It’s late at night. I have an assignment due the next morning, and my goal is to go to bed as quickly as possible. Who would want to toil through two more hours of homework, then wake up sleep-deprived in the morning? ChatGPT seems like the solution to all those problems: where I would have taken hours on an assignment, Artificial Intelligence (AI) just requires my browser to load and a few clicks on my keyboard. Not only can I likely achieve a good grade, I can also reduce some stress by checking another box off the to-do list. At that moment, I care little about how I finish the assignment, only that I have achieved my end-point-oriented goals.

Ever since its release in November 2022, ChatGPT has improved its algorithm, evolving to become almost up to par with human intelligence. For students, the greatest shift with this new technology is its unique ability to take information from the internet and replicate human thought, which allows us to find answers quickly and to generate possible solutions to more open-ended questions.

At Harker, students often use AI technology to generate ideas, to complete homework assignments or even to write sections of essays. Even with AI detectors online, which cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, these ways of cheating are difficult to catch as students can easily circumnavigate them by rewording and rearranging outputs to fit class expectations. 

The academic environment at Harker causes students to stress over GPAs and grades, which favors the end result over the process of learning. Furthermore, students are beginning to use ChatGPT in applications for summer programs and colleges, which disadvantages students who avoid cheating as they commit more time and effort towards these tasks. This creates an environment which pressurizes students towards using ChatGPT.

I know if I choose to use ChatGPT in this way, I’m forcing myself to use a crutch that I don’t need, which prevents myself from learning and achieving a higher understanding. Students learn through failing and putting in time and effort. In using AI, students take a shortcut that only leads to negative consequences for their own learning. Though a quick search to generate essay ideas can seem harmless and an easy way to shorten an assignment, using AI replaces the critical thinking skills that students develop through time and effort.

ChatGPT isn’t all bad. When not used for cheating, AI can greatly benefit learning by acting as a study partner since it can pose test questions and explain ideas more thoroughly than the Internet. The technology brings new implications to schools as it tempts students with easy opportunities to improve grades. Schools will inevitably have to find ways to successfully integrate the technology into the learning experience, but before using AI, students must consider the risks to our learning and reassess our own goals in school in order to prioritize what matters to us.