Teachers Were Told to Adapt to Technology. Now We Can Create It.

For years, I adapted my teaching to the technology available to me. I learned to use platforms, explored educational applications and tried to find digital tools that matched my students’ needs. Often, I had to compromise. The tools were designed by others, and the classroom realities I knew so well were not always reflected in their design.

Generative AI is changing that relationship.

Through vibe coding, I can describe an educational challenge, work with generative AI to develop a solution, test it and refine it. I do not need to become a professional software developer to begin creating functional digital learning tools. My knowledge of pedagogy, my understanding of my students and my experience in the classroom become part of the design process.

This matters particularly in vocational education. A student preparing for a career in the kitchen, for example, may need opportunities to practise a job interview in English. Another student may need a different way to engage with a topic, practise a skill or build confidence before speaking. Instead of searching indefinitely for the perfect application, I can build something that responds to the actual learning situation.

But I do not believe that the value of this change lies in producing more applications. We already have plenty of technology in education. The question is whether we can create technology that serves human needs rather than expecting humans to adapt to technology.

Nor does vibe coding make teachers software engineers overnight. AI-generated tools can contain errors, introduce security risks or fail to work as intended. They require testing, critical judgement and ongoing responsibility. The ability to create something is not the same as knowing whether it should be created.

There is also a question of equity. If some teachers and students have access to powerful AI models while others are limited to basic tools, the opportunity to create may become another source of inequality. We should not celebrate democratised creation without asking who can participate and who is left behind.

I see the emerging role of the teacher-creator as an extension of professional agency. Generative AI can help me turn an idea into a working prototype, but it cannot take responsibility for the pedagogical decisions behind it. I still need to understand my students, define the learning purpose, evaluate the result and decide whether the tool helps.

Perhaps the most important shift is this: teachers no longer have to be only consumers of educational technology because we can become active participants in shaping it.

The future of educational technology should not be designed around what companies can build and sell. It should also be shaped by the people who understand the learners, their learning preferences, the classrooms and the consequences of getting it wrong.

In a post-generative world, the teacher’s role may extend beyond choosing the right tool. It may include creating it thoughtfully and critically always with human learning at the centre.