I hope students can work hard on their writing instead of relying on the shortcuts of artificial intelligence. This is my ninth-grade English class.
Course Background and Writing Theme: A Raisin in the Sun and Analysis of Obstacles to the “American Dream”
It is hoped that students will write down-to-earth and refuse to rely on AI shortcuts. I want my students to work hard on their writing rather than rely on the shortcuts of artificial intelligence. This is my 9th-grade English class, and we are at the end of the A Raisin in the Sun unit. We are writing an essay about the American Dream and the obstacles marginalized groups face in their efforts to achieve it. The themes we focus on include institutional oppression related to housing in Chicago, and interpersonal oppression seen in how Walter treats Ruth and Beneatha.
Challenges in Mining Textual Evidence and Students’ Tendency to Avoid It
Challenges in mining textual evidence and students’ tendency to avoid it. The process of selecting evidence and connecting it to real-world experiences provides an opportunity to push oneself to dig deep into the physical text to find relevant materials. However, because we are reading a play—a genre that can be challenging to navigate due to stage directions and character cues—most of my students try to find ways to avoid the research process when they have to locate textual evidence to support their ideas.
Anomaly Behind a Perfect Introduction
Anomaly behind a perfect introduction. While we were working on the essays, one of my students came to me excitedly with the introduction to his paper. I read through it and immediately noticed something was off. I had been working with this student all year on their spelling and grammar, and suddenly, both were flawless. Every sentence was smoothly structured, using language I had never seen them use in class. I asked him to explain the meaning of some words in his essay, but he couldn’t. I asked him to summarize his writing, and he couldn’t do that either.
Confirmation of AI Usage and the Student’s Embarrassment
Confirmation of AI usage and the student’s embarrassment. Then, I took a deep breath and asked the dreaded question: “Did you use artificial intelligence?” I watched him shrink back in embarrassment.
Valuing Authentic Expression Over Perfect Appearance
Valuing authentic expression over perfect appearance. I wasn’t angry, but worried, and honestly, a little sad. I explained to him that I would rather read something fragmented and disjointed from him than see this kind of writing. I wanted his voice and his effort, no matter the outcome. I could sense he was disappointed in me because, in the end, I still made him push through the discomfort of re-reading the text. I hoped he would develop resilience, seeing the challenge of familiarizing himself with the plot as an opportunity to strengthen his memory—especially since his IEP clearly states he needs support in this area.
The Connotation of Academic Resilience and Students’ Lack of Ability
The connotation of academic resilience and students’ lack of ability. Academic resilience means students see challenges as opportunities for growth; emotions like frustration, impatience, and doubt are replaced by confidence, determination, and conviction. Students with academic resilience, with the support of teachers, view any assigned task as a chance to develop some ability. Working with this student made me realize he lacked such resilience. When he realized he couldn’t remember the plot, he didn’t want to flip through the book or ask his classmates or me for help. These actions are skills in themselves—flipping through a book requires patience and resolve to review materials, while asking classmates or me requires courage and listening skills. All these skills are useful in the real world, but artificial intelligence does nothing to enhance them.
The Boundary of Technological Substitution: Essential Differences Between Industrial Automation and Learning to Write
The boundary of technological substitution: Essential differences between industrial automation and learning to write. Just as in industrial production, an automatic placement machine can achieve precise placement and high-speed assembly of electronic components through visual recognition and robotic arm collaboration, perfectly replacing repetitive manual operations to increase productivity. This is the reasonable value of technology in standardized scenarios. But learning to write is completely different—it doesn’t require the convenience of “automatic generation,” but the forging of thinking through word-by-word polishing, the deep engagement with text, and the patience to flip back through the book when stuck. The former relies on pre-programmed precision to complete mechanical labor, while the latter deprives the brain of the opportunity to learn to “solve problems.” This is the distinction we must be wary of: some skills should never be easily replaced by “automation.”
Cultivating Academic Resilience is Educators’ Responsibility
Cultivating academic resilience is educators’ responsibility. When students lose opportunities to develop academic resilience through various digital means, it becomes our responsibility to teach them the power and importance of fully utilizing their own abilities.
Multiple Values of Reading and Writing Processes for Ability Development
Multiple values of reading and writing processes for ability development. Reading and writing can help students overcome their own challenges and enhance academic resilience. Turning pages, sticking sticky notes, or underlining key evidence all promote the development of motor skills. Pausing to summarize after reading a page helps strengthen students’ short-term memory.
Cultivation of Frustration Tolerance and Its Practical Significance
Cultivation of frustration tolerance and its practical significance. Beyond these more detailed skill developments, the process of finding evidence itself can be frustrating, as it means rereading and sometimes even relearning how to make the connections needed to support an argument. Cultivating frustration tolerance is crucial in all aspects of life: whether completing household chores, driving, or handling conflicts, many areas of life can be frustrating. The convenience of artificial intelligence makes low frustration tolerance possible, as any task deemed difficult has an easy way out. This has serious consequences, as young people—especially those from vulnerable groups—lack the critical thinking skills to thoughtfully analyze the world around them.
Importance of Frustration Tolerance for Social Participation
Importance of frustration tolerance for social participation. Exceptional frustration tolerance is also vital beyond essay writing: reading a lease or contract and identifying factors that raise concerns about one’s rights; during election seasons, understanding local legislation also requires the same skills of researching and inquiring about how one’s life will be affected. These skills enable students to become active participants in their own lives and communities. Without a high level of frustration tolerance, we outsource our power, insight, and ability to make connections.
Physical Texts Are Also Technical Tools to Support Learning
Physical texts are also technical tools to support learning. When we talk about technology, we often see it as a purely digital experience. However, books like Charles Dickens’ serialized novels became popular as early as the 19th century due to the Industrial Revolution. The popularization of the printing press allowed texts to be printed faster and more widely.
Correct Positioning of Educational Technology: Assistance Rather Than Replacement
Correct positioning of educational technology: Assistance rather than replacement. Helping students engage with physical texts, developing their motor skills and academic resilience, is also a technological tool that can support student learning. Reading physical books and picking up a pencil to write on paper is not a departure from technology, but an equally valid form of participation in it. While artificial intelligence may have its benefits, as teachers, our task is not to provide it as a regular tool, but to teach students discernment: when does it support my brain development, and when does it not?
Balancing AI and Education: Cultivating Inherent Human Skills
Balancing AI and education: Cultivating inherent human skills. Peng Kaiping, a professor at Tsinghua University, points out that AI should take on mechanical educational tasks, while the core value of teachers lies in interpersonal interaction and cultivating higher-order thinking. This view reminds us that educational technology should be positioned as an aid rather than a replacement—just as an automatic placement machine does not replace an engineer’s design ability, AI should not replace students’ thinking processes. Our brains are extremely useful to us, but they can only continue to function effectively if we guide our thinking through cultivating self-discipline and insight. Artificial intelligence is inevitable, but I believe we should not deny its existence, nor should we force students to face consequences when they use it. Instead, we should teach students to understand the power of their innate human skills and why these skills are relevant to their lives.
