Not a Stupidogenic Age Podcast
Temporada 1
Ep.2 with Professor Kaska | Is AI Making Us Lazy Thinkers? The Future of Learning, Agency and Metacognition
por Cheer Zhu, Elisa Kuang
Episode notes While it’s tempting to let AI handle everything from brainstorming essays to planning lessons, have you ever paused to ask: What is this doing to the way we grow, learn, and even see ourselves? In this episode, we sit down with Professor Kaska, a leading researcher in AI and education at UCL whose work spans cognitive science, pedagogy, and AI ethics. With a background that moves from acting and linguistics into AI and education, she brings a uniquely lens to a very technological conversation. Drawing on research, classroom experience, and policy discussions, she offers important advice, thoughts, at times, challenging perspective on how generative AI reshapes not just what we learn, but how we think and who we become in the process. Her work often pushes back against the assumption that more AI in schools, lecture halls and classrooms is better. Instead, she asks us to look closely at what gets lost when we cognitively offloads these tasks especially for children and young people. We explore: The metacognitive cost of convenience How relying on chatbots can quietly weaken our capacity to reflect, self-monitor, and regulate our own thinking, which are the very skills we need for creativity, judgment, and resilience. Process vs. outcomes in education Why friction, confusion, and failure are essential parts of learning and what’s at stake when AI smooths these away in the name of efficiency. AI as tutor vs. AI as oracle The difference between AI that helps us think betterand AI that simply hands us polished answers and why that distinction matters most for novices and younger learners. Children, parents, and the danger of AI ‘diagnosing’ identity Why outsourcing judgments about a child’s personality, strengths, or “potential” to AI is both seductive and dangerous, and what supportive parenting can look like without formal expertise. Rethinking assessment in an AI age Moving beyond standardized right–wrong tests towards formative, process-focused assessment that values how students explore, make mistakes, and recover. Advice for EdTech startups using AI What founders in education technology should prioritise when building AI tools: starting from the learner, not the model; designing for metacognitive growth rather than mere efficiency; and how ideas like open learner models or teachable agents can support reflection, agency, and genuine learning instead of just automating “right answers.” Power, big tech, and inequality in AI education What happens when public education systems partner with large AI firms, whose incentives don’t always align with public good and how this can both narrow and widen inequalities. Life and career advice in an uncertain world From “being in the wrong room” as an actress to thriving in AI and education, she shares a deeply personal perspective on following curiosity, honouring your strengths, and deciding what really matters: career, family, and the long, slow work of figuring out who you are. Whether you’re a student, educator, policymaker, or building the next EdTech startup, this conversation will make you pause and rethink what you’re outsourcing to AI and where to position yourself in this age of AI.
While enjoying the convenience brought by chatbots, have you ever wondered or even worried about the subtle ways they might be changing our brains? In this episode, we sit down with Professor Wayne Holmes, who specialises in Critical Studies of AI and Education at UCL’s Institute of Education. He also holds an UNESCO Chair in the Ethics of AI and Education and advises the Council of Europe on this matter. Professor Holmes offers a candid and, at times, challenging perspective on what generative AI is really doing to the way we learn. His critical political background and service in advisory roles on global policy discussions have led him to often question prevailing assumptions about AI in education. This has given him a cautious, reflective perspective that helps balance the narrative often dominated by techno-optimistic business leaders portrayed by the media. We explore: The cognitive impact of AI on learning Learning versus education AI literacy: beyond the technical Regulation and policy in Europe and beyond Life advice for a generation navigating uncertainty Whether you're a student, educator, EduTech startup, or simply someone trying to make sense of AI's role in our lives, this conversation will make you pause and reconsider what you think you know. It certainly made me reconsider how I use these chatbots!