Say you want to persuade your parents to get a puppy. Five years ago, you may have done extensive research on Google, made a list of pros that heavily outweighed the list of cons, presented the information to your parents and then hoped for the best.  

Now, with an effective command on Chat AI, you can simply ask “write a persuasive paragraph to convince my parents to get a puppy.” Within ten seconds, you will have a perfectly articulated list of reasons why you deserve a puppy.

“Not only are puppies adorable and fun to play with, but they also have been proven to have a positive impact on mental health. “ Chat GPT states. 

Chat AI, also known as Chat GPT, uses pattern matching and machine learning algorithms to mimic an actual human conversation. This isn’t just a small step-up from Google. Chat AI can write a college thesis, debug code, create a history test and analyze experts all within milliseconds. 

The main difference between Google and Chat GPT is that Google will give you millions of websites that you manually search to find the answer. Now, with Chat AI, the algorithm gives the exact answer you’re looking for and creates it as a conversation that’s easy to understand.

“If you don’t know something, it points you in the right direction; it’s better than Google,” said an OPHS senior, who preferred to stay anonymous. 

Chat AI’s ability to generate human-like text has caused some concern that the technology could replace humans; however, its current stage lacks ethical decision-making and tangible human empathy. This new piece of technology has mixed opinions between students and teachers.

“I think it’s making people lack the creative side of them. It’s making people lazy and it’s taking away jobs and stuff like that,” junior Ava Harris said. 

Chat AI also has implications in the classroom. Students in universities have confessed to using Chat AI to write papers. As a result, university professors are redesigning their courses geared towards more handwritten assignments, exams, and papers. Some public schools in New York City and Seattle have banned the tool on school WiFi networks. OPUSD has even blocked Chat AI on Chromebooks. For some, ChatGTP is a threat, for others, it’s a resource.

“Sometimes I use ChatGTP to quickly get a definition of a word or a chemistry definition because it’s easier to understand than Google. It’s also super useful for synonyms and can give me a list of alternate words I can use. I think it’s really horrible that people are using it to just copy and paste an English essay, because it’s obvious that a robot wrote it,” an anonymous OPHS student said.

With this new groundbreaking technology, it could be a concern for the future of English education and for the humanities. What’s stopping students from just copying and pasting the AI generated into their own essay? Can this technology produce groundbreaking, human discussions on the construct of moral philosophy and debates over the future of world politics?

“This technology has some groundbreaking implications in both the English classroom and for the humanities at large. I’m cautiously optimistic that I will be able to utilize it purposefully in my own classroom,” English teacher and Journalism Adviser Nicole Carter said. “I recognize the issue it will cause in terms of cheating and work integrity, but I also see the benefit in this technology. I can see it being used effectively to assist with comprehension or to generate ideas. The technology is not going away – it will only continue to get better. I think that we are at a turning point in terms of what that means for critical thinking skills and what that means for how humans work together.”