The "Godmother of AI" says the biggest AI risk in schools isn't cheating – it's students losing the desire to learn

[midian182]

Winners & losers: The problem of students using AI to cheat in schools is well documented, but Fei-Fei Li, aka The Godmother of AI, thinks there's a bigger risk. The Stanford computer science professor believes access to the technology will take away students' motivation and agency to learn. Nevertheless, Li doesn't believe a blanket ban is a good idea.

Speaking on an episode of the science podcast Huberman Lab this week, Li talked about the fears around how students are using AI.

"The absolute bad outcome is that our young generation, their agency and human-level motivation of learning and living is taken away by tools," the ImageNet inventor warned. "It should not be taken away by humans nor should it be taken away by machines."

If we see a generation of graduates who have completely relied on AI without actively trying to learn anything for themselves, they risk leaving education without having "properly developed the brain," Li said.

When it comes to AI use in schools, most of the focus has been on cheating. It's been an issue since ChatGPT went mainstream, and it reached endemic proportions back in August 2024 – though one professor recently found a clever way to identify students who were using it.

There's been less conversation about how AI can cause many students to lose both the motivation and ability to learn. Many kids wonder why they should bother learning something when AI can provide the answer instantly.

Researchers have found that AI is making students faster but they're losing their depth of thinking, which makes sense. Vivienne Ming, chief scientist at the Possibility Institute, told Business Insider earlier this year that most of the AI users she studied were using the technology to avoid thinking for themselves.

Li certainly isn't advocating for a complete ban on students using AI. She believes it can genuinely help struggling students who are already engaged in their learning. Li herself noted how she struggled with organic chemistry as a premed student, when teaching assistants and professors didn't have enough time to answer every question.

While there's no obvious solution, Li says we need to find a way to keep children and students' motivation and agency. "Let's find a way to give them the access and the right way of using these tools," she said. Li added that if AI is used properly in education, it could make the students of the future "way smarter than us because they are superpowered."

There have been several attempts to find this balance. OpenAI introduced a study mode designed to encourage critical thinking rather than simply handing over answers, while some computer science professors have shifted their focus from coding syntax to higher-level problem-solving. The UK government has also backed the use of ChatGPT for homework, arguing that it could be especially useful for children who struggle in traditional learning environments.

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The "Godmother of AI" says the biggest AI risk in schools isn't cheating – it's students losing the desire to learn

 

[Theinsanegamer]

The schools already do a fantastic job of that by making education so incredibly boring, tedious, and outright hostile.

Here's the thing: what's going to happen in the real world? Well, people are going to let AI think for them. Doesn't matter what the school preaches. So in restricting AI use, all they are doing is ensuring their students are less familiar with the technology, and this less prepared, for the modern world.

Just like when they tried to ban the use of calculators in the 90s and 2000s, my teachers claimed "well you'll never have a calculator all the time when you're working" which was already stupid because pocket calculators had been commonplace for decades already. Then the iPhone came out.

 

[bviktor]

The schools already do a fantastic job of that by making education so incredibly boring, tedious, and outright hostile.

Oh yes, because schools have only been boring for the past 5 years, it was pure joy before that.

 

[Loadedaxe]

This is one of the more legitimate concerns about AI in education, because the problem isn’t really cheating. Cheating existed long before ChatGPT learned how to write a five paragraph essay.

The real question is whether AI becomes a tutor or a replacement brain.

If a student types, “Write my 700 word paper on the Roman Empire,” copies it, and goes back to TikTok, congratulations...we have successfully automated not learning.

But if that same student says, “I think military overstretch and economics were major causes of Rome’s decline. Challenge my argument,” now AI is doing something useful. It’s forcing the student to defend an idea, consider alternatives, and actually think.

We already accept this principle elsewhere. As the TheInsaneGamer pointed out, Calculators didn’t destroy mathematics because we still expect students to understand what the numbers mean before pressing buttons.

AI should probably be treated the same way.

Teach the fundamentals. Make students explain their reasoning. Use oral discussions, drafts, source comparisons, and classroom work. Then let AI help them explore ideas, get unstuck, or argue with a tutor that apparently has unlimited patience.

The irony is that AI may finally expose how weak some traditional homework assignments were to begin with. If your entire assessment can be completed by typing one sentence into a chatbot, perhaps the chatbot isn’t the only thing that needs examining.

So yes, there is a genuine risk here.

But it isn’t “AI will make everyone stupid.”

It’s students being allowed to outsource the uncomfortable part of learning...thinking.

Used properly, AI could make a curious student substantially better.

Used poorly, it becomes the world's most expensive homework vending machine.

