AI and Generative AI in Adult Education

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1.12 Future trends and lifelong learning with AI

Artificial intelligence (AI) is not a static technology; it is a dynamic and relentlessly evolving field, characterized by an incredibly fast pace of innovation. New tools, platforms, sophisticated capabilities, and consequently, new skills related to AI are constantly emerging, reshaping industries, professions, and daily life. For adult learners aiming to stay relevant and thrive, and for educators committed to providing impactful and contemporary instruction, keeping abreast of these changes and deeply understanding their potential impact is no longer optional – it has become a vital and integral part of lifelong learning. Lifelong learning, in this context, signifies an ongoing, voluntary, and self-motivated pursuit of knowledge and skills for either personal or professional reasons, a commitment to continuously learn, unlearn, and relearn throughout one’s life.

EMBRACING CHANGE AND UNDERSTANDING CURRENT AI CAPABILITIES

Many developments previously considered “future trends” are now established realities, with AI becoming even more deeply and seamlessly integrated into our daily routines, workplaces, and educational ecosystems. Key current capabilities and advancements include:

  • Sophisticated multimodal AI: This is a present reality. Models like OpenAI’s GPT-4o and Google’s Gemini 2.5 are prime examples of highly capable multimodal AI systems in widespread use. GPT-4o can process and generate content across text, audio, and image modalities, including understanding video.  Google’s Gemini 2.5 Pro also demonstrates strong multimodal capabilities, including audio-visual input and native audio output.  Google’s Veo 3 video generation model (released May 2025) explicitly generates video with accompanying audio and dialogue.  Imagine an AI for a project like HER[AI]TAGE that could take transcribed oral histories, archival photographs, and traditional music recordings, and then assist in generating a rich, interactive, and emotionally resonant short documentary-style video about a specific cultural tradition.
  • AI’s convergence with immersive technologies (AR/VR/XR): The synergy between AI and immersive technologies like Augmented Reality (AR), Virtual Reality (VR), and Extended Reality (XR) is well underway. AI significantly enhances XR experiences by enabling dynamic adaptation to individual learning styles and allowing for real-time adjustments to training scenarios.  Hardware such as the Meta Quest 3 and Apple Vision Pro are making XR more accessible for educational applications.  AI also streamlines the creation of 3D environments for these experiences.  This could lead to highly engaging virtual field trips to historically reconstructed cultural heritage sites (e.g., a virtual reconstruction of an ancient fishing village along the Drava, Mura, or Danube rivers, relevant to HER[AI]TAGE).
  • Advanced, empathetic, and personalized AI tutors and learning assistants: AI-powered tutors have become increasingly sophisticated. They offer features like real-time feedback, adaptive learning pathways tailored to individual learner performance, data-driven insights for educators, 24/7 availability, and multilingual support.  Numerous learning platforms like Absorb LMS, Docebo, and Sana Labs actively leverage AI for personalized learning experiences. 
  • AI for lifelong learning communities and workforce development: AI’s role in facilitating lifelong learning and professional development is a present reality. AI agents are a defining workforce trend in 2025, automating administrative tasks, enhancing learning and development with personalized paths and on-the-job assistance, and optimizing decision-making.  In corporate training, AI is used for hyper-personalized learning experiences and AI-powered learning analytics.  Platforms such as Thirst and 360Learning incorporate AI to manage skills and foster collaborative learning.

Being open to learning about these current capabilities, critically assessing their potential benefits and risks, and understanding their implications will empower adults to remain confident, adaptable, resilient, and competitive in a rapidly evolving global job market and an increasingly complex society.

CULTIVATING ESSENTIAL LIFELONG LEARNING HABITS IN THE AGE OF AI

To effectively navigate and thrive amidst the rapid pace of AI development, it is highly beneficial for individuals to cultivate certain proactive learning habits:

  • Maintain an insatiable curiosity: Actively and intentionally seek out new information about AI developments relevant to your field or interests. This could involve regularly attending industry workshops or webinars, reading reputable articles, research papers, or blogs about technology in education and your specific domain, or joining and actively participating in online learning communities and professional networks.
  • Embrace experimentation (responsibly and ethically): As new AI platforms, tools, or features become available and accessible, make an effort to experiment with them. This should always be done with a keen awareness of ethical considerations, data privacy implications, and potential biases. Even trying out new tools for fun, personal interest, or small-scale projects can build valuable familiarity, demystify the technology, and spark ideas for practical application.
  • Engage in critical reflection on experiences: After using a new AI tool or engaging with AI-generated content, take dedicated time to reflect critically on the experience. Ask yourself: What worked well and why? What were the limitations or challenges encountered? How could this tool, or similar AI technologies, be usefully and ethically applied in other areas of my life, work, or learning endeavours? What did I learn about my own learning process through this interaction?
  • Share knowledge, collaborate, and learn from others: Teaching others what you’ve learned, even informally through conversations or short presentations, is a powerful way to deepen your own understanding and consolidate your knowledge. Actively sharing experiences, discussing challenges, and celebrating successes in using AI within adult education contexts helps to build supportive peer networks and contributes to a growing body of collective knowledge and best practices. Platforms like EPALE (Electronic Platform for Adult Learning in Europe), which the HER[AI]TAGE project intends to leverage for dissemination, serve as excellent venues for such collaborative learning and knowledge exchange.

