Abstract

With the trend of students’ use of AI to offload their cognitive labor, the question of whether delegation is worthwhile or simply flawed becomes increasingly important. The use of AI is not simply cognitive offloading, but a transformative change in learning. In this essay, the losses and gains are discussed when students displace their cognitive labor to AI. Not only is there potential harm to memory, considering the immaturity of their brains and critical thinking abilities, students are also vulnerable to incorrect or misleading information provided by AI due to algorithmic bias. However, with appropriate use, AI can work as a powerful tool to provide robust assistance for students to increase efficiency and academic performance. Moreover, AI can also facilitate students to learn new skills, especially in learning a language in an interactive and effective way. Therefore, AI should not be generalized as inherently negative for students to use. Instead, we would be better off focusing on how students can use AI appropriately to balance the trade-off between its potential cognitive harm and benefits.

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