A recent Eurobarometer survey found that Maltese people are most open to allowing teachers to use Artificial Intelligence in the classroom, when compared to European peers.

When asked for their position on the use of AI in education, 39% of Maltese respondents said that AI can improve teaching and learning and that "the education community should not be afraid to experiment with it."

47% meanwhile replied that AI can benefit and bring risks to teaching and learning, and that "the education community should assess and explore both." 11% said that AI does not belong in the classroom and 3% said they did not know.

Teaching students how to use AI, given its growing impact on society and use in the workplace, is important. However, at the same time an over-reliance on AI could lead to laziness, a lack of critical thinking skills, and affect creativity. AI can be a great tool if used properly, but over-reliance could have negative impacts.

The same survey also highlighted a number of other pertinent points. For instance, it is good to see that the majority of Maltese respondents - 64%, strongly agree, and 31% somewhat agree that digital skills should be taught to everyone in schools and universities, which together is a percentage that is slightly higher than the EU average. Nowadays digital skills are important for almost every line of work in some way or other, and so ensuring that the next generation has a strong grasp of those skills is essential.

Another important point made is that the vast majority agree that all teachers should be equipped with the skills to help students recognise various forms of disinformation online. While being thought digital skills is important, it does not automatically mean that people would know how to identify misinformation and disinformation, especially when so much of it is shared on social media. Education to teach people how to identify what is true and what is not, especially with AI now thrown into the mix, is lacking. This is something that the authorities need to tackle.  While digital technology brought about great tools, there are those who abuse them.

There is another negative to digitalisation which must also be mentioned... isolation. People are often tied to their technological devices, checking their emails regularly, scrolling through social media endlessly, chatting over messages rather than calling or talking in person, children playing on phones instead of interacting with others. There must be balance. Human beings are social by nature, and in-person communication is vital.

In addition, social media could be abused, and could be used by some to bully others.

The Eurobarometer asked people whether schools should teach young people how to manage the impact of digital technologies, such as social media, on their mental and physical health. The vast majority agreed that they should.

While the rapid advance of technology has been undeniably important for progress and has brought the world closer together, the negative aspects that have been created also need to be tackled and managed.