ChatGPT: A challenge or channel for learning?

“Tell me a fun fact about the Roman empire.”

“Recommend a dish to bring to a potluck.”

“Come up with concepts for a retro-style arcade game.”

These examples offer just a glimpse into the wide array of prompts users can submit to artificial intelligence language model ChatGPT.

Since its launch in November 2022, ChatGPT has sparked global debates as both a tool that unleashes new possibilities and a human creation susceptible to errors. OpenAI acknowledged several of the model’s shortcomings upon its release, including its occasional “plausible-sounding” but inaccurate responses, sensitivity to slight changes in user wording and tendency to repeat certain statements due to biases in its training dataset. Additionally, the model sometimes fails to detect inappropriate requests. 

“ChatGPT is incredibly limited, but good enough at some things to create a misleading impression of greatness,” OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said, in a Twitter post last December.

Concerns about ChatGPT, particularly its potential to hinder student learning, have impacted education at the K-12 and university levels. For example, several public school districts including The Los Angeles Unified School District and New York City Public Schools banned ChatGPT usage on school devices and WiFi networks in January. Capable of generating human-like written responses in seconds, ChatGPT could discourage students from developing independent analysis and reflection skills. 

“One thing we have to think about is, given where the student population stands, you have to build your own skills of critical thinking, writing and reading first,” English teacher Nicholas Manjoine said. “And then you can use tools like [ChatGPT] later on once you have more sense of, ‘okay, given my skill set, how can I use this in order to fast track?’”

Despite continuing concerns, schools have increasingly shifted towards incorporating ChatGPT in the classroom, with the New York City school district revoking their ban in May, and the Los Angeles school district loosening policies this school year. For one, banning AI at school gives an unfair advantage to students with personal devices and internet connection at home. Furthermore, as technology’s influence expands at an unprecedented rate, many educators believe that students should learn how to responsibly use these tools early on.

Harker reflects these evolving attitudes towards ChatGPT and education, with some classes allowing ChatGPT usage in limited scenarios. In AP U.S. Government and Politics classes, for example, students may use ChatGPT to “clarify uncertainties in course materials” or “inquire about specific topics,” though all submitted work must be written in the student’s own words. On the other hand, the upper school science department prohibits students from using AI as a reference source for any submitted work, due to the challenges of “cit[ing] or even know[ing] the sources of this information.”

“We’ve asked this platform to do all these things for us, so now we’ve got to ask, ‘how can we use it as a way to promote critical thinking?’” Manjoine said. “The writing style that ChatGPT promotes is sufficient but not very polished. And we certainly want to encourage all students to find their own voices.”