Artificial intelligence and advancing technologies are on the rise. No new news there.
However, the type of technology we are seeing and the capabilities it has, are ever new. Large language models like ChatGPT, Grok and DeepSeek are replacing the need for search engines and making life more manageable for countless people around the globe. From aid with email responses to writing cover letters for resumes to one-on-one tutors and brainstorming assistants, these tools are revolutionizing the human experience—for many.
Increased technological power ought to cause the human person to reflect on life in a different way. The rise and influence of AI is causing many to consider deeper philosophical questions. What does it mean to be human? If a machine has more knowledge than I do, is it better than me? What jobs will AI replace? What is the purpose of education if machines can relay any fact we need and accomplish any intellectual task much quicker than human beings?
Dissecting the true foundation of things is critical for the human person. For this reason, St. Thomas Aquinas opened his Summa Contra Gentiles, Book One with this quote from Scripture: “My mouth shall meditate truth, and my lips shall hate impiety” (Prov. 8:7). The closer we approach the reason for the existence of reality and the more we understand what it means to be a human person, the more fulfilled we will become.
As a department chairperson at a high school on Long Island, this is where AI hits home. My school is consistently investigating how to utilize artificial intelligence in the context of education. Ultimately, these technologies are presenting a healthy challenge for educators. It is forcing us to consider what our purpose is in relation to students and what a successful education is all about.
Great teachers are not merely funnels of information. What students remember about their teachers is the way they paid attention to them. Our favorite teachers from our childhood were compassionate, patient and challenging. They were fully human. There was a way they looked at us when we were not on task and a way they returned our work to us when we received an “A” for a challenging assignment or test.
Artificial intelligence can relay information. These large language models are mimic machines; they are not conscious thinkers. They are the shiniest technology known to man, but they are still tools of our creation. These machines can regurgitate massive amounts of details and facts. There can be a place for its use in small pockets of guided instruction in the classroom, but the main portion of student-to-teacher interaction ought to be human because education is not just about learning.
Education is not about a piece of paper (a diploma) which enables a student to arrive at a distinguished university so that this student can receive a high paying job upon graduation from that university. Unfortunately, this is the mainstream concept of education. This flawed conception of education is the purpose for which parents send their children to school.
The foundation of education, however, is much richer. Education is not a robotic enterprise. It is not concerned with a step-by-step mechanical process that arrives at the achievement of simply completing the grade levels required. It is not about gaining a career with an abundant salary either. True education is formation. True education is concerned with obtaining the good and reaching the truth. Goodness and truth are what the human person is made for. Possessing them is the goal of education.
School is only impactful and only breeds inspiration for its students if it captivates the learner through their entire human ethos. No advanced technology can accomplish that encounter between persons. That is why Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines technology as “a manner of accomplishing a task especially using technical processes, methods, or knowledge.” The “task” that AI accomplishes in a mechanical way is education. However, true learning is never artificial nor is it a system of mechanics.
So, as the early school year carries on around the country we ought to reflect on how we desire our children to utilize AI. Due to the known negative impacts of screen use and the isolating temptation of using technology over interacting with other living and breathing human beings, there must be continuous discernment on how to best use AI to form the next generation of Americans.
Education is the avenue for forming the minds and hearts of the future. So, let’s remain rooted in true education and go back to forming, because there are young people waiting to be changed forever by the human interaction of teacher and student.
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