The fastest-growing firms today are not waiting for the future. They are already using artificial intelligence (AI) to make better decisions, move faster, cut costs, and find new openings. AI is helping teams work smarter, respond quickly to market changes, and improve how they serve clients.
This should make us ask a serious question: how are we preparing young learners, especially STEM students in high schools, to use AI before they enter the job market? If these learners are future engineers, scientists, health workers, data analysts, innovators, and business leaders, then AI readiness must become part of their training today.
Kenya has long supported the UN and AU goals of industrial growth through STEM. The country has also set a target of having 60 percent of learners in senior school go through the pathway. This aim is reflected in the Competency Based Education model, where STEM is one of the three specialised pathways, and the only one that every senior school is expected to offer.
This is a good and necessary goal. STEM careers will continue to shape many sectors, including manufacturing, agriculture, health, energy, finance, education, and technology. However, the real test is not whether we have strong targets on paper. It is whether our learners are being prepared for a world of work that is changing fast.
Concerns around transition to CBE are already known. Many schools are still grappling with limited infrastructure, inadequate teacher training, and funding woes. These issues must be addressed. But beyond them, we must also ask whether our education system is keeping pace with rapid changes taking place in the workplace.
AI is no longer just a buzzword. It is quickly becoming a basic workplace skill. Many employers are now looking for people who can use AI tools to improve productivity, analyse information, solve problems, and support faster decision-making. It is no longer enough for a young person to say they can use a computer. Increasingly, they must show that they can use digital tools, including AI, in a practical way.
This is especially important for STEM students. A student interested in engineering should learn how AI can support design, testing, and problem-solving. A student interested in health sciences should understand how AI can help with research and data analysis. A leaner in agriculture should see how AI can support crop planning, weather prediction, and better use of resources. These are not distant ideas.
The biggest workplace gains will come from employees who can combine technical knowledge with AI tools. These are the people who will help organisations make quicker decisions, reduce delays, improve operations, and create better solutions. If our STEM students are not exposed to AI early, they may enter the job market with strong classroom knowledge but weak workplace skills. This is where our curriculum must go further.
Learners should not only be introduced to AI tools, but also taught how to use them well. They should learn how to ask clear questions, write good prompts, check the accuracy of AI responses, compare information from different sources, and protect confidential data.
Just as important, learners must understand that AI is not a replacement for thinking. It is a tool that supports it. Students must still learn the core principles of science, mathematics, technology, and engineering. They must be able to question AI-generated answers and use their own knowledge to judge whether the output makes sense.
Teachers also need to be supported. It is not enough to train teachers in basic ICT skills. They need practical training in AI use, data privacy, data management, critical thinking, and risk awareness. A teacher who understands AI is better placed to guide learners on both the benefits and dangers of using these tools. By the time today’s high school learners enter the job market, AI skills may be as basic as word processing and spreadsheet skills are today. This means schools must begin preparing them now.
AI readiness
AI should not be treated as an optional extra or a skill reserved for university students. It should become part of how STEM learners are prepared for work, innovation, and problem-solving.
However, AI readiness should not be limited to technical skills. Our education system must also continue to build communication, teamwork, creativity, problem-solving, and ethical judgment. The future worker will not only need to know how to use AI. They will need to explain ideas clearly and work well with others.
They will also need to explain ideas clearly, work well with others, question results, and make responsible decisions.
Kenya’s STEM ambition is important. But ambition must be matched with delivery. If we want our young people to compete in a changing world, we must prepare them for the tools, skills, and expectations of the modern workplace.
The future job market will reward learners who can think, adapt, and use technology to solve real problems. STEM education gives Kenya a strong foundation. AI readiness can make that foundation even stronger. The time to prepare our learners is not tomorrow. It is now.
The writer is Young Scientists Kenya (YSK) National Director
