This article was written by Brook’lynn Russau
Behind the scenes of AI polished assignments being turned in by students, AI is discreetly erasing student competence and creativity.
AI is one of the most powerful shortcuts for students to use when it comes to completing school work. Students tend to rely on AI to complete any material that has been assigned to them which destroys students critical thinking and foundational skills. The use of AI is impacting students in various ways, as it often serves as a shortcut to completing assignments but it also skips out on students’ learning that could negatively affect how they perform in class. The use of AI in school needs to be banned completely so that the preservation of students’ growth can be saved and humans won’t prioritize technology in school as much as they do now. The objective isn’t to completely take away technology, but to reclaim students’ learning in every classroom instead of having automated answers given to them.
One reason AI should be banned for students is because it critically affects the decisions students make for themselves. According to science writer Justin Jackson in an article published on the website phys.org, when students use AI to generate any assignments they are working on, it potentially reduces their cognitive engagement and skips over the mental struggle needed to develop critical thinking skills.
When students use AI to help them develop essays or to find solutions to problems assigned in math, it bypasses the process of critical thinking. I once used it daily in everything that I used to do in school but noticed the tremendous negative toll it was having on me. AI made me disengage with my learning. It killed all creativity and effort I used to put into school.
Senior Teyana Hollis noticed the use of AI has negatively impacted her in school, especially in the realm of writing confidence.
“I still am a strong writer, but I used to be a stronger writer before my teacher introduced me to it [AI], and I regret that she did because it makes me think I don’t know what to say next without using ChatGPT,” Hollis said.
English teacher Alex Hower sees students not just using AI to do school work for them, but also as a sort of friend/companion to give life advice. He strongly believes there should be some boundaries set in place.
“That’s what scares me about AI, kids get too involved with it and they become besties with their Snapchat AI and I think that there would be a big issue surrounding that with social and emotional growth for our students,” Hower said.
Hower recognizes there is a fine line between students using AI as a support system and using it to replace being taught a skill by a teacher.
“It [AI] should never replace the teacher, the interactions in the classroom, or replace the thinking that a teacher does,” Hower said.
Teachers plan lessons to help students permanently learn skills they use in life. AI simply does it for students, without them having mastery of the skill.
AI may offer instant answers and help out with assignments but behind all the good that comes with AI it is silently reshaping how students grow and prosper and will affect how they operate now and in the future. The cost of AI convenience will only decline the development of your mind, creativity, and any curiosity one may have. Education is supposed to facilitate the mind, not destroy it. Banning AI in schools will help protect the growing minds, thinking process, and human learning as a whole. Classrooms were not built to shortcut your way through every assignment. Rather classroom learning is designed to help build upon knowledge and support growing as a human being.
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