In classrooms across the country, a revolution is taking place. Classrooms are no longer filled with the sound of textbook pages flipping or the swishing sound of pencils. In fact, even the sounds of keyboards have diminished.
Now, students rely on their computers to ask AI to read their textbooks, summarize articles, and write essays. From a higher perspective, it’s possible to say that AI has begun to even think for them.
From OpenAI’s ChatGPT to Google’s Gemini, new technologies can now support students who want quick and streamlined answers. As AI slowly settles in as a common part of education, teachers are starting to question how the effects of AI are impacting classrooms. As questions grow, answers still remain unclear as to the outcomes of current classroom trends.
Some people are convinced that the developing use of AI enhances their ability to learn. For example, “someone writing a long essay might know what they want to say but struggle with how to begin or end it,” says Mateo, a student in New York. “In that case, asking A.I. for a sample intro or conclusion could give them a useful starting point. Then, instead of copying it, they can use the example to write something in their own words.”
Not everyone is convinced. Parents and teachers worry that their students are overly reliant on AI and use it to cheat instead of doing their work. In a recent study published in May 2024 by the Pew Research Center, their survey found that 25% of the K-12 teachers found AI to do more harm than good, and only 6% of the teachers found AI to do more good than harm.
For many teachers, the reason behind their uncertainty lies in the concern that students are losing access to their own authentic ideas. Since AI provides efficient and polished answers, students exercise reliance on computers to think for them instead of arriving at conclusions themselves. Learning is supposed to be mentally challenging, making students think and grow; therefore, teachers are concerned that if students overly rely on AI, they will not have any essential skills such as critical thinking, analysis, or resilience.
Something deeper lies amidst growing concerns of teachers: a further digital divide in the classroom based not on technology possession, but on knowing how to respond to the growing use of AI among students. According to a study by Forbes, 69% of teachers in the US feel unsure about how to respond to AI, as they received minimal to no training for AI. The lack of confidence in teachers not knowing how to regulate and manage the use of AI draws an unclear border on the premise of what a student can do with it.
This inconsistency can be confusing and unfair to students. In one class, AI might be used to help brainstorm and correct grammar, but in another, the use of AI may be seen as a form of cheating or misconduct. There are no clear standards, but only shifting boundaries of what is right and wrong. Unless teachers are trained on AI and provided clear guidelines for its use, students will continue to face inequalities and inconsistencies.
AI may be rapidly changing the course of education. However, it’s the people, not the algorithms, who decide what kind of future it will create. Right now, students are already equipped with powerful AI tools at their fingertips, while teachers are left behind without clear guidance.
This growing disconnect does not create confusion but inequality. If schools want to prepare students for healthy AI use, it will be beneficial to have teachers learn ethical usage of AI. Right now, the question isn’t deciding if AI should be implemented in education, but whether we will be the ones who shape AI into our education system before it shapes us.
