The issue of whether or not students in high school take advantage of AI technology to help them write their college essays is quickly becoming one of the most significant discussions in education today. As AI programs like ChatGPT and Grammarly, and other generative tools continue to flourish and evolve in sophistication, high school students, parents, educators, and admissions officers are all trying to wrap their minds around the advent and implications of AI. This examination will explore trends of AI usage among high school students, the motivations and concerns that underlie its use, and the benefits and dangers, and ethical and academic considerations, of using AI in writing beyond the classroom, along with the longer-term picture for college admissions essays in the age of AI.
The Prevalence of AI Use Among High School Students
Recent studies show that, for many high school students, AI tools have become an essential part of their educational experience. In a nationwide study, nearly half of students in grades 10 through 12 responded that they used AI tools, with ChatGPT being most common. Language arts and social studies were where students were primarily using AI, but then students also applied these tools to entertainment, hobbies, personal recommendations and so on.
Interestingly, students with more advanced academic performance are significantly more likely to use AI tools than those students who report lower academic performance. This implies students are not limited to using AI as a "crutch," but high achieving students use these tools as ways to tumble or enhance their work.
Among the students who do not use AI, the reasons are telling: 83% report that they have no desire to use it, 64% do not believe in the information that AI provides, and 55% report that they have no understanding of these AI tools. This polarisation shows two things; the growing acceptance of using A.I. and the fear of not knowing how to appropriately use it, on another.
Motivations and Concerns: Why Students Do or Don’t Use AI for College Essays
While the survey found some use of AI for routine assignments, a staggering 90% of students reported not exploring the use of AI tools for their college admissions essays. There are several reasons for this reluctance among students:
Perceived Capabilities of AI: A sizable number of students believe that existing AI tools do not produce quality writings that are personalized, original, and authentic to the author's talents, abilities, and writing style.
Ethical Dimensions: Students presented a belief that writing the admissions essay using AI would be dishonest and unethical and would tarnish the integrity of the application process.
Pride in Personal Accomplishment: An overwhelming sentiment from students presented the notion of meaningful accomplishment writing a personal admissions essay, which they view as a necessary part of the college admissions experience.
These data trends highlight that on one hand AI is starting to be normalized in many aspects of student schoolwork, in the college essay there remains a sacred ground where authenticity and personal effort are highly valued.
The Benefits of AI Assistance in Essay Writing
Overcoming Writer's Block
AI can help students take that first step with prompts, outlines, or sample sentences, so that the starting point of an essay is less overwhelming.
Enhancing Technical Quality
Some grammar or style checkers can also help students with the technical quality of their writing. This is particularly crucial for non-native speaking students or students with learning differences.
Enhancing Productivity
AI tools provide immediate feedback and suggestions during the writing process, allowing students to quickly adapt how they are considering their writing. It also eliminates the need to wait for feedback from mentors or teachers and therefore enhances productivity in the writing process.
Accessibility
For some students who struggle with writing as a process, AI tools may serve as positive empowerment tools that help assist and level the playing field.
Exposure to New Ideas
AI tools can provide alternative ways of thinking about a topic which prompts students to extend their thinking and consider different perspectives they may not have considered before.
The Risks and Drawbacks of Using AI for College Essays
Loss of Authentic Voice
Admissions officers increasingly report that essays may feel more whitewashed, formulaic, and lifeless in comparison to genuine human experience. Essays produced by AI often employ vocabulary and structures that are not consistent with learning experiences of 17- and 18-year-olds so obvious they present a fictitious person.
Ethical and Academic Integrity Issues
Numerous students and educators contend that falsely representing AI-generated content as a student’s work is cheating. Colleges may interpret this as a violation of an honor code, which could lead to rejection of admission application or any further action.
Erosion of Critical Skills
When students rely on AI to create or substantially alter essays, they are significantly undermining their development of important skills like critical thinking, self-reflection, and effective communication that they will need to thrive not only in college, but beyond.
Detection and Consequences
Colleges and scholarship organizations are using software powered by artificial intelligence (AI) to detect essays that may potentially be authored by a machine. In one instance, an organization suggested that 42% of almost 1,000 scholarship essays it reviewed exhibited evidence of AI authorship. Questions are now being raised about authenticity, trust, and fairness in the admissions process.
Potential for Plagiarism
AI tools usually produce content that closely mirrors existing sources, increasing the risk of unintentional plagiarism which is why colleges employ Plagiarism checkers as well.
The Perspective of Admissions Officers and Educators
Admissions professionals and educators are becoming increasingly concerned about the consequences of AI on the college essay. Many express observing a departure from the "humanity" of essays, with more formulaic structures and a tendency to repetitively utilize unfamiliar vocabulary. Some experts expressed worry that if colleges were unable to establish the authenticity of essays, they might eliminate the essay requirement entirely.
These educators are also now thinking about how to teach students criteria around ethically using AI. Some think of AI as the most recent version of writing assistance, such as spell checkers or thesauruses,others believe that the stakes are much higher when considering personal statements or admissions essays.
Ethical Guidelines and Best Practices for AI Use
Given that AI can be complicated when producing essay writing, what is ethical use? Most colleges and experts recommend the following best practices:
Use AI for Brainstorming and Support: Generally, we believe it is appropriate to use AI to help generate ideas or to check grammar or make suggestions, but ethically, it is improper to write a significant portion of the essay from AI.
Draft from your own ideas: The substantive ideas, voice, and personal storytelling must come from the student and not from the machine.
Use Human Feedback: Teachers, counselors, and mentors can give students feedback that AI cannot, which helps students improve their essays and still be genuine.
Report AI Use if necessary: If a college does ask about AI use, students should feel comfortable reporting their use of AI or technology tools honestly.
Don't fabricate experiences: Never use AI to fabricate experiences or represent yourself to be someone you are not.
The Future of the College Essay in the Age of AI
The future of the college essay is unpredictable as AI advances. Some predict that colleges will move away from essays altogether, as they cannot guarantee authenticity and will resort to interviews, in-person writing samples, or whatever else seems fair. Others feel that the college essay will still be around, but it will have more strictures and more detectors.
As we move forward, the unanimous agreement is that the essay is an opportunity to communicate students' stories and experiences. Introducing AI as part of a writing process for a college essay is ultimately a personal decision. The outcome is shaped by your values, the values and policies of your academic institution and the continually shifting landscape of higher education. AI can definitely add to the efficiency, access, and technical assistance of the process. The trade-offs in still maintaining authenticity, potential ethical breaches, and losing the very skill the college essay is designed to advocate for must be considered.
The fact remains, the strongest college essays will be the ones that are obviously human, with unlimited depth of personal perspective, that have a voice of their own, and that reflect their true selves. AI can help edit and inspire, not a replacement for your story.
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