“Can you help me come up with a title for my project?”
“Just ChatGPT it.”
AI gained popularity through ChatGPT when it was published in 2022. It grew so fast that other companies like Instagram and Snapchat decided to add the feature to their app. Now, popularity is rising amongst students. AI gave students step-by-step solutions to math problems, so many began using it to study, but the majority use it to cheat, just wanting to get their work over with. However, as it got more advanced, it spread to other subjects—especially English. Now, less effort than ever before is being put into assignments.
The shocking thing is: this trend has not been limited to just one group of students. It has spread to every level, from standard to honors and even AP.AP Literature teacher Gina Pereira has had issues with students using ChatGPT to write papers, and now she uses the Google Docs feature that allows a teacher to see when a student added something to their document. The problem was not limited to one or two students—it was a majority of the class.
If the problem is this widespread in the school’s top writing class, you know everyone is using AI. It is unfortunate that students in general are using AI, as it is limiting their learning, but it is even worse that students in higher level classes are starting to normalize cheating. The normalization of using AI shows a lack of motivation in all students to actually do their work and to retain knowledge.
Teachers like English teacher Virginia Bogert have created slide decks showing how they, as teachers, can tell the difference between a student answer and an AI answer. She tries to communicate to her students the importance of doing their work. This shows how usage of AI is getting out of hand, that some teachers are having to take time out of their day to make lessons for the sole purpose of preventing AI cheating.
If AI usage has spread to the top classes in the top school in the county, then what’s next?
Critical thinking is an important tool every human uses in their day-to-day life. By having a robot do the work, students are missing out on the opportunity to learn and critically think. Without practicing the skill on their own, a student would not learn how to do it, ultimately causing them to struggle with diving deeper into topics.
The consequences of one not being able to critically think are unimaginable. If this generation relies on AI to do their work, they will not be able to think on their own when doing their actual job in the future. Would you trust ChatGPT to make a medical diagnosis to save your life, or put your future in the hands of a robotic lawyer? What about someone who earned their medical or legal degree by using AI?
Although AI can be used in negative ways, there are some benefits to it. It can be used to summarize text, so that students can get an idea of what they are reading about, ultimately leading to better understanding and comprehension. It also writes out math problems step-by-step to show students how it got to that answer. However, students are choosing to misuse these AI engines. The majority of students just want the answer to save them the trouble of actually trying to figure out how to solve their problem.
AI is ruining student creativity because students no longer choose to brainstorm ideas, because by just clicking a few buttons, they can have a bot save them the trouble. The loss of problem-solving skills and creativity will lead to bigger problems in the future. Our school needs to be a part of the solution, and the inclusion of AI checking tools or increased use of Google Docs (since it has the feature that shows teachers when a student puts something into a document).We don’t have to go to war against artificial intelligence, but we all have to get smarter on how to use it and how to make sure students are thinking for themselves or students will become dependent and not be able to think for themselves.
