Rewiring Education for a Super-Smart Society: Cognitive Integrity, AI Ethics, and the Future of Knowledge

Education systems need to establish methods for protecting cognitive integrity and epistemic trust as artificial intelligence increasingly controls knowledge delivery, educational processes, and institutional decision-making processes. Society 5.0 envisions a human-centered digital civilization in which AI is employed to enhance educational foundations rather than replace them. The proposed Cognitive-AI Interaction Framework (CAIF) serves as a model to study how artificial intelligence transforms educational knowledge production and interpretation processes. The framework uses socio-technical systems (STS) theory together with Ubuntu, Kaitiakitanga, Confucian and Buddhist thoughts, Buen Vivir, and Human Rights principles to identify three epistemic modalities: (a) Epistemic Anchoring, (b) Cognitive Mediation Systems, and (c) Synthetic Knowledge Environments. These modalities illustrate how AI influences trust mechanisms, personalization processes, and the construction of meaning within learning systems. Safeguarding education in Society 5.0 demands both inclusive technology implementation and epistemic governance to maintain ethical design, interpretive transparency, and human cognitive autonomy. The paper recommends strategic outputs to help implement ethical AI systems in curriculum development and policy creation, and pedagogical design.