We gave kids endless tech. Their digital skills are at a 20-year low

Twelve-year-old Harry Joseph once programmed a robot to do the can-can and knows his way around a spreadsheet. But when his class was asked to tell real photos from AI-generated fakes, the year 6 Barker College student says they got about 70 per cent wrong.

Despite growing up surrounded by screens, smart devices and the internet, and enthusiastically adopting artificial intelligence, Australian students have recorded their worst digital literacy scores since testing began two decades ago.

A national assessment by the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) has revealed just 50 per cent of Year 6 students met or exceeded the proficient standard for information communication technology (ICT) literacy in 2025. For Year 10 students, that number plummeted to 37 per cent – the lowest recorded result since the assessment’s inception.

This drop comes despite near-universal access to technology, with more than 97 per cent of students having a computer or tablet at home.

To measure ability, the ACARA assessment asked students to complete simulated ICT tasks, such as designing algorithms, analysing data and responding to scenarios involving online safety. In one module, year 6 students had to set up a point-of-sale system for a restaurant, requiring them to match the physical layout with the right digital hardware.

The test revealed that students who frequently completed complex technological tasks at school such as programming or app creation scored lower in ICT literacy. The highest scores belonged to students who regularly used basic productivity applications such as word processors and spreadsheets.

While digital literacy skills have waned, students’ use of generative artificial intelligence is booming.

For the first time, the national assessment tracked AI use, revealing about 60 per cent of year 10 students use AI to generate written content at least once a month, with one in four using it at school every day. For year 6 students, more than 30 per cent use it monthly, and nine per cent daily.

However, experts warn that students are adopting this technology without the critical thinking skills required to navigate it safely. Despite their prolific use, only 66 per cent of year 10 students and 50 per cent of year 6 students reported learning at school how to judge if AI-generated information is accurate.

It comes as a new report warns the education system is facing real and urgent risks from students’ use of artificial intelligence to cheat and avoid thinking for themselves.

According to artificial intelligence in education expert Professor Jason Lodge, the data proves the concept of a “digital native” is a myth.

“Just because they’ve been exposed to technology through their lives doesn’t mean that they necessarily know how to use it well,” Lodge said. “They are more exposed to technology, but certainly less capable of using it at the same time.”

He argues Australia is falling behind in its approach to AI education by overemphasising coding and gadgets at the expense of teaching critical information literacy.

“Sometimes we’ve focused a little bit too much on the shiny technology part of all of this … but fundamentally, a lot of this is about knowledge and information,” Lodge said.

Back in the classroom, year 6 students are already feeling the knowledge gap. Harry admits he is nervous about the future of AI.

“I reckon something the curriculum should focus on is how to know if what AI is creating is real, if the information is real, and how to really, really, really solidly fact‑check,” Harry said. “At the moment, I’m a bit wary of AI because it’s reliable in some ways, but sometimes it can be quite unreliable,” he said.

His classmates Samantha Charlier and Sam Burnett agree.

“Sometimes I look at something, and it’s so realistic I want to say it’s true, but something’s telling me it’s off – we need to be taught how to know when AI is making mistakes,” said Samantha.

To combat this, Barker College principal Phillip Heath is prioritising digital literacy by creating a specialist research team to study how students use AI and how literacy can best be taught. He notes the education system is facing real and urgent risks from students using AI to cheat or avoid thinking for themselves.

“The truth of the matter is that access does not equate to literacy. ICT literacy requires ethical and discerning use, and the capacity to understand digital systems, not just use them,” Heath said.

“I have a great fear about AI, frankly. Unless we get in front of that, we’ll slip behind countries like China who are actually embedding these skills into the curriculum.”

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