Can Students’ Learning be Impacted by AI?

By Maxwell L., 8th Grade

Students only want to use AI! AI stands for Artificial Intelligence, which is a subset of computer science. Instead of having problem-solving algorithms directly in the AI’s code, the AI uses generalized algorithms and repeated training to learn how to perform a task slowly (CSU Global). AI has now become quite powerful, to the point where it can easily do work for students, such as writing essays or doing homework. However, due to this, AI has become a highly contentious topic among teachers and students, because it is able to disrupt learning in many ways. Overall, AI should not be used in the classroom because it is easy to abuse, hinders learning, and may have errors.

AI abuse is a large, almost undetectable problem that is on the rise. AI misuse and plagiarism is happening more, and it is almost undetectable. “The widespread use of GenAI by students, in particular use of AI-generated content within written work, is a growing trend... Unfortunately, automated systems for detection of AI used by students in their written work have been shown to be ineffective and unreliable.” (NEU) Cheating by using AI is a large problem in the classroom for everyone. “Cheating and plagiarism are, as mentioned, chief among the AI concerns raised by educators. If AI is used to complete assignments or exams or write papers, it is unfair to the students who don’t cheat, and it undermines the education and learning process for those who do cheat.” (Education Illinois) AI can undermine the whole process of learning for those who use it to cheat.

Automating tasks with AI prevents students from learning those tasks, and inhibits creativity. Using AI to complete some tasks allows students to graduate without knowing how to do what the AI does manually. “As AI and automation become increasingly integrated into the workforce, there is a need to ensure education systems are adequately preparing students with the skills they will need for the future. This includes not just technical skills for working with AI, but also soft skills like critical thinking and creativity that AI is currently not able to replicate.”(JMU) AI use stops students from being creative on their own. The downside of brainstorming with AI was that some students voiced concerns about overreliance on the technology, fearing it might undermine their own thoughts and, consequently, confidence in their creative abilities. Some students reported a “fixation of the mind,” meaning that once they saw the AI’s ideas, they had a hard time coming up with their own. (USC)

AI’s accuracy is only as good as the accuracy of the data it is trained on. Bad training data could cause undefined behavior. This can cause issues if the dataset is not perfectly adequate. “Like all AI systems, educational AI can be subject to bias, depending on how it's trained and what data it's trained on... This could perpetuate existing biases and inequalities.”(JMU) AI will sometimes be unpredictable if it is based on a non-perfect dataset. “AI is only as good as the algorithms it is based on... Students need to learn how to evaluate and think critically about the information they come across and not just accept it at face value. There are many educational resources accessible online to help them do this.” (Illinois) When students use AI more and more, they accept the information that the AI gives them immediately, without questioning whether it is correct or not.

In the classroom, AI should be used as little as possible. AI abuse is becoming increasingly common, and is very hard to prevent. Also, even though AI may be used to automate some tasks, using AI for these tasks may cause students to not learn how to do them. Finally, AI is not perfect, so it is possible that it directly outputs incorrect information.