And now I await the inevitable explanation that calculators, Wikipedia, spellcheck, Google, and probably electricity also destroyed civilization.

 

[Loadedaxe]

Oh yes, because schools have only been boring for the past 5 years, it was pure joy before that.

The point wasn’t that schools suddenly became boring five years ago.

The point was that schools already struggle to keep students engaged, and simply banning the technology they’ll be expected to use in the real world probably isn’t going to improve that.

We did this dance with calculators, the internet, Wikipedia, smartphones, and Google. Every time, the technology eventually became normal and education had to adapt around it.

Teaching students how to use AI critically, verify what it tells them, and know when not to rely on it seems a lot more useful than pretending it can be kept outside the classroom walls.

But yes, thank you for confirming that school was also boring in 1987.

 

[GeoffreyA]

The schools already do a fantastic job of that by making education so incredibly boring, tedious, and outright hostile.

Here's the thing: what's going to happen in the real world? Well, people are going to let AI think for them. Doesn't matter what the school preaches. So in restricting AI use, all they are doing is ensuring their students are less familiar with the technology, and this less prepared, for the modern world.

Just like when they tried to ban the use of calculators in the 90s and 2000s, my teachers claimed "well you'll never have a calculator all the time when you're working" which was already stupid because pocket calculators had been commonplace for decades already. Then the iPhone came out.

While I agree that modern syllabuses don't teach very well, the professor is probably right that students, relying on AI, might not develop the critical-thinking muscle in the brain. Better for it to be hard, like Goku training in 100x Earth's normal gravity, then, once they've mastered it the hard way, use AI in the real world.

 

[GeoffreyA]

Calculators didn’t destroy mathematics because we still expect students to understand what the numbers mean before pressing buttons.

The thing with calculators is that they don't rob the ordinary person of understanding maths but automate tedious calculations. Machine learning, as you point out, automates the thinking process (in a simulacrum sense). Therefore, I would argue, it is not on the same footing as a calculator.

 

[Anton Longshot]

Once upon a time me and friends discussed what would end the existence of the human race, and we agreed it would be stupidity.

I'm not so sure stupidity will eventually kill us anymore. It might be boredom.

 

[TechSam]

When I went through School and College education through 1998->2010 in the UK, I wasn't taught how to learn independently, be proactive and how to enjoy learning. I wasn't at all prepared for what happens after school. I didn't like school, I don't learn from lectures or whiteboards. I learnt way later in life I excel at hands on learning. I also made a lot of the wrong decisions by trying to learn stuff I wasn't good at.

I envy those students who, like John Carmack and Romero, discovered the "computer club". I wish I had a teacher to influence me to try those out. Instead I saw clubs as a waste of time and just wanted to go home and play on X game console at the time.

Would learning how to use AI back then, helped change the way I developed? Maybe. But maybe it could of been the mentor I needed.

 

[Theinsanegamer]

While I agree that modern syllabuses don't teach very well, the professor is probably right that students, relying on AI, might not develop the critical-thinking muscle in the brain. Better for it to be hard, like Goku training in 100x Earth's normal gravity, then, once they've mastered it the hard way, use AI in the real world.

The exact same argument was used against calculators, digitally written papers, and online research.

None of that ever panned out. Critical thinking skill shave to be developed AT HOME, BEFORE school starts. If parents dont bother engaging with their kids, schools will get absolutely nowhere.

But nobody is willing to call the parents out; that is in any position of power.

When I went through School and College education through 1998->2010 in the UK, I wasn't taught how to learn independently, be proactive and how to enjoy learning. I wasn't at all prepared for what happens after school. I didn't like school, I don't learn from lectures or whiteboards. I learnt way later in life I excel at hands on learning. I also made a lot of the wrong decisions by trying to learn stuff I wasn't good at.

I envy those students who, like John Carmack and Romero, discovered the "computer club". I wish I had a teacher to influence me to try those out. Instead I saw clubs as a waste of time and just wanted to go home and play on X game console at the time.

Would learning how to use AI back then, helped change the way I developed? Maybe. But maybe it could of been the mentor I needed.

The only thing school was good for was learning how to obey instructions and perform well on pre written tests.

Critical thinking skills? Enjoyment of learning? those didnt come from school. I learned far more from googling random countries on Wikipedia then I ever did in history class. You could write an entire college course on the start of WW1 alone.

Oh yes, because schools have only been boring for the past 5 years, it was pure joy before that.

You have proven yourself a proud graduate of the public education system.

How about you engage your critical thinking skills and search for some context clues that could reveal a deeper meaning behind what is literally written?

