In the world of education, I’ve worn many hats—student, instructor, mentor, evaluator. With a doctorate and decades of experience teaching and learning, I’ve embraced technological tools like ChatGPT that make the academic process more efficient. Personally, I’ve found AI to be helpful in organizing thoughts, formatting assignments, and tightening up already well-formed ideas. But let me be clear:
There’s a big difference between using AI to enhance understanding and using it to replace it.
For experienced learners like myself, tools like ChatGPT act as smart assistants. I know how to write, synthesize, and evaluate because I spent years developing those skills the hard way. AI doesn’t replace my thinking—it sharpens it. But what happens when a middle schooler or undergraduate who hasn’t yet learned the foundations of writing or reasoning starts leaning too heavily on these tools?
We run the risk of cheating our kids out of learning the basics.
I’m talking about:
- Knowing how to structure a clear paragraph
- Learning how to formulate an argument
- Struggling through revisions to find your voice
- Developing original thought, not rephrased summaries
These aren't just academic exercises—they're life skills. And when students skip over these steps by outsourcing their thinking to AI, we create the illusion of competence without the substance behind it.
Let me be blunt: If we let artificial intelligence do the heavy lifting before students build their own intellectual muscles, we’re raising a generation of copy-paste thinkers.
We must be careful. Not because AI is evil—it’s not. But because, like any tool, it can either help build something great or cause serious damage when used without care. And in the hands of developing minds, it needs clear boundaries, strong guidance, and active mentorship.
As educators, parents, and leaders, our job isn’t to ban the tools—it’s to teach the discipline that must come first.
Let’s not confuse convenience with comprehension. Let’s make sure students learn to walk before they ask AI to drive.
