Language Models (LLMs), presents us with a truly novel threshold moment. Unlike incremental advancements like smartphones and tablets, AI represents a paradigm shift. Technology companies like OpenAI have introduced tools that don’t merely operate faster or more efficiently but think in entirely new ways. As Ethan Mollick aptly puts it, we are engaging with an ‘alien’ intelligence – one that promises to fundamentally reshape how we study, learn, and work. It might even change the way we think.

Schools like mine now stand at this threshold, confronting urgent questions. What does this new technology mean for education, for knowledge, for humanity? These are not abstract musings; they demand immediate attention. As AI platforms grow increasingly capable, it becomes critical to identify and cultivate those uniquely human qualities that machines cannot replicate – while also learning to collaborate with these ‘alien’ partners. Given that the latest LLMs outperform humans on most PhD-level academic benchmarks, traditional markers of intelligence (such as proficiency in maths, coding, or essay-writing) will no longer suffice as measures of employability. Schools and universities must rethink how they define and assess ‘ability’ and ‘intelligence.’

We owe it to our children to explore this new intelligence with curiosity and responsibility. The progress of AI cannot be stopped, and, as Mollick observes, even if current models represent the pinnacle of this technology, they are already world-changing. The challenge before us is to embrace the possibility that AI can enhance our children’s lives –making them wiser, better informed, less stressed, more empathetic, and more impactful. The alternative does not bear contemplating.

Whether this threshold moment leads to better lives for humanity remains to be seen. But I am confident schools will play a central role in shaping the answer. At Dauntsey’s, we engage daily with the opportunities and challenges these technologies present. Like many schools, we stand at the threshold with open eyes, ready to navigate the unknown rather than wishing it away.

We don’t have all the answers, but therein lies both the beauty and the challenge – this is uncharted territory for everyone. Ours is the future we choose to create. With a little help, of course, from our new alien friends.

Dauntsey’s School dauntseys.org

Further reading: Cranleigh Prep on making AI work in class