Teaching students to think in the age of ChatGPT

Me: Lalitha, you’ve been colouring all this time. Do you enjoy colouring?Lalitha: Yes, I do.Me: What’s your favourite colour?Lalitha: Pink.Me: Why do you like pink?Lalitha: Don’t you know that all women like pink?Me: I don’t know. Why do women like pink?Lalitha: Let me ask ChatGPT.Me: Why do you want to ask ChatGPT?Lalitha: It gives answers to all our questions.This was an informal conversation I had with two young British-Indian children — a seven-year-old boy and his four-year-old sister, Lalitha — during a train journey from Coimbatore to Chennai.Throughout the seven-hour journey, the children kept themselves busy colouring, drawing, and knitting, while also engaging in conversation with my family and I.Although brief, the exchange offers an interesting glimpse into how young children are beginning to perceive and interact with AI. Lalitha’s response shows her natural curiosity and her perception of ChatGPT as a convenient source of information. Her desire to turn to AI is purposeful and curiosity-driven. At the same time, her belief that ChatGPT “gives answers to all our questions” raises an important concern.Children need to understand that AI does not necessarily have all the answers and that its responses may not always be accurate. The real question is not whether children should use AI but how we can teach them to use it wisely without allowing it to replace their own curiosity, questioning and thinking.Common concernRecently, I spoke on the topic, Does AI make academia think, blink or sink?, at a conference organised by Rajalakshmi Engineering College, Chennai. I began with “If you’re in academia and say you don’t use Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools, you’re either outdated or lying.”Everyone in the audience acknowledged using AI for various purposes, including generating ideas, gathering information, and editing. They also shared a growing concern: AI use has become common among students and very few now write assignments without AI assistance. As a result, it is becoming increasingly difficult to get students to write and think independently.Discussions about AI in education bring forth positive and negative views. Critics argue that AI kills creativity and intellectual curiosity, destroys critical thinking, threatens academic integrity, and prevents genuine learning. Some even believe that the best way to preserve learning is to ban AI.Are these statements facts or myths? I would argue that they are largely myths or sweeping assumptions. AI itself does not determine whether students think or stop thinking. Its impact depends on how it is used. It can serve as a creative ally that stimulates ideas and deepens learning or become a crutch that encourages intellectual dependence.ShortcutGe Z and Alpha, who are increasingly drawn to “AI generation”, are often more focused on the final product than on experiencing the process of shaping it through trial and error. With an appropriate prompt or series of prompts, it is easy to produce an essay, a story, research ideas, or other forms of content. However, this shortcut can undermine the process through which knowledge is acquired: questioning assumptions, testing their validity, learning from mistakes, and gradually mastering a skill.The challenge, therefore, is not simply to decide whether AI belongs in education but to determine how it can be used responsibly without replacing human curiosity, creativity, and independent thinking. Educational institutions need clear policies on AI use and should train teachers to redesign assessment so that it rewards higher-order thinking. Students, too, should learn to question, verify and critique AI-generated responses, recognise their limitations, and use AI ethically.The ability to think, reason and generate ideas is one of the qualities that distinguishes human beings from other creatures. If we outsource our thinking to machines, we risk surrendering an essential part of what makes us fully human. I believe that when AI is used thoughtfully, it can strengthen rather than replace independent thinking and creativity. Therefore, educators committed to helping students learn must focus on the process, not merely the product, and teach learners to harness AI without surrendering their capacity to think for themselves.Research on a massive scale should be conducted to assess whether AI makes students overly dependent on it or enables them to become better thinkers. The findings could help education policymakers develop effective AI policies for educational institutions.The writer is an ELT resource person and education columnist. Email rayanal@yahoo.co.uk