Judgment in the Age of AI · Article 26
Whether AI “did the homework” cannot be judged only by who generated the final words. Learning occurs while understanding the problem, attempting, failing, explaining and correcting. If AI removes all of those cognitive steps, a submitted assignment may contain little learning.
A ladder from assistance to substitution
| Level | Use | Learning retained? |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Explain a concept or provide another example | Usually, if the student continues thinking |
| 2 | Identify problems in a draft without rewriting | Feedback and revision remain |
| 3 | Show solution steps that the student verifies | Partly; independent repetition is needed |
| 4 | Generate a complete answer for light rewriting | Most of the learning process is replaced |
| 5 | Submit directly without being able to explain | Almost no demonstrable learning |
Place AI after the first attempt
Write an initial answer, the point of difficulty and your own hypothesis before asking AI. After receiving help, close the response and solve the task again in your own words. The second attempt reveals more learning than the polish of the first output.
Three self-tests
- Can I explain the answer without looking at AI?
- Can I identify where the AI might be wrong?
- Can I solve a similar problem independently?
Education is not the production of error-free text; it is the formation of a person able to find and correct future errors.
References
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