Younger generations find themselves caught between a sense of collapse, a lack of prospects and the loss of a future full of promise. Schools, once the great equalisers and vehicle for social mobility, are becoming overwhelmed by impossible tasks and unable to respond to political powerlessness. In the face of uncertainty, a transformation of education can be imagined, with a system of broken promises becoming a space where everyone can learn to make themselves their own promises and to create a shared time. What is at stake is moving beyond the adaptive servitude imposed by speed, complexity and technocratic logic, which result in enlightened illiteracy. To respond to this crisis, education must exercise the imagination, embrace non-knowledge and foster an alliance of learners in an open composition of diverse lives, enabling us to inhabit together a multifaceted and fragile world, in a shared time.
New jobs are emerging, while others become obsolete or face more or less radical change. Professions are responding differently to the uncertainties and constraints that characterise the world of work. Education systems and the people responsible for training and research in education are coming up with models and solutions based on innovation to develop the skills required by these evolving professional landscapes, as well as appropriate learning and assessment methods. Five original case studies, from different countries and contexts (South Korea, France, Quebec, Switzerland and Tunisia), illustrate the uncertainties weighing on tomorrow’s jobs and put forward relevant approaches.
The uncertainty of the Anthropocene – a new geological age in which human societies are the primary drivers of negative impacts on a global scale – is prompting a re-examination of education systems that goes beyond the framework of education for sustainable development. The experiences gathered here highlight the diversity of initiatives happening across the world, often embedded in specific local contexts. Emerging patterns amount to a form of collective literacy characterised by transdisciplinarity, the incorporation of a sensory dimension, a systemic and synergistic approach, dynamic and multi-scale processes, and the integration of scientific and indigenous knowledge. Areas requiring further investigation include how to ensure initiatives are transferable and can be networked, how to assess the transformative potential of education for the Anthropocene, and teacher training.
In a world where the sheer flow of information makes it increasingly difficult to assess its content, with phenomena such as information overload, disinformation, misinformation and “alternative truths”, what can schools do to help pupils find their bearings? What kinds of media literacy can be conceived to develop critical thinking? This article describes the contexts in which uncertainty arises, before reflecting on the development of critical thinking in such contexts. Drawing on case studies presented at the international conference “Educating in an Uncertain World: A Global Challenge” and experiences from classroom settings, it puts forward possible approaches while acknowledging the limitations of media literacy and education for critical thinking in schools nowadays.
Conflicts of all kinds, climate or health disasters, the erosion of democratic principles in favour of regimes often qualified as illiberal – such extreme but, sadly, not exceptional situations are becoming increasingly common. Drawing on five case studies from contrasting contexts (Hungary, Lebanon and Ukraine, Mali, Mayotte, Venezuela) and analysing various crises, we attempt to describe their effects and outcomes, but above all to highlight forms of resilience that mobilise actors. These approaches involve supporting and equipping education communities, as well as assisting with teacher recruitment and training. The onus for meeting education challenges thus shifts from national policies to local actors.
This article considers the changes in education brought about by the rapid rise of artificial intelligence, drawing on an international conference held by this journal in 2025. The authors refer to the 4D framework – Delegation, Description, Discernment, Diligence – to analyse how AI is reshaping teaching practice and professional responsibility. Delegation of thinking tasks raises questions about the educational value of certain activities and the risks of intellectual dispossession. Description is becoming an essential mediating tool guiding human-AI collaboration. Discernment highlights the need for a critical evaluation of algorithmic outputs. Finally, diligence is about using AI ethically and responsibly. Considered together, they raise the question of a possible redefinition of curricular balances.
The ubiquitous, multifaceted and strategic nature of knowledge in contemporary societies is bound to revolutionise both the symbolic status and the function of those traditional places of learning known as “schools”. Clear hazards are emerging, arising both from the commodification of knowledge and from a worrying blurring of roles that induces increased anxiety in education actors. On the other hand, this may well be a moment to seize to usher in new learning opportunities and to seek a new organising and critical principle that redefines the aims of human education amid such a disparate patchwork of situations.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 reversed the relationship between might and right, at the same time fuelling nationalism, weakening alliances and reviving imperial spheres of influence. Against this backdrop, climate change is accelerating the competition for resources. Faced with these uncertainties, it is crucial to rethink our relationship with young people, knowledge and its transmission. Military education offers avenues for anticipating strategic developments, but it can also provide an inspiration for rethinking the transmission of knowledge. In this context, confidence in our collective intelligence remains essential.
