Artificial intelligence is not some new, crazy idea from the last decade. It is an idea that has been around since the 1950s, when a scientist, Alan Turing, asked the question, “Can computers think?” This idea led many scientists and countries on a path of development, culminating in the successful development of artificial intelligence and its public introduction by 2022. Since its introduction to the public, it has become integral to our education system. With the ongoing evolution of AI and its integration into society, we must assess the impacts it will have on us and the world.
For students, AI can create personalized learning experiences, provide efficient study tools, and offer free or low-cost academic support. This can help students free up mental space to engage with the content actively, devote more time to subjects they are struggling with, and participate more in their community. When used appropriately, it can provide struggling students with incredible resources of support they would otherwise be unable to access.
Instructors can also see benefits in using AI; it can automate their administrative tasks, increase productivity, suggest creative new ways of learning, and improve student assessment. With the backlog and stress of admin tasks taken off professors’ shoulders, they will have increased capacity to engage with students and content, as well as productivity.
This use of AI for students and instructors could be instrumental in advancing our education system, increasing educational engagement, and giving everyone a greater chance at success and productivity. With all these positive effects of using AI, it can be easy to skim by without looking too closely, but if we all do that, we would be overlooking some of the harm AI causes.
For students, the use of AI can lead them down an isolating path. With increased reliance on AI for communication and academic support, students experience reduced face-to-face social interactions, which can diminish interpersonal skills, lead to a sense of loneliness, and negatively affect emotional intelligence. Additionally, students are more likely to feel overwhelmed when they rely on a technology they do not have adequate literacy with, which can negatively affect their mental health and academic performance.
For instructors, AI can pose a threat to future jobs in education, show bias, and provide answers riddled with errors. With advances in AI making it a powerful learning tool, there is concern that it will replace educators. AI technology is likely to provide students and educators with biased information, show bias against students unfairly based on race and gender, and perpetuate stereotypes. With AI prioritizing speed, there is often little emphasis on accuracy, leading instructors to present information to students that has not been properly fact-checked, resulting in widespread misinformation.
It is widely known that AI data centers use large amounts of water and emit carbon dioxide. Studies have found that by 2030, with the current rate of growth for AI, there would be an annual amount of carbon dioxide sent into the atmosphere that would be equivalent to adding 5 to 10 million cars to U.S. roadways. These studies also found that these data centers would drain 731 to1,125 million cubic meters of water per year, which would be equivalent to the annual water usage of 6 to 10 million American households. While these AI companies are striving to have faster grid decarbonization and reduce the water needs of the technology, the rapid growth could put these goals out of reach.
This is just a small look into a much larger conversation surrounding AI and its effects on our students, educators, and our planet. With every advancement in our technologies, it is our responsibility to evaluate the benefits and damages to ourselves, society, and our planet.
References
Klimova, Blanka, and Marcel Pikhart. “Exploring the effects of artificial intelligence on student and academic well-being in higher education: a mini-review.” Frontiers in psychology vol. 16 1498132. 3 Feb. 2025, doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1498132
https://provost.wsu.edu/policies/artificial_intelligence/benefits-of-ai
https://st.llnl.gov/news/look-back/birth-artificial-intelligence-ai-research
https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2025/11/roadmap-shows-environmental-impact-ai-data-center-boom
