Artificial intelligence (AI) has carved a niche for itself in the field of education at a swift pace. Today, students are turning to tools like ChatGPT or Gemini and other AI assistants to annotate challenging concepts, recap ideas, and practice and refine their writing.
However, an important question has emerged: "Is AI destroying education or is it improving it?
This is contingent on the manner in which students use it.
How AI Can Help Students
AI can be used to make learning more accessible. A student who has no idea how to solve a math problem, how to write a grammar rule or how to explain a science concept can ask an AI to "explain it in simpler terms.
AI can also serve as your private study buddy. It can create practice questions and give examples, it can help students organize their thoughts and give them rapid feedback.
Some of these benefits are starting to be backed up by research. According to a 2025 meta-analysis of 49 studies, generative AI has a positive impact on students' learning achievement and motivation.
In this regard, AI can assist the student in thinking without taking the place of their own thinking.
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When AI Can Hurt Education
The real challenge begins when students rely on AI to cheat their way to success.
For instance, a student can ask the AI to write an entire paper, copy the content and submit it without any comprehension of the issue. The assignment could be completed, but learning has not taken place.
Research has indicated the importance of this concern. In the large-scale study conducted on high school math students, results showed that access to an AI tool was shown to lead to an improvement in students' performance when using it. But with the AI taken away, some students later did worse. The researchers have determined that the unregulated use of AI may become a “crutch,” rather than a learning resource.
AI can also give incorrect information. Students must then continue to verify facts, compare sources and exercise their judgment.
In conclusion, is AI killing education?
Not AI itself is destroying education; bad use of AI can have detrimental effects on learning. There's nothing wrong with a calculator and there's nothing wrong with the Internet, and there's nothing wrong with teachers. Similarly, AI should not take the place of learning.
The smart play is to leverage AI as a study partner not a shortcut. Students can attempt solving a problem themselves, and, if they are wrong, prompt the AI to clarify their errors or generate an alternate example. Teachers can also educate students on how to verify AI-generated responses and the responsible use of AI.
The UNESCO relies on a human-centered approach to Generative AI in education, emphasizing safety, equity, privacy, and meaningful learning.
Generally, AI is not the culprit but the cure for all educational issues. As a technology, AI has the potential to accelerate learning, make it more personalized and accessible, but if overused, it can lead students to rely on technology and to devalue important skills like problem-solving and critical thinking.
The debate between AI and teachers in the future of education might not be one.It may not be a choice between AI and teachers in the future of education. It could be a matter of learning to integrate technology with human thinking, direction and curiosity. The aim should not be 'to not have to learn'. The objective should be to improve AI's learning power.
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