Agentivism: a learning theory for the age of artificial intelligence
2026-04-09 • Artificial Intelligence
Artificial IntelligenceHuman-Computer Interaction
AI summaryⓘ
The authors explain that new AI tools let people get help with thinking and solving problems, which changes how we learn. Traditional learning ideas don’t fully explain how using AI affects what we really understand or remember. They introduce 'Agentivism,' a new learning theory that focuses on how people can learn well by smartly using AI, checking its answers, making its help their own, and eventually doing tasks without help. This theory helps us understand learning when AI assistance becomes normal and common.
Learning theoriesGenerative AIAgentic AIHuman-AI interactionAgentivismEpistemic monitoringConstructivismCognitivismTransfer of learning
Authors
Lixiang Yan, Dragan Gašević
Abstract
Learning theories have historically changed when the conditions of learning evolved. Generative and agentic AI create a new condition by allowing learners to delegate explanation, writing, problem solving, and other cognitive work to systems that can generate, recommend, and sometimes act on the learner's behalf. This creates a fundamental challenge for learning theory: successful performance can no longer be assumed to indicate learning. Learners may complete tasks effectively with AI support while developing less understanding, weaker judgment, and limited transferable capability. We argue that this problem is not fully captured by existing learning theories. Behaviourism, cognitivism, constructivism, and connectivism remain important, but they do not directly explain when AI-assisted performance becomes durable human capability. We propose Agentivism, a learning theory for human-AI interaction. Agentivism defines learning as durable growth in human capability through selective delegation to AI, epistemic monitoring and verification of AI contributions, reconstructive internalization of AI-assisted outputs, and transfer under reduced support. The importance of Agentivism lies in explaining how learning remains possible when intelligent delegation is easy and human-AI interaction is becoming a persistent and expanding part of human learning.