Here, I'll help: School has always been boring. The issues the professor describes are not new, they have always existed. The cause behind kids not engaging with education, not developing critical skills, and not learning is two fold:

First, the schools are INCREDIBLY awful, they cater to the lowest common denominator, are incapable of meeting the needs of students on an individual level, and intentionally hold back anyone learning too fast or learning the wrong subjects. Students are not going to take school seriously if the system does not respect them. Increasingly, schools have become glorified daycare centers for kids, in no way challenging for anyone with an IQ above room temperature. That's all before we get into behavior issues, schools protecting misbehavior, garbage food, garbage infrastructure, ece ece ece.

The second is the parents. Being curious, and thinking critically about a problem, are skills that begin developing very early in life. If your parents dont read to you, dont challenge you, dont help you learn or encourage your curiosity, then those patterns are already in place when you get to school, where doing the bare minimum to pass is encouraged through equality of outcome and a lack of support.

AI doesnt cause these issues. The Internet, Computers, Calculators, Digitally written essays, and more have been blamed for these same issues over the last 50 years. Schools, despite being "places of learning" are incredibly inflexible and unwilling to adopt new tech until forced to do so. Blaming technology is the old comfy excuse schools use to excuse their own inadequacy and the failure of the parents that vote to keep the schools funded.

 

[user556]

When I went through School and College education through 1998->2010 in the UK, I wasn't taught how to learn independently, be proactive and how to enjoy learning. I wasn't at all prepared for what happens after school. I didn't like school, I don't learn from lectures or whiteboards.

I distinctly remember very much enjoying one subject at poly-tech. The tutor had a distinct approach of reading out a section of the text book and then explaining it on the whiteboard. He didn't once fill the whiteboard with a wall of text. Note taking by us students was mostly a case using a highlighter in the text book. It was my best scoring subject at exam time.

I was also horrified to overhear many of my fellow students complain to each other about how they thought that particular tutor was the worst because he didn't provide written notes. I'm pretty sure some filed official complaints too.

 

[Loadedaxe]

I distinctly remember very much enjoying one subject at poly-tech. The tutor had a distinct approach of reading out a section of the text book and then explaining it on the whiteboard. He didn't once fill the whiteboard with a wall of text. Note taking by us students was mostly a case using a highlighter in the text book. It was my best scoring subject at exam time.

I was also horrified to overhear many of my fellow students complain to each other about how they thought that particular tutor was the worst because he didn't provide written notes. I'm pretty sure some filed official complaints too.

I actually really liked this post, because I think it gets at something education often misses as well as some here in the comment section.

A good teacher is not there to hand students every answer in a neat packet of notes. A good teacher should teach students how to find the answer, how to question it, how to connect ideas, and how to work through something they don't immediately understand.

If all a student does is copy notes from a board, memorize them, pass an exam, and forget them six months later, that may satisfy the grading system, but I'm not sure it qualifies as learning.

The tutor you described sounds like he was doing something far more useful. He was explaining the material, guiding the class, and then expecting the students to actually engage with it themselves.

And the complaints about not being handed written notes are almost the perfect example of the problem.

Students can become conditioned to expect education to be delivered prepackaged..."Here are the notes. Memorize this. The test is Friday."

Then they enter the real world and suddenly nobody hands them Chapter 7 with the important parts highlighted.

You have to research. You have to ask questions. You have to separate good information from garbage. You have to figure out what you don't know and then go find it.

That skill is arguably more important today than ever, especially with AI.

AI can give you an answer in seconds. The valuable skill is knowing whether the answer makes sense, where it came from, what it left out, and how to find and verify the answer yourself when necessary.

Maybe the goal of education shouldn't be creating students who are really good at taking notes.

It should be creating people who don't need someone standing over them telling them exactly what to learn next.

 

[Anton Longshot]

I didn't like school much because reasons.
I mostly ignored the tasks handed to us and instead worked to achieve a proper understanding of the underlying principles.
Once a couple of teachers got fed up with what they saw as refusing to work and tried to expell me.
The biology teacher defended me by bluntly stating that I actually understood what was taught in class and that this was a rare thing I. e. most other kids just wanted good grades to look good and eventually getting the diploma and move on to job-life.
Anyway thanks to that single teacher I was allowed to stay - I still didn't do the stupid stuff I was told to do.
When exam time came I did nothing. Zero seconds of study.
I didn't need to study because I had understanding. Floated right through and got that piece of paper. With a nice set of numbers.
Afterwards I kept trying to learn and understand as much as I could (and I still do that) and because of that I was able to combine things I know and understand stuff that isn't in books and possibly isn't taught either. Also, I perfected my English and now it's a good as my Dutch - because I wanted to.
I just love how things worked out.
I instinctively chose a path that was more rewarding than what the teachers tried to make me do.
I know others who have done the same.
Mind you 'going your own way' while still in school is very hard.
Not just because of the teachers but also because of the other kids, many of whom stay between the lines because they are afraid to stand out and point their grubby little fingers at everyone who dares to be 'different'. The little backstabbers ha ha ha.
Instead of going for the job-life I chose the military..That sure made my life difficult especially the deployment bit. I have no regrets though and would do it again.
I like who I am @ 65. And I'll probably like who I'm becoming even more.
Hahaha dunno what got into me: I'm not intoxicated. Hope someone enjoys this.