Three narratives, each reflecting a distinct approach, have shaped the debate on education since 2015: the “emergency” approach and its narrative of resilience; the technosolutionist approach with its narrative of a digital future for education; and, finally, the “transformation” approach and its narrative of reimagining education. The first two have dominated international responses, confining action either to short-termism or to technosolutionism, which prevent any challenge of the underlying structures. The Unesco report Reimagining Our Futures Together (2021) stood out by asserting that current education models are inherently flawed and that education should contribute to transforming society rather than adapting to its excesses. The rise of artificial intelligence underscores this necessity: it compels us to redefine the very purpose of education. Only a long-term vision, both retrospective and forward-looking, would enable us to break with the logic of “more of the same” and embark on genuine transformation.
In this interview, François Dubet analyses the paradoxes of mass education in France: while equal access has improved, equal opportunities remain limited and the influence of qualifications on social trajectories has grown. This obsession with education outcomes leads to credential inflation, social anxiety and political divisions between the “winners” and “losers” of the selection process. François Dubet argues for prioritising mainstream education, centred on the skills essential to all, and for the recognition of diverse merits. Finally, he highlights the obstacles in France – bureaucratic rigidity, unrealistic expectations – and calls for better coordination between schools, workplaces and other educational institutions.
The 100th instalment of the Revue Internationale d’Education de Sèvres explores the challenges facing schools in a world characterised by climate, geopolitical, technological and social uncertainty. It draws on thirty international case studies presented in 2025 at the journal’s fifth international conference, held to mark its 30th anniversary. Across four chapters, this special issue demonstrates that every level of the education system, from central and local authorities to practitioners on the ground, plays a decisive role in transforming schools into learning systems. The theory of affordances forms the central theme of our thinking: identifying, assessing, making accessible and harnessing the opportunities offered by educational environments enables us to respond to contemporary changes. Contributions highlight the need to rethink schools around principles such as clear-eyed optimism, collective intelligence, educational continuity, a culture of debate, equity, and an eco-social vision of education. All of this converges on a central issue: how to build credible schools capable of equipping young people to face and shape an uncertain future?
This article analyses the challenges facing youth education in African contexts characterised by environmental, economic, social, political and democratic vulnerabilities. In the face of rapid population growth, persistent multidimensional crises and poor educational outcomes, five priority objectives are identified for education policy in sub-Saharan Africa: including young people who find themselves excluded; affirming African identity; promoting initiative and entrepreneurship; preparing for climate change; and strengthening resilience against radicalisation and violent extremism. This paper argues that achieving these objectives requires a systemic overhaul of African education systems, based on a dual paradigm shift, which involves turning the focus of education policy from exogenous to endogenous considerations, and prioritising democratisation over elitism in the structures and functioning of the system that governs access to knowledge.
Latin America today has the dubious distinction of being the region of the world most likely to witness three harmful social phenomena: violence, mistrust and inequality. This triple threat has a significant impact on education, affecting school access and student retention, particularly for the most disadvantaged pupils, as well as their academic and socio-emotional learning. To tackle this difficult situation with any likelihood of success, innovative pedagogical and institutional approaches must be adopted that emphasise educational resilience and support the work of school communities.
Recent years have brought global expansion of private supplementary tutoring, providing out-of-school support in academic subjects on a fee-charging basis. Much of the demand for this tutoring is driven by uncertainty. Families feel that by itself schooling may not be adequate in changing technological, economic and social circumstances, and societies have become increasingly competitive. Companies exploit these environments by providing tutoring to secure their own prosperity. Yet, companies may themselves experience precarious circumstances and changing times. This article examines patterns with examples from China, India and Australia.
The author calls for French schools to be freed from the “straitjacket” that hinders their ability to adapt to contemporary changes. Noting the slower pace of transformation in education compared with that in other fields, he advocates for learning-oriented schools that are open to cultural diversity and pedagogical innovations, particularly in the digital and organisational field. In the face of the bureaucratic technostructure that inhibits change, he advocates horizontal, cooperative and empowering ways of working. The author emphasises lifelong learning and the importance of a humanist ethic in the age of artificial intelligence, in order to build a truly inclusive learning society.
