This academic year, in high school history teacher Jeanne Barr’s eyes, is the year students’ use of ChatGPT became ubiquitous.
With generative AI tools like ChatGPT becoming more deeply integrated into classrooms and workplaces, new research is also raising red flags about what we might be giving up in return: our brainpower.
“Some students are making poor choices—shortcutting the thinking process and denying their brains the opportunity to build capacity,” Barr told Scripps News.
A recent study from the MIT Media Lab suggests frequent use of large language models like ChatGPT could be linked to measurable cognitive decline. The study divided participants into three groups completing an essay-writing task; one used ChatGPT, one used Google Search, and one relied solely on their own knowledge. Researchers found that the group using ChatGPT “consistently underperformed at neural, linguistic, and behavioral levels.” They coined the term “cognitive debt” to describe the lag in brain activity when relying heavily on AI to think for us.
While the study is still under peer review, a process that can take months, its authors told Time Magazine they released the findings early out of concern for how rapidly AI is being adopted and wanted to explicitly highlight the risk to developing brains.
“Offloading your thinking to AI means your brain is going to be less active,” said Robbie Torney, the Senior Director of AI Programs for Common Sense Media, a nonprofit focused on bridging the gap for teachers and parents to new technology. “But that doesn’t mean it’s inherently bad. It means we need to be really smart about how we use the tool.”
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According to a recent Common Sense Media report, 70 percent of teenagers have already used AI tools, but only 38 percent of parents of teen AI users believed their child had tried the technology.
Barr says students are often secretive about using ChatGPT, aware it’s frowned upon. But the temptation to use it is high, she says especially in a culture where academic perfection is prized.
“We need to praise the imperfect,” Barr said. “AI doesn’t allow for joyful mistakes. The real satisfaction of creating something beautiful doesn’t come from a shortcut.”
Right now, most schools are trying to play catch-up. Only 25 states have issued any sort of guidance on AI use in K-12 classrooms, and many of those are vague or optional. Illinois, where Barr teaches, isn’t among them.
This lack of regulation leaves educators in a gray zone. Some schools ban AI use outright. Others integrate it carefully, trying to strike a balance – Common Sense issued a toolkit to help school districts establish AI strategies. Barr argues blanket bans are the wrong approach.
“Teachers are incredibly creative,” she said. “We’re always trying to bring lessons alive. I don’t want to see blanket restrictions—just thoughtful implementation.”
“It is absolutely true in our country that education is local. Each local school district has its own unique mission, its own unique vision, its own unique goals,” Torney explained. “AI is a tool, and it's about how tools support learning and how tools support educators. Local context and local goals and local needs are going to dictate that.
The MIT study is still awaiting peer review, but its early release reflects a growing concern among researchers that the understanding of the potential long-term impacts of relying on AI for cognitive tasks are still being developed in real time.
