Karibella. W
Melissa. S
Composition II
17 January 2025
Informing on AI
In the New York Times article “What Teachers Told Me About AI in Schools”, from August 14, 2024, Jessica Grose speaks to several teachers in public schools and concludes that AI is not having a positive effect on classrooms. She outlines the different ways students use AI in school and the various methods teachers use to combat cheating with AI. She paints a picture of AI taking critical and creative thinking from students by giving them illogical answers that the students do not analyze. Grose speaks of the problems source being the lack of critical thinking and the policy makers for AI. While Grose provides many strong sources for her article and uses engaging language, she does not have a strong conclusion or opinion statement.
Jessica Grose corresponded with several public school teachers and reviewed a report from a project in Arizona for the use of AI in schools. She opens the article with a story from Leila Wheless, a teacher from North Carolina. Wheless recounts how her students do not mull over the answers AI gives them and instead submit answers that are absolutely absurd. Grose then addresses the core of the issue: students who choose to cheat by AI will lose skills because AI is doing the work for them. Grose backs up her point with a story from a Californian English teacher, Sarah Martin. Martin recounts how her students no longer spend much time trying to overcome difficult topics and are getting better at having AI write for them. Martin also makes a great point that with faster technologies to do tasks for students, the students feel as if they are not smart enough. After this disheartening account, Grose then turns to Jerald Hughes, a professor at the University of Texas who found creative ways to evade the use of artificial intelligence. He changed how his quizzes were run and made his test questions hard for AI to answer. The last group Grose looks at is a company that attempted to create an AI chatbot for students to use safely in school. She reported the group failed and eventually shut down their bot. Throughout her article, Grose provides a well-rounded view of the issues with AI use in schools. Her writing suggests that AI needn’t be used in schools or that there must be significant change before it is used.
A great strength in Grose’s writing is that she uses many sources to paint a large picture. Using personal accounts from teachers gives us a grounds-eye view of the issue with AI use. Grose uses her first source, Wheless, to introduce us to the topic. Wheless’s story hooks the reader by showing her change of heart towards AI use. While she “tried to keep “an open heart” about using artificial intelligence” (Grose 1), she soon saw that it was more of a deficit to her students. Grose started the article with a teacher who was open-minded to AI, which allows readers who appreciate AI to feel welcomed and interested in the article. The slope of the story, going from an open-minded view of AI and then recounting its negative effects allows readers to be more understanding and welcomed. Grose then uses her other sources to back up her point that AI is not a positive influence on students. She further strengthens her article by diving deeper into the issue with her next source With several paragraphs dedicated to Sarah Marin’s story, Grose develops her opinion and provides a clearer look at how AI is changing students’ ways of thinking. Grose then offers a fresh perspective from Jerald Hughes. Grose’s account of Hughes’s different approach to combating AI keeps the reader engaged and interested while also broadening her coverage of the issue. Grose finishes strong with the story of a tech company’s failure with AI to exemplify how far things can go wrong. Grose’s use of different sources from different viewpoints gives readers a larger board to look at and a wider understanding. Overall, Jessica Grose uses varied sources and interesting stories to convey her point and educate people on the issue of AI in schools.
Along with strong sources, Jessica Grose uses vivid and enticing language to advance her story. Using strong adjectives and nouns helps an article to be more engaging and intriguing, and they help her argument to stand stronger. Phrases like “…its ubiquity is fairly new..” and “The thornier problem is…” (Grose 1) help to grab readers’ attention. If an article uses bland language or overly complicated language, a reader’s mind will wander. When mind-catching words are written, the reader is pulled back to the article and more interested. Additionally, Grose uses language to connect with the reader. Her use of more informal language helps the article feel more personal and human. When addressing an issue such as AI use in schools, it is helpful to have an informal voice because it allows more connection over the dispute. Grose skillfully and eloquently pieced together the stories of AI use in schools to show the effects and hint at the causes.
While Grose succeeded with sources and selection of words, she did not properly conclude. Her last sentence, “If policy experts think that A.I. can part the Red Sea, maybe our students aren’t the only ones who need to develop their critical-thinking skills.” (Grose 3) is sarcastic and informal. It leaves an open thread that does not tie up the article. Grose does not make a direct argument in her article; she merely informs and educates, but her ending is abrupt. Prior to her last sentence, Grose recounts the story of a failed attempt at integrating AI chatbots into school use. The last paragraph deteriorates the article as it is dry and not engaging. It contains just the specifics of the case and does not have engaging language. The informal sentence following the dry paragraph leaves an abrupt and poor conclusion. Despite this deficit, Jessica Grose built an engaging and well-rounded article.
Along with a wide variety of sources, Grose fills the article with engaging language despite her poor conclusion, the article stands strong and intriguing. Her article provides a multi-pointed view of AI use in classrooms to educate and inform people of the varying degrees of the issue. With this article, one can begin to understand the concerns of AI being used by students, helping to make more informed decisions around AI use.
Work Cited
Grose, Jessica. “What Teachers Told Me About A.I. in School.” The New York Times, 14 August 2024, www.nytimes.com/2024/08/14/opinion/ai-schools-teachers-students.html. Accessed 16 January 2025.