 

[GeoffreyA]

Critical thinking skill shave to be developed AT HOME, BEFORE school starts. If parents dont bother engaging with their kids, schools will get absolutely nowhere.

But nobody is willing to call the parents out; that is in any position of power.

Yes, they lay the foundation or lack thereof, and are experts at teaching children the bad traits.

 

[GeoffreyA]

I didn't like school much because reasons.
I mostly ignored the tasks handed to us and instead worked to achieve a proper understanding of the underlying principles.
Once a couple of teachers got fed up with what they saw as refusing to work and tried to expell me.
The biology teacher defended me by bluntly stating that I actually understood what was taught in class and that this was a rare thing I. e. most other kids just wanted good grades to look good and eventually getting the diploma and move on to job-life.
Anyway thanks to that single teacher I was allowed to stay - I still didn't do the stupid stuff I was told to do.
When exam time came I did nothing. Zero seconds of study.
I didn't need to study because I had understanding. Floated right through and got that piece of paper. With a nice set of numbers.
Afterwards I kept trying to learn and understand as much as I could (and I still do that) and because of that I was able to combine things I know and understand stuff that isn't in books and possibly isn't taught either. Also, I perfected my English and now it's a good as my Dutch - because I wanted to.
I just love how things worked out.
I instinctively chose a path that was more rewarding than what the teachers tried to make me do.
I know others who have done the same.
Mind you 'going your own way' while still in school is very hard.
Not just because of the teachers but also because of the other kids, many of whom stay between the lines because they are afraid to stand out and point their grubby little fingers at everyone who dares to be 'different'. The little backstabbers ha ha ha.
Instead of going for the job-life I chose the military..That sure made my life difficult especially the deployment bit. I have no regrets though and would do it again.
I like who I am @ 65. And I'll probably like who I'm becoming even more.
Hahaha dunno what got into me: I'm not intoxicated. Hope someone enjoys this.

I enjoyed it, thanks. It's funny that I had a slight bit of this, but in my case, I was struggling with sadness, which made me not take down notes in class but gaze out of the windows. I used to joke that I rely on "a strict chain of theoretical reasoning." In maths, which I was weak in but applied myself, I tried to see what was "the meaning." When the rest of the students were interested in the method and answers, I wanted to know what it meant. I will never forget the day my teacher, Mr. Pillay, taught us the hyperbola, it haunted/awed me when he said that it gets closer and closer to the axis but never intersects it, dotting madly with his chalk!

 

[stewi0001]

Overall, I think it could be treated the same way as calculators. Get some fundamentals down before integrating the tool. However AI covers a vast array of areas which can complicate things, unlike calculators just doing math.

 

[curiousmike13]

I think it was Mo Bittern on Youtube who said ( and I'm paraphrasing ), "AI is going to do a great job for taking the smartest people in the meeting and moving them towards the middle."

There's a lot in that sentence - you can ( perhaps overly simplify ) how AI scrapes the internet and takes EVERYTHING into account for its answers ... the correct answers and the questionable answers... and treats it as *the answer.*

You could also suggest he's saying what Fei-Fei is saying.

 

[ragreeen2646]

Didn't the schools your are criticizing educate the people who created computers, internet, www, AI, calculators, etc.?

 

[Loadedaxe]

Didn't the schools your are criticizing educate the people who created computers, internet, www, AI, calculators, etc.?

Sure, but I don't think anyone is claiming schools produced nothing useful.

The question is whether the system does a good job teaching the average student how to learn independently.

Those are two very different things.

A school system can produce brilliant engineers, scientists and mathematicians while still leaving millions of students dependent on lectures, prepared notes and memorization.

And we're also talking about different generations and very different classrooms. The education that helped produce the early computer pioneers isn't necessarily the same experience someone had in a classroom in 2005.

The existence of exceptional graduates doesn't automatically prove the teaching method was exceptional.

If anything, some of those people became great because they learned how to go beyond what the classroom gave them...which is exactly the skill we're talking about.