Let’s Talk About AI in the Classroom

As a fresh college graduate, I feel compelled to address one of the saddest interruptions of education to date: the introduction and normalization of artificial intelligence (AI). 

New technology has always been paired with public distrust and even apocalyptic fears, a famous example being the introduction of color in television in the 50s. The development was so controversial that audiences preferred to watch the news in black and white because they regarded the black and white version as a more reliable form of media. When the Internet first came into existence, there was widespread mistrust surrounding the world wide web, and even today there is a stark lack of clear laws for all users to navigate safely.

This brings us to today’s hot button issue of AI. While there is much good that can come out of this tool, there is still a lot of uncertainty that has me personally very concerned. 

Let’s talk about education. In high school, it was tedious to read books and write essays, a fairly universal experience for adolescents. Admittedly, the further I got into a book or assignment the more I would appreciate it. Sure, starting was annoying. But those classroom discussions of Lord of the Flies or To Kill a Mockingbird are some of my favorite memories. Maybe I’m biased because I’m clearly a writer now, but I never would have made it this far if there was a program that could do my reading and writing for me.

I never would have taken criticism from my teachers seriously. In this case, it’s not my work, it’s a robot’s. Without integrity, there’s apathy, which is a damming force for young learners. Learning how to be a better student was something I took great pride in, although admittedly in secret. 

In college, things change. We’re not all taking the same classes because we have to. We’re choosing our majors because, in theory, we connect to them. 

This is ignoring the biggest difference between high school and college, which is the thousands of dollars of debt students put themselves in to get their education. So now, it’s not as cool to not care. There is a very big scary number waiting for us post graduation.

So, we have hard classes. And lots of them, depending on the major. But one thing I’ll never understand, no matter how small or large the assignment is, is having AI do it for them. Not only is artificial intelligence infiltrating just about every job, but by training it to do a better job than you can, students are losing both ways. One, because they’re making themselves easier to replace. Two, because they’re not actually learning.

Let’s not forget the fact that even the creators of generative AI have come forward and stated that AI has faults. It is not Google, it does not always have a right answer. There is even a word for it, “AI hallucinations.” The program is not coded to not have an answer. If it can’t find one, it makes it up.

So good luck in the real world. You might have your degree, but if you can’t do a simple task in your field without the help of AI, expect to be replaced by it. With new technology comes a new need; students and teachers need to better understand AI’s place in the classroom in order to better understand positive ways to implement this new technology.

From here I heed caution to any and all students reading, beware of “shortcuts.” There is no such thing. Take pride in your work, take the extra time to read and do your assignments, because it’s yours. This will only get you ahead of your peers and give you a richer life. And who knows, you might even become a writer.