Education in the AI era: the Next Action Plan for Quebec
The following text is consistent with the open letter published in La Presse on September 4, 2026. The original version is available here (French only).
By Pierre Fortin, Partner, Advisory Services, and Jonathan Perrier, Vice-President, Advisory Services and AI Practice Leader at Raymond Chabot Grant Thornton.
During each election campaign, the same issues are discussed in the education sector: academic success, a shortage of teachers, dropout rates, infrastructure, and results in French and mathematics tests. These challenges are very real and should be given our full attention.
The ongoing issues are compounded by a major factor: artificial intelligence (AI). This technology is already radically transforming the economy, businesses and the working world. The education sector must also make this crucial shift to AI. Students who are currently enrolled in our schools will be faced with a society where interactions between humans and intelligent technologies are part of everyday life. However, our education system is still primarily built around a model that reflects the realities of a bygone era. While several individuals are calling for a second États généraux sur l’éducation, Quebec must seize this opportunity to consider the role that schools will play in preparing the next generation of citizens.
Preparing students for the future is not about teaching them how to compete with technology. Instead, it involves creating young leaders who can work effectively with AI while not allowing it to replace truly human skills such as judgment, critical thinking and creativity. That is why the transformation must be undertaken without undermining either the quality and integrity of education or the expertise of teachers.
The next government must make this issue a top priority and develop a truly national strategy for AI in education centred on four key areas.
Integrating AI into the education system: four priority areas
Every organization and business in our society must consider how to adapt its work practices in the AI era. This includes educational institutions, since they prepare the next generation of citizens.
The first key area is a focus on supporting student learning. Through intelligent analysis of educational data, educators can better understand the needs of each student, further personalize learning paths, quickly identify risk factors and take action before issues become critical. The goal is not to replace teachers, but to offer each student support that is better aligned with their circumstances.
Second, the subject of teaching support also deserves our attention. At a time when teachers are drowning in administrative work, AI can help lighten the burden by automating certain repetitive tasks, facilitating lesson planning and offering helpful decision-making. AI can become a powerful tool for giving teachers back the time they need to focus on what a machine can never replace: human mentoring.
Third, we must consider supporting administrative efficiency. School service centres dedicate substantial resources to information management, accountability, and administrative processes that can be time-consuming. When used responsibly, AI can improve resource management and free up more resources to directly support educational success.
Fourth, using AI to educate the citizens of tomorrow should not be overlooked. This approach requires us to act now by reviewing how we currently support students and rethinking both the curriculum and how to use technology in a relevant manner. We’ll also need to consider how to strengthen fundamental human skills in the AI era.
It goes without saying that this transformation must be based on clear principles. These include privacy protection, cybersecurity, transparency, fairness and ensuring that humans continue to play a central role in all decisions that impact students.
In fact, several educational institutions across the country are already on this path and are currently exploring initiatives where AI can support learning, assist with teaching, and improve the efficiency of the school system while seeking to train future leaders responsibly.
The election campaign should not restrict debate to funding education, but also explore the purpose of education.
When it comes to education, Quebec has already set ambitious shared goals. Artificial intelligence can now allow us to add a new chapter to the story.
Since our current students will be decision-makers in 20 years, we must take action now and define what kind of education we want to provide!
Experts / Authors
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Pierre Fortin Pierre Fortin is a partner within the management consulting team. Passionate about customer service, he has worked for 25 years with parapublic companies and organizations.View Profile -
Jonathan Perrier Jonathan Perrier works with the public and parapublic sectors (health, education, municipal and government) and with the private sector.View Profile