Jude Magnotti ’26
EE Co-Managing Editor
In the innovative age of technology that we live in, there have been countless new inventions and discoveries that have changed the way we think, feel, and see the world as a whole. These fancy new creations have slithered their way into each and every corner of our lives. Whether that be work, home, and perhaps most notably: school.
With so many new assets at their disposal, administrators have created technologically advanced school environments using resources such as computers, online presentations, and emails. Despite the great strides taken to improve the quality of students’ education through technology, there is one particular subject that has made the blood of educators all across the country boil more than anything else: Artificial Intelligence –AI.
More specifically, AI generation programs such as ChatGPT that can write an entire history essay within a matter of seconds. With the widespread use of AI in recent years, it is only natural that some of it would make its way into school systems. However, what has resulted from easy accessible use of AI (especially by students) has been a teacher’s worst nightmare.
AI has opened the door to a universe of limitless possibilities for both cheating and plagiarism. AI can write anything from an essay, to a book report, to an entirely personalized spanish project. Irresponsible students have been able to use ChatGPT to create believable school work for them and then pass it off as their own without having done any of the work.
This type of cheating has taken both teachers and classrooms by storm. As most of ChatGPT’s work is “original”, it has become harder and harder to detect the likely AI offenders.
With that being said, there is still an argument to be made for the place of AI within schools. For one, AI has already proven to be a valuable tool for both teachers and students alike. While some use it for cheating, the majority of students can use AI to help them research and organize their information. This process saves hours upon hours of organization that would have previously had to be done step by step.
Teachers as well have found many uses for AI. Some use it to formulate and organize lesson plans, while others have used it to come up with fun and informative activities for the class. While the potential for destruction with AI is limitless, its potential for educational benefits is just as apparent.
With these two separate uses, AI has been the subject of deep division between educators for some time now. Some believe the benefits outweigh the drawbacks, while others believe it has no place in a school setting whatsoever. Here are just a few of the pros and cons to consider when discussing the issue:
- Pros: Highly adaptive learning. AI is excellent when it comes to tailoring content to fit each student’s specific educational needs as well as their own personal learning style.
- Efficiency in work: As previously discussed, AI can make short work of mundane tasks in almost the blink of an eye. When it comes to dull tasks such as scheduling, attendance, and even grading, AI can easily complete these tasks without taking away the educational value.
- More engaging lessons: The use of AI allows for an immense amount of versatility when it comes to lesson plans. AI can help teachers turn once boring lessons into interactive and engaging experiences with even just one simple request.
- Personal tutoring: As mentioned before, AI is highly adaptive. This means that with the right information AI can even educate and tutor struggling students on their particular subject. Not only does this help immensely, it can save families the cost of an actual physical tutor (especially those who can not afford one).
These are just a few of the pros AI can bring to education. Now here are some of the cons:
- Cheating and plagiarism: As previously mentioned, AI plagiarism and cheating is the single biggest issue facing teachers today. The availability of AI has made it incredibly easy for students to pass off AI generated work as their own. Not only is this horrifying to teachers, but kids are suffering from it as well. Some students don’t even know that they are cheating when they pass AI work off for their own. Some students simply think they are using the resources available to them. However, they have to suffer the consequences for something they had no idea was wrong.
- Additionally, many people who have used AI to cheat even minorly have been conditioned to use it to cheat more and more. A kid who once used AI to write his thesis in high school could then be kicked out of college for then using AI to write his paper thinking that the teachers would not notice.
- While AI cheating is still relatively hard to detect, AI’s limitations such as taking information from the internet and poor writing skills have at times made it extremely obvious who the cheaters are. By allowing kids free unrestricted access to AI, it’s like asking someone to find a way through a locked door while dangling the key right in front of them. Cheating is not a problem with the kids, but rather with the unrestricted access they have to such powerful resources.
With all of this being said, it still holds true that each side has an argument to be made when it comes to the issue of AI in schools. However, I don’t believe that one side is truly right or wrong. I believe that if properly regulated by school systems, AI can be a valuable learning tool to the education of our youth.
At the same time, educators need to take proper steps forward to ensure that the use of AI does not spill into the constant cheating and plagiarism that has plagued classrooms for the past few years.
However, it is becoming ever more obvious that we live in a society in which technology has become the new way of life. As a result of that, it would be a disservice to the students themselves to keep such valuable methods of learning restricted from then on.
In the end, it will take balance and compromise to rid school systems of cheating and plagiarism while still preserving the learning potential of students. It is up to you, the reader, to determine for yourself where you stand. Because ultimately, it is the students themselves that will make the decision on AI for all of us.