The future of academia and human capability has been called into question in the past several years with the rapid advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Perhaps nowhere is this concern more pressing than in a classroom, where A.I. has weakened trust between professors and students, made cheating more normalized and enabled some people at Middlebury to skate through their classes without truly learning.
We can’t deny that A.I. is here to stay — it is part of every student’s future. Therefore, we must be adaptive and flexible while also maintaining our core principles. Middlebury students should recognize the intrinsic worth of an education independent of artificial intelligence.
A.I. has achieved an irreversible role on college and university campuses across the country, and Middlebury is no exception. Strolling by rows of study carrels in Davis Family Library, it does not take long to find a student consulting ChatGPT for an assignment. It would be counterproductive to say that generative A.I. should be completely disregarded — it has several useful applications that can save time and resources, and some faculty have embraced it as an effective tool for learning.
The problem is that A.I. is often being used as more than a tool. It has become a life vest for many students to summarize readings, conduct calculations, or translate French homework — and without it, they would drown. These habits stop students from engaging with ideas, learning from their mistakes and exercising creative and analytic processes to produce real results.
The consequences for misusing A.I. do not end with academic and mental indolence. It creates unfair advantages, penalizing those who refrain from these applications. Students have experiences receiving lower grades on essays than their peers who used ChatGPT, punished for doing their own work. Perfection from a robot is preferred to human mistakes. There is also a socioeconomic factor that must be considered: Chat Plus costs $20 per month, and the unlimited Chat Pro costs $200 per month. This could potentially lead to barriers to access, creating a further distinction between college students along socioeconomic lines.
As artificial intelligence has become a prevalent facet of daily life, it is unfortunately becoming less stigmatized. People are more open with using ChatGPT and other A.I. models, especially in public settings such as the dining halls, libraries and even in class. Widespread moral barriers and shame surrounding ChatGPT have begun to dissolve. This rings especially true with younger students at Middlebury, who learned about A.I. in highschool during the Covid-19 pandemic and never looked back.
As we’ve written previously, technology in the classroom is often a distraction, not a learning supplement, and generative A.I. is no exception. Gone are the days of daydreaming idly when bored in class — now, ChatGPT can ensure students never have a moment alone with themselves or can truly engage in their coursework.
A.I. has also intruded into our personal lives as it has transformed into a ubiquitous part of social life. Chat GPT has become more than just a robot: We all see it thanking and encouraging us from time to time, but for some it has become a friend or therapist. People have turned to asking A.I. for advice about dating or friendships. Turning to computers instead of other human beings is a seriously alarming sign of social deterioration that feels straight out of a dystopian movie. If this trend continues, we will lose a fundamental aspect of what makes us human beings.
There are potential solutions to counteract A.I.’s encroachment on the academic process. One obvious proposal is moving back to hand-written, proctored tests. Blue Book exams should not be relics of the past. This forces students to display their own, authentic work on the spot. Other small changes such as switching from discussion posts to active in-class discussions or limiting laptop usage in class can dismantle A.I.’s impact on education.
It is also important to note that each professor has personal preferences regarding A.I. Some faculty encourage students to take advantage of its capabilities, whereas others are strongly against the generative tool. Although it would be difficult to implement a schoolwide policy, there could be a more comprehensive effort to standardize A.I. practices such as dedicated sections on syllabi that teach students how to use the application in an ethical way. There also needs to be an increased awareness of Middlebury’s unlimited resources such as the Center for Teaching, Learning and Research (CTLR). Our tuition money funds these programs for a reason. If people search for assistance in college-provided materials, they might feel less compelled to turn to ChatGPT for quick answers. This can work to reverse the current trajectory and motivate human interaction.
At the end of the day, our education is a privilege. When we use shortcuts, we only cheat ourselves. There needs to be greater encouragement to seek out challenges. It is not fulfilling to type in a question and have a computer generate something artificial and hollowed out. Self-enrichment is the byproduct of solving problems, knocking down barriers and creating something that is a testament to one’s abilities.
There needs to be a recommitment to intellectual curiosity and academic rigor on campus. A.I. may be capable of earning you a Middlebury degree, but it can’t replace your Middlebury education.
