Artificial intelligence is rapidly becoming part of students’ everyday lives and part of the classroom itself.
As schools experiment with new AI technologies, educators and families are navigating what AI in education should look like, and whether the benefits outweigh the risks.
From lesson planning software to chatbots that help with homework, AI in the classroom is no longer theoretical. It’s happening now.
AI in the classroom
Across the country, schools are experimenting with AI systems designed to support both teachers and students. Some districts are using AI tools to help draft lesson plans, analyze student performance data and handle administrative tasks like grading or scheduling.
Other schools are exploring more AI-driven instruction—tools that claim to personalize learning by adapting content to a student’s pace or ability level.
Meanwhile, education technology companies continue to develop AI platforms aimed specifically at K–12 classrooms. Many of these tools rely on generative AI, the type of AI that can produce text, images or summaries in response to prompts.
Supporters argue this shift reflects the reality of the modern school year, where digital tools are already deeply embedded. Critics, however, question whether rapid adoption is outpacing research.
How are students using AI?
According to the Pew Research Center, more students are using AI for help out of the classroom, with usage varying in frequency:
- Ten percent of teens polled said “they do all or most of their schoolwork with chatbots’ help.”
- Over half of teens said they use chatbots to “search for information” or “get help with schoolwork.”
- About 40% of teens use chatbots to “summarize articles, books or videos or create or edit images or videos.”
- Four in 10 teens use chatbots to “(research) a topic or (solve) math problems.”
- Thirty-five percent of teens use AI “for help editing something they wrote.”
And, even more tellingly, 26% of teens polled said that “chatbots have been extremely or very helpful for completing their schoolwork.”
The pros of AI in education
According to NPR, there are both pros and cons to using AI in the classroom, for both teachers and students, citing a new study from the Brookings Institution’s Center for Universal Education.
Students can use AI to learn reading and writing
According to NPR, AI can be useful “especially for students learning a second language.” It can also help a student improve their writing—as long as it doesn’t “do the work for them.”
But the Brookings’ report specifies that it is only helpful when AI is supportive, not a replacement, and that students learn best when generative AI supplements rather than replaces critical thinking.
AI can help teachers do their jobs
AI can help teachers complete menial tasks, like drafting emails, lessons, worksheets, quizzes, tests, and much more.
This can help lighten the load on teachers’ already-full task lists and reduce time spent on administrative tasks.
The report cited a study “that found that teachers who use AI save an average of nearly six hours a week and about six weeks over the course of a full school year.”
AI can help create educational equity
Perhaps most notably, AI can support children who do not have access to education.
According to the report, a program for Afghan girls “has employed AI to digitize the Afghan curriculum, create lessons based on this curriculum, and disseminate content in Dari, Pashto, and English via WhatsApp lessons,” demonstrating how AI technologies can expand access.
NPR also points out that AI can “help make classrooms more accessible for students with a wide range of learning disabilities, including dyslexia,” supporting students’ social and emotional development.
The cons: What experts are warning about
In general, according to the Brookings Institution’s new study, there are more cons to using AI in schools than pros.
Researchers wrote, “At this point in its trajectory, the risks of utilizing generative AI in children’s education overshadow its benefits.”
AI could be a blow to cognitive development
Over-reliance on AI can greatly impact students’ ability to “perceive and solve problems” and learn new skills, according to the report.
Using AI can create a vicious cycle: as students off-load more and more of their work, and therefore thinking, onto AI systems, they’ll experience “cognitive decline or atrophy more commonly associated with aging brains,” per NPR.
Rebecca Winthrop, one of the authors of the report, said, “When kids use generative AI that tells them what the answer is … they are not thinking for themselves.”
She continued, “They’re not learning to parse truth from fiction. They’re not learning to understand what makes a good argument. They’re not learning about different perspectives in the world because they’re actually not engaging in the material,” raising concerns about democracy and technology in the long term.
AI can undermine emotional and social development
According to the report, AI chatbots are “undermining students’ emotional well-being, including their ability to form relationships, recover from setbacks, and maintain mental health,” affecting their social and emotional growth.
NPR points out that AI chatbots are overly sycophantic and are “designed to reinforce users’ beliefs.” This isn’t what real-life relationships are like—not that children, who are still developing emotionally and socially, would know.
If children are relying on AI chatbots to build social skills, Winthrop said that “it becomes very uncomfortable to then be in an environment when somebody doesn’t agree with you.”
Additionally, more young people are using AI chatbots for romance. A survey from the Center for Democracy and Technology found that 1 in 5 high schoolers “said they or someone they know has had a romantic relationship with artificial intelligence,” further fueling debate around democracy and technology.
AI can create educational inequity
Just as AI can help create educational equity, it can be a force for inequity, too.
Winthrop noted that “AI can massively increase existing divides” because “free AI tools that are most accessible to students and schools can also be the least reliable and least factually accurate.”
On the other hand, wealthier communities can “afford more advanced AI models,” or AI-driven systems, which are often more accurate.
AI in education is still a mixed picture
As schools continue integrating AI in the classroom, the debate is far from settled. While AI-driven platforms promise to personalize learning and reduce teacher workload, critics caution that rapid implementation without guardrails could reshape how—and whether—students truly learn.
The challenge for educators this school year and beyond may be finding a balance: using artificial intelligence as a supportive tool, while ensuring that teachers remain central and that students continue developing the foundational skills they need.
Worried about your kids using AI? Gabb’s safer phones help you limit what apps your kids are exposed to.
What do you think? Should AI be allowed in education? Or should it be more regulated? Let us know in the comments.
Success!
Your comment has been submitted for review! We will notify you when it has been approved and posted!
Thank you!