Many of us worry about our kids in school. We want them to keep up, not fall behind, and preferably enjoy what’s happening in the classroom. But at some point or another, all kids struggle, whether it’s with first-grade reading, fifth-grade math, or high school chemistry.
As generative artificial intelligence (genAI) has developed in recent months, I’ve become more hopeful than fearful about the positive impact of AI in education. Here are 4 ways AI in education will change education for your child—for the better.
1. The learning process will be even more important.
As a kid, I knew when I got a big red “A” at the top of the page, it had a good chance of making the fridge. But now, with generative AI and the capability for chatbots to provide quick answers for kids, those A’s may not be the big deal they once were—at least not without showing the work to reach the answer. Teachers will need to see how kids get their answers with step-by-step proof of their work whether it’s a math problem or a five-paragraph essay. And this is a good thing. There will be a needed shift within classrooms to emphasize the student’s learning process so teachers know whether actual learning has taken place.
Takeaway: AI in education has the potential to help kids learn better and quicker. When students are working independently, a teacher can only help one student at a time. But educational AI chatbots can help all students simultaneously as they work at their own pace. As an example, educational chatbot Khanmigo will give students prompts to help them along and allow them to ask questions if they get stuck. According to a fifth grade teacher in Newark, NJ who’s using Khanmigo in her classroom, it’ll give guidance, like a human tutor, but not the answer.
2. Students will learn more—because they’ll have to.
As a former high school teacher, I know that many kids squeaked through by doing the minimal amount of work. And kids have also cheated long before the development of ChatGPT and Gemini. But now that genAI is here to stay, many educators have decided to look for ways to work with AI instead of against it. In an article for the Harvard School of Education, Ryan Nagelhout writes that this could mean “shifting back to more oral exams in the classroom or pivoting lessons to feature more in-class written work.” Students will be held accountable for what they do during school hours.
Takeaway: Actively learning and engaging with material in the classroom will help eliminate the temptation of cheating with AI (or otherwise) outside of school. And ultimately, it’s a win for kids: more learning will take place with teachers or educational chatbots nearby and not at home where they might not have the help they need.
3. Learning will become more individualized for improved mental health.
Sir Anthony Seldon, a leading contemporary educationalist, says one cause for the recent decline in kids’ mental health is that “young people feel valued and validated by the school system solely based on their success at passing exams.” I would have to agree. Many kids, including my teenager, think their future success depends on acing every test, which leads to overwhelming stress and anxiety.
Seldon argues that AI will be a solution. “AI will personalize teaching and tutoring, helping children feel good about their learning while freeing up time for teachers to spend more time caring for their students.” Nouridin Melo PhD explains that “AI algorithms can analyze student data and adapt to their learning styles, providing feedback and recommendations that are tailored to their individual needs and abilities.” This can help alleviate stress in kids and keep them engaged and motivated to improve.
Takeaway: Kids’ mental health could improve with the help of AI and individualized learning.
4. AI in education will level the playing field for students.
How many times have you looked at your kid’s math homework and had no idea what to do? I’ve been there too. But with AI, we’ll have the tools to help our kids. Within seconds after plugging the problem into a chatbot like Copilot or Google Lens, we’ll receive step-by-step instructions on how to solve it. Then we can turn to our kid and be able to explain the steps without giving the answer. As kids get older, they can utilize tech in the same way to assist learning. “An AI chatbot allows all students with an internet connection, regardless of background, access to a powerful and mostly accurate learning tool,” says Sabrina Ortiz of the tech site ZDNET. And most kids are able to access their school’s Wi-Fi for free. If a kid doesn’t have internet access at home, he could connect at the public library or a café. Kids could use ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot, Claude, Minstral, and Perplexity for free.
Not everyone has the same amount of time or resources to sift through materials to find the help needed to do schoolwork. But that’s where AI comes in, culling information and providing sources within seconds. If, for example, your daughter has to do an essay on a Spanish explorer, the chatbot Perplexity can find a handful of sources on her topic within seconds, saving her from hours wasted searching the internet.
Takeaway: Using AI can help all kids in school, whether they’re struggling or not. And while many schools are implementing AI already in classrooms, you can download a chatbot for free at home to get started.
In what ways are your kids already using AI in education?
