Is AI Truly Benefiting Education, or Are We Missing the Point?

"If you spoon-feed, no one will make the effort to understand the process."
I vividly remember my first school project. Back then, I would ask my parents about the topic and manually write everything down. As technology evolved, we shifted to using "Internet Explorer," where Wikipedia became our go-to source for project material. Sometimes, our teachers could even point out the exact sentences we had copied into our assignments—funny as it seems now, it shows how limited our resources were. Fast forward to today, and we're in an era dominated by artificial intelligence. Students can now create entire assignments with a single prompt, and even the most discerning teacher might struggle to identify the source. This drastic change in how we gather information is just the beginning. The future is bound to bring even more technological advancements in education.

For example, when students rely on AI tools to correct their grammar, they're not really learning grammar. They're just clicking a button and—voila!—the work is magically done. But where’s the learning in that? This reliance on AI can actually deplete real intelligence, which is particularly alarming when it happens during childhood—the most critical stage of brain development. To be clear, I’m not against technological development. I embrace it and even use it in my own work. But I question the wisdom of making these AI tools so accessible to students at a young age. Should we not preserve a certain level of manual learning, especially during the foundational years?

While AI certainly has its advantages, it's crucial to strike a balance and not let convenience overshadow the true purpose of education: understanding, critical thinking, and effort.