The rot really began with Google and the the goal of “professionalism” in teaching.

Textbooks were thrown out, in favour of “flexible” teaching models, and Google allowed lazy teachers to just set assignments rather than teach lessons (prior to Google, the lack of resources in a normal school made assignments difficult to complete to any sort of acceptable standard).

The continual demand for “professionalism” also drove this trend - “we have to have these vast, long winded assignments because that’s what is done at university”.

AI has rendered this method of pedagogy void, but the teaching profession refuses to abandon their aim for “professionalism”.