Parents, Here’s What Teachers Wish You Knew About AI

It was once generally touted that successful cheating demanded more effort than simply learning the class content, but that is no longer true. If you’re the parent of a secondary or college student, you’re likely somewhat invested in your child’s education. At the very least, I assume you would hate for your student to be suspected of illicit AI use on an assignment, and you would be willing to go to lengths to minimize that possibility if you only knew where to start. But AI moves fast. Its capabilities have quietly expanded, and it takes diligent study to understand exactly how. 

I taught high school English at a private Christian school during the height of AI’s debut. Since the birth of my son, I’ve stepped into a remote position requiring me to devote a staggering percentage of work time to authenticating suspicious student work. My aim is to come alongside you in the endeavor of understanding student AI use so that you can feel equipped to enter the coming school year. While a student will generally get out of their education what they put into it, that yield will almost certainly be no more than what you’re willing to put into it yourself. Here’s what we want you to know.