Artificial intelligence use has become prolific in schooling, but using it comes with a casualty: quality, creative work.
In 2022, an AI platform called ChatGPT was introduced to the internet. The internet swarmed to it, working out problems and testing out absurd scenarios, like “One Gorilla vs. 100 Men.” It was certainly imperfect at first, but people were hooked.
AI has been around for a while, but OpenAI, the creators of ChatGPT, made the technology more accessible to the population. From Roombas to Amazon Alexas, AI has been in our homes, but for a steep price.
OpenAI is a research-based AI lab in California. Its aim is to “ensure that artificial general intelligence — AI systems that are generally smarter than humans — benefits all humanity,” according to the company website. The chatbot is redesigned and tested there, with new developments being released often. This means the world of artificial intelligence is constantly changing. And many students believe this won’t affect them, they would be wrong.
AI is changing learning and creativity, especially in schooling
In the world of schooling, one truth stays the same: homework sucks. An overwhelming consensus from many students is that they do not want to take school back home with them. For example, the 40 multiple-part math questions your professor assigned you isn’t going to be a dream activity most nights. And for a while, students just had to grin and bear it.
Now, modern students have a friend in their pocket who can do it for them — and most likely get it right.
But when students decide to let AI take the wheel, the humanity of the assignment is lost. While some homework assignments are mind-numbing worksheets, things like essays, projects and presentations rely on human nature to be good work.
Especially as students leave the halls of high school, and enter college, the need for creativity and humanity in their work only increases. Whether they are engineering or english majors, the need to have their human touch on their work is incredibly important. Sometimes a shortcut isn’t what teachers are looking for.
Joy Jenkins, an associate professor at the Missouri School of Journalism, believes that if AI acts as a replacement for human work, it loses a “touch” of creativity and thoughtfulness.
Jenkins believes that unique creativity is the essence of human emotion and ideas. She tries to get students to use their own ideas to bring that feeling into their assignments. Jenkins draws this out with the reflective assignments she gives to her Principles of Journalism in Democracy class.
“I just want to hear what students have to say, I just want those immediate reactions to the material, what you’re thinking, what you’re questioning, what is still unclear,” Jenkins said.
For Jenkins, grammar and spelling aren’t priorities; she wants to know that her students are thinking through the course material. It is this kind of class work that prepares students for the workplace. Using their own ideas and thought processes allows them to learn and understand how they problem solve and create. Jenkins is preparing students for what their bosses and co-workers will be looking for in the workplace: new ideas.
“What I’m looking for is, ‘What does this mean for you, and what does this mean about your personal experience?’” Jenkins said.
AI can be controlled
To cut out all forms of AI would be irrational because there is a lot it can do for the betterment of students and teachers. While it shouldn’t be used to do the work for you, things like planning study sessions and organizing notes could be incredibly helpful.
“There’s just a lot of thought about, ‘How do we achieve a balance where students are applying their skills in the way that we think is best?’ but also knowing that the reality is that this is a really, really broadly used tool,” Jenkins said.
Jenkins acknowledged that for minor things, AI can be incredibly helpful in helping students organize. But AI is also affecting how many students’ career success is going to look.
Although homework is nothing anyone gets excited about (let’s not lie to ourselves and say we do), it does serve as preparation for upcoming schooling and careers. Jenkins worries that students will develop a reliance on AI and it will take away the ability to research, write well, critically think and become media literate, qualities instrumental for many career paths.
Jenkins feels that being curious and able to write well and concisely is incredibly important. She concedes that AI could help, but could also hinder deeper connections.
Fostering a student’s ability to find their creativity and voice is what prepares them for what comes after school. A student’s connection to their creativity can also allow them to embrace their failures. Using AI as a shield from failure only hinders that connection. Students understanding how they problem solve and learn is critical in school and in the real world, making mistakes is how that understanding grows.
There’s still hope — AI doesn’t have to be a bad thing all the time. If students were to embrace their creative sides more and stop fearing failure, this dependence on artificial intelligence will begin to lessen. School doesn’t have to be perfect. And yes, we will all invariably have a teacher who will grade cruelly, but that doesn’t mean you should turn to something other than your own mind.
