AI tools make school harder for some students with writing difficulties
Real talk: Lots of students use artificial intelligence tools, like ChatGPT, Copilot, and Claude, to complete writing tasks for school – often without much guidance.
AI support: AI tools can be a big help for students with dysgraphia, dyslexia, language disorders, ADHD, and other communication challenges.
Yes, but: if misused, AI tools reduce students’ opportunities to:
- learn about the world;
- master skills;
- think for themselves; and
- write different kinds of sentences, paragraphs, and texts.
Misuse of AI can also get students in trouble at school, e.g., with:
- unattributed sources and plagiarism;
- hallucinations and fake citations;
- AI detection software;
- bias; and
- breaching school AI and assessment policies.
Schools are stepping in:
- Many schools (and universities) have responded to AI by moving more assessment tasks back into classrooms.
- Pen and paper in-class essays and exams are coming back into fashion.
Governments are acting, too: Case in point – according to media reports this week, in NSW, from next year:
- Year 12 students will be limited to one take-home assignment counting towards their HSC.
- More than 90% of a student’s final mark will be determined by their performance on supervised exams, tests and other in-person assessments.
- Take-home tasks will be capped at 15% of a student’s assessment mark: a maximum 7.5% of their final HSC score. (For now, some “major work” subjects like English Extension 2 will be quarantined from the new rules.)
What else is happening? A group of Australian educators, leaders and students released the Castlereagh Statement on AI. Among other things, it calls for a cross-sector commitment to:
- change the way we think about learning and assessment;
- prioritise student thinking, understanding, and skill development; and
- ensure assessments measure if learners have developed and can demonstrate knowledge and skills.
Why it matters: These developments – triggered by AI tools – make things more difficult for reluctant writers, including anxious students, and students with writing and other communication disorders.
Bottom line: As with exam adjustments and accommodations, AI tools:
- help some students with writing difficulties; but
- should never be used as a reason not to teach students to learn, think and write for themselves.
It’s never too late to learn how to think and write independently – especially for students who have become over reliant on AI tools for written school work.
We can help: If you – or anyone you know – would benefit from direct, sequenced, and structured writing instruction, check out our short school holiday programs and other writing resources.
More articles from us:
- Is your child or teenager a Reluctant Writer? (our free ebook)
- You can’t fix a student’s writing problems with school adjustments. But it’s never too late to teach them to write. Here’s how
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