AI is no longer a force to be feared, as nearly 90% of teachers and students report using AI in the past school year. However, its use comes at a price.
Half of K12 students agree that using AI makes them feel less connected to their teacher, according to a new report from the Center for Democracy & Technology. These findings coincide with additional data that suggests only 38% of students would rather work with AI than their teacher when they don’t understand what they’re learning.
Alexandra Reeve Givens, the Center’s president and CEO, said that tunnel-visioning on AI’s potential benefits can distract schools from their core mission.
“Now more than ever, students need strong relationships with their teachers and to acquire fundamental skills and knowledge necessary to be successful in the global economy,” said Givens.
Furthermore, about half of students (49%) and parents (50%) agree with the statement, “A teacher who uses AI in class is not really doing their job as a teacher.”
Meanwhile, students are using AI for their own personal benefits, many of which pose negative consequences. According to the research, students are having conversations with AI for:
- Mental health support (42%)
- As a friend or companion (42%)
- To escape from real life (42%)
- To have a romantic relationship (19%)
A student-published op-ed published in The Atlantic mirrors the sentiment proposed in the CDT report, arguing that AI “demolished” their education.
The student, who is a senior at a public high school in New York, said that their peers have normalized shortcuts in learning and instruction. The student described watching a classmate use ChatGPT to obtain answers for their Algebra homework in seconds.
“AI has softened the consequences of procrastination and led many students to avoid doing any work at all,” the student wrote. “As a result, these programs have destroyed much of what tied us together as students.”
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