Human-maxxing is the term Peter Hyman used in his Oppidan Lecture for the deliberate development of the whole person – head, heart and hand. He sets it against the wider "maxxing" trend, in which people try to maximise their looks, strength or wealth. Hyman's argument is that the drive to self-improvement is real, and should be pointed at the capacities young people need to shape a world being changed by AI.
Both are half right, and both answering the wrong question. We build neither an AI-learning programme nor a retreat from it; we build the judgement to use AI well, and to keep the final decision a human one.
A pause for younger children is defensible while evidence is gathered. What it leaves open is where young people learn to use AI well, a question two 45-minute classes a year cannot answer.
Employers say the skills they most need are problem-solving, communication and the ability to work with others. However, exams and course work rarely measure these, so CVs don't show them. The problem is then compounded when employers screen applications with software that most believe favours technical skills instead.
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