On AI and our classrooms

When I was in primary school, I was taught that machines were created to make human work easier. We were told that technology would help us do things faster, better and more efficiently. So, I sometimes wonder: If using machines to make our work easier has been accepted for generations, why has the use of AI suddenly become a crime? We use machines in almost everything today. We use calculators to solve mathematical problems. We use computers to write and process documents. We use Google to search for information. We use spell-checkers to correct our English. We use software to edit pictures, videos and sound. We even use machines to help us communicate. Nobody looks at all these things and says, ‘You have committed a crime because you used a machine.’ But when it comes to AI, suddenly there is fear. The problem is not necessarily AI itself; it is how we use it. I remember the first time I came across the writings of Mahmoud Jega. I was fascinated by the way he wrote, and it made me begin to pay closer attention to writing. Later, when tools like Google became more common, I also learned how to use them. Technology has always pushed me to learn something new. That is what technology is supposed to do. But today, some people are becoming afraid to use AI, not because they don’t want to learn it but because they are afraid that their work would be labelled “AI-generated.” Someone can write something entirely by himself, use AI to improve the grammar, restructure a sentence or make the writing clearer, and still become worried that a detector might flag it as AI. So, what exactly are we teaching people? Are we teaching them how to write or how to avoid being detected? If we believe that AI is dangerous when students use it, then perhaps the solution is not to create fear around it. The solution is to teach students how to use it properly. Teach them what AI can do, and what AI can’t do. Teach them how to verify information, and how to think independently. Teach them how to acknowledge the use of AI when necessary and how not to submit something they don’t understand simply because AI produced it. That, to me, is education because whether we like it or not, AI is already here. Students and teachers are using it. Writers and businesses are using it. Researchers, governments and organisations are exploring it. So, if the fear is that AI would make people lazy, then we should teach people to think, not simply tell them not to use AI. And if the fear is that AI would destroy genuine writing, then let us teach people how to develop their own voice while using technology as a tool. But if the conclusion is that using AI is a crime, then there is only one logical question left: Why are we allowing AI to trend? Why are we teaching people about it? Why are we developing more powerful AI tools every day? Perhaps we should stop pretending that AI is going away. If we truly want peace, then either we stop AI altogether or accept that it is part of the world we now live in and learn how to use it responsibly. We cannot invite technology into the classroom today and then punish people tomorrow for learning how to use it. Makarfi wrote via abdurrazak.muktar@yahoo.com

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