As AI transforms education, the Observatory scans trends and risks while the Action Lab tests solutions — equipping country leaders in low- and middle-income countries to make context-specific, equitable choices.
The Challenge: How Can Education Leaders Navigate Change in the Age of AI — and Support Equity?
Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming how societies work, including how education systems function. But for decision-makers — especially those working in ministries of education or development agencies — the pace of change can feel overwhelming. With new tools emerging constantly and little clear evidence on what works, it’s difficult to know how to respond. Which innovations are worth exploring? What challenges should be anticipated? How can AI support equity in education versus deepening disparities? And what can be done to balance needs for cost-effectiveness and long-term sustainability?
The AI Observatory and Action Lab, a program housed within EdTech Hub and supported by FCDO, was created to respond to precisely these questions. It helps education decision-makers better understand, test, and shape the role of AI in their work.
Already, learners in low- and middle-income and marginalized contexts face a steep digital divide and unequal access to quality education resources. Integration of AI into education systems can widen this gap further. There is also a risk that AI integration will provide a learning experience that is sub-optimal for those marginalized learners, too reliant on technology developed in high-income settings using datasets and assumptions that don’t align with the realities of their lives. Bias in AI algorithms and the environmental impacts of AI are additional considerations that can exacerbate inequities if not carefully managed. The Observatory and Action Lab were created to help decision-makers anticipate these risks and make informed, context-specific choices.
Listening and Learning to Navigate Uncertainty in AI
The role of the AI Observatory is to track developments in AI and education, identify patterns and early signals, surface ideas worth exploring, and support leaders on their journey to finding the right solution at the right time. The rationale is straightforward: AI is new, fast-evolving, and likely to have a significant impact on education, but without careful attention, that impact could be uneven or even harmful.
The Observatory addresses this risk by asking key questions: What is happening right now in education systems related to AI? What’s emerging on the horizon? Where are there gaps in knowledge or practice? And how might equity be strengthened — or threatened — as AI is integrated?
To answer these questions, the team uses a range of methods — for example, convening “Let’s Talk AI” dialogues with diverse stakeholders such as ministries, donors, developers, or developing a web-scraping tool that continuously scans the open web for examples of AI in education. The Observatory team then produces a weekly product called a “signal” that monitors trends, spots innovations, and understands evolving narratives across countries and sectors.
From this dialogue and horizon scanning, the Observatory has developed a Theoretical Framework which highlights three key themes to be addressed:
- AI for education: instances where AI can be used as a tool to upgrade existing educational processes and practices
- AI in education: use cases where AI has disrupted components of education systems, in some ways replacing previous practice
- Education in the age of AI: where education practice has shifted and adapted to a world where AI is a part of life
This framework gives stakeholders a way to understand both where things stand now and where they might be headed — without being overwhelmed.
Transforming AI Insights into Action through The Action Lab
While the AI Observatory is about scanning and sensemaking, the Action Lab focuses on testing and implementation. It turns ideas or hypothesis identified from the Observatory’s Theoretical Framework into real-world pilots and engagements, working directly with governments and development partners.
The Action Lab includes four main initiatives:
- FCDO On-Demand Support: Provides tailored assistance to FCDO education advisors who are exploring how/whether to integrate AI into their work. This includes funding for small prototypes, matchmaking with technical experts, and support with project design and implementation. Several engagements are already underway — for example, in Nigeria, where AI is being tested to improve access and discoverability to digital learning resources on a national platform.
- AI Tool Benchmarking: In collaboration with partners at AI-for-Education.org, this workstream assesses foundational AI models and other AI tools against key education criteria, such as pedagogical standards or ability to support specific content areas or learners with special education needs and disabilities. The aim is to guide decision-makers in choosing appropriate tools to build on and implement based on their objectives.
- Ministry of Education Challenge: Offers in-kind technical support to ministries that want to pilot AI-enabled approaches to improve education service delivery — such as using generative AI to create educational content or predictive models to support infrastructure planning.
- Teacher-in-the-Lead Sandboxes: Builds on a core belief that the most effective tools are developed with, not for, educators. This initiative creates sandboxes for co-designing AI tools and use cases with teachers, ensuring their insights shape both design and implementation.
An Adaptive Model for AI Adoption
Finally, this work is meant to be adaptive. The team is not claiming to have all the answers — in fact, the model is designed to evolve alongside the evidence. The AI Observatory and Action Lab offer a clear structure for ongoing learning: starting with careful listening, then moving into targeted testing, and returning again to analysis, reflection, and sharing.
For governments and partners navigating the uncertainty of AI in education, this approach provides both guidance and space to experiment. It’s not about rushing toward any one solution. It’s about staying grounded in what matters most — supporting learners and educators — while building the capacity to respond thoughtfully to change.
To learn more, visit the AI Observatory & Action Lab website here.
