As GenAI (or generative artificial intelligence) is continuing to expand to encompass all creative and factual horizons, students today have the world’s knowledge at their fingertips — and then some. We were the guinea pigs for the iPhone, and now our generation are the experimental subjects for artificial intelligence.
Reporters Avery Ramsey and Claire O’Connor debate the positives and negatives of AI in education. They will explore their nuanced opinions regarding this topic.
Ramsey:
AI will harm the functionality of learning. The intellectual ability of students depends on exercising performance of the material learned.
AI shortcuts attack this fundamental part of development — most importantly, writing. We have to acknowledge that AI is not Google.
Google provides students with resources written by other humans that they use, applying critical thinking to fit information together to make a cogent argument. This isn’t the case with AI.
The prompt for an entire essay? It’s probably written in less than fifty words — then poof, all that articulation and consideration that happens when you write is lost. Gone and replaced with the ease of an essay generated in seconds.
If people are copying and pasting AI generated essays, how do they learn to compose a coherent argument? What part of practice doesn’t involve hands-on repetition? Not to mention, the self discovery included in writing takes a significant hit.
If AI essays become the norm in schools, critical and analytical thinking skills will deteriorate with human competence.
O'Connor:
AI is not going away. It can’t be ignored, and we need to stop pretending it doesn’t exist. Many teachers adopt the harmful mindset of completely avoiding any AI use in their classroom.
This is simply unrealistic. Whether they like it or not, their students will be using AI. It’s up to the teachers in what way the AI could be used.
I’m not saying students should have ChatGPT write their essays; that most certainly stunts growth in intellectual learning. However, we shouldn’t cut AI out of our schools.
When most students think of using AI in relation to their education, many immediately assume it’s academic integrity. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Instead of using AI to write an entire essay, it can be used as a helpful starting point to help develop and form your ideas.
AI can be a great source for research. For example, you could write a topic sentence included in your essay and ask AI to feed you websites or statistics relating to your topic.
Ramsey:
Yes, I agree — AI is not disappearing, no matter the complications it evokes. However, it takes a certain discipline to limit how far to go when you use it.
Do you really trust highschool students to use AI honestly? This includes citing sources that the AI credits, being transparent about how original your work really is and consciously reframing the data generated. Even those with the most academic integrity may get lazy and punch in a prompt for a semester project that’s fifty percent of their grade.
As for the students who solely rely on their own skill, what happens when everyone around them utilizes AI? Does their fidelity automatically put them at a disadvantage when compared to their peers — who have the leg up from generative AI?
Even then, those students are sometimes incidentally accused of using AI when they submit something that an educator might deem beyond their abilities. Credibility is in limbo now that AI has taken the wheel.
O'Connor:
I definitely agree that academic credibility is a huge issue when it comes to AI in schools. Schools need to set up guidelines for students to use with AI so that they understand the line between using it as a helpful tool and academic dishonesty.
Schools’ continued blatant ignorance towards AI software only enables their students to use it for all the wrong reasons. AI lessons in the classroom will inform students of credible AI usage in the classroom setting..
Teachers also must inform students that while they may use AI, it cannot be their only source. Students should only use AI software that properly cite their sources, and should still fact check the information. Learning how to cite sources from AI is another incredibly important skill that must be taught to students for it to be used properly in schools.
Ramsey:
In the case of AI, it’s easy to escalate circumstances — from students worrying about their integrity to others outright cheating — but it’s important to analyze those situations so we can avoid them.
For AI to work in an effective and positive capacity in the school setting, there must be strict regulations concerning proper ethics. These guidelines should compliment and challenge a student’s education and performance.
Otherwise, if AI remains unchecked, we jeopardize the integrity of the upcoming generation and, ultimately, lose the advancement of knowledge.
O'Connor:
I agree that AI should have regulations and rules pertaining to its proper use in education. AI can be an incredibly useful tool for students and teachers alike.
If schools don’t acknowledge the inevitable presence of AI in education, that will only allow students to use it without integrity. Teachers and school systems should carry out lesson plans regarding the software and how it can be appropriately used in the classroom.
We need to break the stigma of AI in schools.
Should AI be used in schools?
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