The Decline of Learning: AI and the Illusion of Education

By: Anisa Chandra

Note: This article focuses specifically on the impact of Artificial Intelligence in education. Therefore, arguments regarding the environmental impact of AI, unequal access to AI, and other non-education-related points will not be brought up. Education is more important now than ever. It’s not hard to see — “coincidentally”, the states with the lowest education rates were more likely to have conservative, discriminatory views on race, class, gender, and sexual orientation. However, this data was all captured before the rise of two key trends in education: artificial intelligence (AI) and unschooling. AI presents students with too much information and shortcuts that are too accessible; by using generative AI, today’s students have managed to evade the monotonous task of writing an essay, the annoying process of solving a difficult math problem, and the labor-intensive burden of analyzing a carefully written assignment rubric. On the other hand, unschooling, especially when done badly, presents students with not nearly enough information and none of the shortcuts that schooled children receive. It relies on a lack of schooling curriculum, and is only supplemented by an absence of college counselors, career-day fairs, and in-school internship opportunities (all of which are “shortcuts” in the college-admissions process that American schools commonly provide). While artificial intelligence and unschooling affect children in opposite manners (too much information vs. too little), an overimplementation of either commonly results in uneducated, inadequate students who lack the skills that school graduates twenty years prior had. But how exactly did this happen?

ChatGPT became available to the public on November 23, 2023: since then, we’ve seen it integrated into workspaces, offices, and most importantly, classrooms. Now, in 2026, 92% of students have admitted to using one of the many different kinds of generative AI chatbots out there on their school work. However, artificial intelligence isn’t just something used by students — according to The Guardian, more than a dozen universities have partnered with OpenAI to “accelerate research progress and catalyze a new generation of institutions equipped to harness the transformative power of AI”. Furthermore, universities across America have began to introduce AI majors and minors, allowing students to not only use AI in their educational experience, but also center their educational experience around its use. This relatively new focus on AI is leaving professors with key questions, though: I mean, what are professors supposed to do with students who can barely read a five-paragraph essay and lack the skills needed to analyze and summarize information without a chatbot? Students state that these concerns are prevalent regarding their professors as well — in a study cited by New America, students stated that their teachers “teachers have varying levels of technology knowledge.” Many educators agreed with this, stating that most of their knowledge regarding AI is self-taught and could be improved through increased instruction on the topic of artificial intelligence.

What can be gathered from the previous paragraph is that neither students nor educators fully understand artificial intelligence, and yet both groups are using it increasingly more. This often leads to people using artificial intelligence the wrong way: as a replacement for learning, in contrast to a tool. EDUCAUSE states that the solution to this problem lies in interactionalism, a set of three principles that aims to give learners the skills they need in a world where AI usage in the classroom is only becoming more commonplace. The first pillar is dialogical learning, which involves two-way conversations between students and AI chatbots that not only answer student questions but also force students to expand their thinking by using AI-generated questions. Interactive skill building is the second pillar, and it focuses on the development of key human gifts such as questioning, adapting, and using judgment. Lastly, meta-human skills involve the development of metacognition, as well as how to change and develop AI models. Though AI is thoroughly implemented into the learning of all three of these crucial skills, it supplements student learning in contrast to hindering it. Students report these skills as helpful: Tatini, a busy university student, told NPR that using AI has helped her understand complex topics and manage a variety of clubs and classes. On this note, however, it’s easy to cross the line between AI assisting student learning and AI harming it. English professor Dan Cryer always makes sure to explain to his students that “the goal of their education is the process, not the product — because society doesn't need more college essays.” Instead, according to him, the purpose of education is to allow students to differentiate between good and bad sources of information, pursue a career that fulfills them, and develop good judgment in all aspects of their lives. It’s important to consider this perspective when using AI — in an era in which all information is accessible in seconds, it’s important to use this information to become a smarter, more intellectually developed person.

As I’ve stated earlier, unschooling presents the opposite problem of generative AI: instead of children having access to a robot to write their essays, most students who are “unschooled” might never have to write an essay in the first place. The concept of unschooling was developed by John Holt, who constructed it on the belief that children are natural learners. Because of this, according to him, children will pursue skills and knowledge out of their own interest; by centering a child’s entire education around this, they can become extremely talented and specialized in a field that they enjoy. According to an unschooling mom, this often looks like an animal-loving child filling her day with zoo trips, nature documentaries, and examining animal anatomy: tons of learning without sitting in a stale classroom. However, while this may seem good in theory, it doesn’t always work in practice. Forbes states that explicit instruction often works better than discovery learning when children are unaware of a specific topic or field, and many young people are unwilling to extend effort into a field that they don’t enjoy if they’re not forced to. Because of this, a student may become an expert in animal biology but lack the ability to solve high-school-level math problems or analyze Edgar Allen Poe. This commonly leads to unschooled kids lacking basic skills, especially if they were unschooled with little parental involvement and an education that focused on the wrong aspects of this schooling system. So how can you unschool the “right” way?

Unschooling mom Penny Price states that one of the best ways to ensure success for your child is through “strewing”, which involves making a variety of subjects and passions available for your kids. She states that things as simple as leaving a science kit on the dinner table or a space documentary on the TV can spark an interest in a new field, which unlocks a new world of educational opportunities for them. The most important element of unschooling the “right” way, though, is keeping your child at the center of their own education. It’s natural for parents to want what’s best for their children, and unschooling centers around this same idea: therefore, while kids should be indulging in activities that support their passions, they should also be learning arithmetic, how to read and write, and other key basic skills. By ensuring that a child is just as proficient in these skills as someone in a public school, they can have an educational experience that centers around their interests while not becoming incompetent in a world of schooled children.

Neither generative AI nor unschooling is inherently bad in regard to education. In fact, when used appropriately, they can both supplement a child’s learning in a way that traditional schooling without artificial intelligence might not be able to. However, when students rely too heavily on AI, they lose the struggle that allows for deeper understanding. In both cases, learning becomes optional, and with it, so does critical thinking. In the end, education isn’t about access to information, but the ability to figure it out for yourself.

References:

1. https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2025/06/26/demographic-profiles-of-trump-and-harris-voters-in-2024/

2. https://www.educatorstechnology.com/2024/06/the-evolution-of-chatgpt.html

3. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/ng-interactive/2026/mar/10/ai-impact-professors-students-learning

4. https://www.newamerica.org/insights/foundational-skills-digital-literacy-in-the-age-of-ai-analysis-and-voices-from-the-field/

5.  https://er.educause.edu/articles/2025/9/the-ai-tsunami-is-here-reinventing-education-for-the-age-of-ai

6.  https://www.npr.org/2026/03/03/nx-s1-5716176/ai-college-students-professors

7. https://katieshomeschoolcottage.com/2025/06/10/unschooling-method-homeschooling-without-a-curriculum/

8. https://www.forbes.com/sites/nataliewexler/2020/05/25/unschooling-isnt-the-answer-to-education-woes-its-the-problem/

9. https://pennilessparenting.com/2016/09/what-unschooling-is-not-and-what-it-is.html

10. https://alifeunschooled.substack.com/p/when-homesregardchooling-goes-bad

4.15.2026