The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) published a new report titled "AI and Education: Protecting the Rights of Learners" during Digital Learning Week 2025.

As educational institutions and systems are increasingly warming up to Artificial Intelligence (AI) in their classrooms and teaching, UNESCO, through this report, issues a warning: AI could end up widening educational inequalities instead of reducing them. 

Through the report, the organisation says that AI in schools must be grounded in human rights principles, and advocates for strong protections to remove gaps in education access. 

According to UNESCO, only 40 per cent of primary schools, and 65 per cent of upper secondary schools across the world have internet access. This divide is also felt across regions, as while 80 per cent of the schools in the Americas and Europe are connected to the internet, only 64 per cent of the schools in the Asia-Pacific region, and 40 per cent in Africa are. 

Rural-urban divides also play out in certain so-called developed nations, with the rate as low as 14 per cent. 

UNESCO estimates that about 2.9 billion people in the world, ie nearly one-third of the population, do not attend schools with internet access. Advancements of AI in education would only marginalise them further and prevent them from accessing the benefits of AI. 

The report also warns that AI can threaten privacy and overlook cultural and linguistic diversity if it is poorly designed or deployed without safeguards. Girls, children, disabled learners and those from disadvantaged backgrounds are particularly vulnerable to being left behind.

To address these issues, UNESCO is urging governments to adopt its 5C framework — Coordination, Content, Capacity, Connectivity and Cost. 

The report is part of UNESCO's continuous efforts to help countries integrate artificial intelligence into their educational systems. UNESCO previously issued the first-ever Guidance for Generative AI in Education and Research to assist in the critical, creative, and ethical navigation of artificial intelligence. 

It has also developed AI competency frameworks for instructors and students to assist with the integration of AI learning objectives into curricula and teaching techniques.