Sustainable Education in the Age of Artificial Intelligence and Digitalization: A Value-Critical Approach

The rapid expansion of artificial intelligence (AI) and digitalization in contemporary ed-ucation has reshaped global debates on sustainable education, often emphasizing effi-ciency, personalization, and technological innovation. However, this transformation has coincided with increasing technologization and commodification of education, raising critical questions about whether AI-driven education can genuinely support sustainability as a value-based and human-centered project. This study examines sustainable education in the age of artificial intelligence and digitalization through a value-critical analytical ap-proach grounded in a conceptual distinction between sustainable education, sustainabil-ity in education, and education for sustainable development. Methodologically, the article adopts a qualitative critical analysis of contemporary literature and policy-oriented de-bates to assess the ethical, social, and educational implications of AI integration. The analysis reveals a dual and context-dependent impact of AI on sustainable education: while AI can enhance educational quality, access, and personalization in well-resourced and well-governed contexts, it may also intensify educational inequalities, reinforce the commodification of knowledge, undermine academic integrity, and marginalize the hu-man dimension of education under market-driven and weakly regulated conditions. These challenges are particularly evident in culturally and religiously grounded educa-tional contexts, where AI reshapes epistemic authority and educational meaning. The study concludes that achieving sustainable education in the digital age depends not on AI adoption per se, but on reframing AI and digitalization within a coherent ethical and val-ue-based framework that subordinates technology to educational aims, social justice, and human dignity.