AI: A CATALYST FOR NEW OPPORTUNITIES AND EVOLVING SKILLSETS

AI is not merely transforming existing jobs and tasks; it is also a significant catalyst in creating entirely new types of roles, innovative career paths, and even new forms of leisure and hobbies. For example, adults can now explore opportunities as specialized online tutors who use AI-assisted platforms to deliver personalized instruction, become skilled digital content creators who leverage AI tools for writing, image generation, or video production, or engage in flexible remote work arrangements supported by sophisticated AI-powered collaboration and project management software. Consequently, understanding the fundamental concepts of AI, developing strong independent learning skills (learning how to learn), and cultivating a high degree of adaptability to technological change are rapidly becoming essential skills for achieving lifelong success, professional fulfilment, and overall well-being in the 21st century.

KEEPING LEARNING RELEVANT AND PURPOSEFUL IN AN AI-DRIVEN WORLD:

  • Strategically choose learning opportunities that genuinely align with your personal interests, long-term career aspirations, community engagement goals, or societal contributions you wish to make.
  • Proactively use AI tools to help you identify emerging skills that are in high demand within your field or areas of interest, and then leverage AI-powered learning platforms or resources to practice and master these new subjects at your own pace and in your own preferred learning style.
  • Actively participate in collaborative group projects, interdisciplinary research projects, or dynamic online forums where you can learn from and with others, perhaps using AI tools as aids for research, brainstorming, data analysis, or creative content generation.

The journey of learning and adapting with AI is an ongoing process of continuous discovery and evolution. By fostering a resilient mindset of lifelong learning, both adult learners and educators can navigate the future with greater confidence and agency, effectively harness the manifold benefits of AI for personal and collective advancement, and contribute meaningfully to building a more knowledgeable, innovative, and equitable society. The HER[AI]TAGE project itself stands as a testament to this spirit, serving as an inspiring example of an initiative that actively fosters learning, innovation, and the application of AI for profound and positive societal impact, particularly in the vital domains of cultural and environmental preservation.

PRACTICAL EXAMPLES

  • An adult learner working as a freelance graphic designer proactively subscribes to several leading industry newsletters, follows key AI influencers and research labs on social media platforms, and regularly participates in online forums dedicated to AI in creative industries. This helps them stay consistently updated on the latest advancements in AI image generation tools (like Midjourney V7 or Stable Diffusion 3.5), new ethical guidelines for AI art, and emerging techniques relevant to their professional field.
  • A forward-thinking group of adult educators from different institutions organizes informal, voluntary monthly “AI Exploration & Ethics” sessions. During these sessions, they share their personal experiences of trying out new AI tools (e.g., the latest features in GPT-4o or Claude 4) for tasks like lesson planning, content creation, or learner assessment. They openly discuss what worked effectively, what challenges they encountered, any unexpected limitations, and, crucially, any ethical considerations or dilemmas that arose from their experimentation.
  • A retiree with a passion for local and family history learns to use an AI-powered photo restoration and colorization tool to enhance and bring new life to old, faded family photographs. They also explore AI transcription services to convert fragile, handwritten historical letters and diaries into searchable digital text, thereby making their precious family heritage more accessible for future generations and easier to share with relatives.
  • An adult education class focusing on entrepreneurship and small business development uses a new AI-powered market research and trend analysis tool. The learners input their business ideas, and the AI helps them to analyse current market trends, identify potential customer segments, assess competitor landscapes, and even generate initial marketing slogan ideas. They then critically reflect on the AI’s findings, combining these insights with their own local knowledge, intuition, and business acumen to refine their startup plans.
  • Educators and researchers involved in the international HER[AI]TAGE project make it a regular practice to check for new academic publications, conference proceedings, and project reports on AI applications in cultural heritage preservation (e.g., using AI with XR like Meta Quest 3), digital humanities, and oral history archiving. They potentially attend specialized webinars or online conferences to learn about emerging best practices, innovative methodologies, and ethical frameworks being developed by experts and practitioners around the world.
  • An adult learner, planning an extended trip to a country where they don’t speak the language, uses an advanced AI-powered language learning application. This app dynamically adapts its lessons based on their real-time performance, providing more intensive practice on grammatical areas or vocabulary sets where they are demonstrably struggling. This personalized and adaptive approach helps them learn the new language more efficiently and at their own pace, building their confidence for their upcoming travels.
  • A vocational training centre incorporates a module on “AI in” into all its programs. This module is updated annually by instructors who attend industry conferences and consult with employers to ensure learners are aware of how AI (e.g., AI agents in workforce development) is currently impacting their chosen trade (e.g., AI in diagnostics for auto mechanics, AI in design for welders) and what future skills they might need.