Schools Are Not Stuck – Just Evolving Naturally – OpEd
Over the past few months of 2025, on LinkedIn and other social media, there has been an uptick of articles suggesting that school and education systems are stuck in the past. The comments show limited understanding of schools and the education system.
Schools and the education systems adapt to the changing world. Depending on perspective the changes may not be immediately noticed. One needs to look at school and education over a rolling twelve to sixteen-year period – primary to tertiary education.
There are several reasons for the evolution of the education system. The primary objective is to complement what is happening in society and ensure that future adults can integrate and contribute. Public education and schooling began in the 1800s, during the industrialization era, and were standardized in the early 1900s. How and what things are taught suit society’s changing complexities. As innovation cycles have gotten shorter, schools are constantly reassessing curricula; but education systems must move carefully.
In 2020, coding was the rage, but now, it has been overtaken by Vibe coding; and Agentic AI tools in 2025. Prompt Engineering, the darling of 2023, has also been relegated in importance in 2025. The environmental concerns of the 1990s still exist. Schools need to consider the underlying issues for these trends on order to teach students to adapt. Sweden has rolled back its years of digital classrooms after realizing less is better. Schools, justifiably, are hesitant about AI.
Humans are one of the few species where the young take a relatively long time to learn, mature and become independent. Historically, parents were supposed to be the primary guides, with teachers the secondary ones. However, as parents’ attention to their offspring sadly wanes, teachers fulfil that role – in loco parentis. Oftentimes, knowing more than the actual parents. Students are confused and do not know as much as parents think. They are exploring and trying to put things in context – natural development. Teachers (and professionals) need to think about the consequences of their actions over years and even generations.
Listening to kids does not mean doing what the kids want! Adults listen to kids and then put the ideas into context using experience. While firm and directed may seem traditional, these are rooted in the development of an individual who would be able to contribute to society.
By not learning and gaining experience, some adults are abandoning their roles as exemplars to youths. Reading to kids develops a knowledge base that teachers can use – showing students how to use knowledge. Teachers can then use resources other than books to be more creative. If parents are not doing their parts at home, teachers are stuck using books and seemingly outdated methods because kids cannot read, talk or even pay attention.
Parents need to think more about how they measure return on investment for education. Kids are not financial instruments to check on periodically. Children require regular attention, care, love, presence and more. More than half of my university class are doing a degree because their parents insist. Students are searching for meaning. We in education see parents who do not understand new ways of teaching (to accommodate students), asking for the old ways. Teachers are pulled in different directions.
Education stakeholders add other layers of concern. Traditional style teachers often get higher student ratings than dynamic teachers – discouraging change. Parent-Teacher Associations are one of the ways in which parents can positively influence learning in schools. By understanding what teachers are going through, parents can contribute to the education system. Governments have become more polarized in the West and nationalistic globally, yet funding needs to be directed to projects as identified by professionals, not politicians.
Some projects might seem useless now, but the applications to society later on can be enormous. That shrimp on a treadmill told us a lot of curiosity, respiration, sea health and more. AI companies are promoting AI as a panacea for education; however, scaling AI is rarely discussed. There is a lot of what AI “could do” and what AI is doing on a small scale. Waldof and Alpha schools are still private models.
Meditation, fasting, outdoor play, communal prayer and so on were once seen as antiquated. However, science has proven these historical practices to be beneficial to society and the environment in 2025! Mental and physical health improve with the discipline of meditating, occasional fasting, interacting in person and spending time outdoors. The environment will benefit too from less energy demand if people spend less time on social media and pharmaceuticals for avoidable illnesses.
Change is always needed but the what, when, why and so on also needs answering. The majority of those in the education system are trying to contribute to a positive difference. Schools are trying to cover a broad spectrum to help students become competent graduates, but are being hampered by people with limited awareness.
Schools, now, are teaching more frameworks, concepts and principles (things parents and society should be doing); however, some see this as “indoctrination”. Principles of scientific inquiry, how to listen, read and structure an argument. These are increasingly relevant to the AI revolution. It is adding the 3Cs (Critical thinking, communication and creativity) to the 3Rs (reading, “‘riting and ‘rithmetic”). Being disciplined does not mean being compliant. It is about standards, goals and resisting temptations. Which is applicable to any person, system and time.
So instead of criticizing schools, contribute to the education system – become informed. Start by buying a book, reading it with a kid and then spending 15 minutes discussing it.
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