AI Use in Schools Linked to Declining Critical Thinking Skills

More than 80% of U.S. high school students now use generative AI tools like ChatGPT for schoolwork, according to College Board survey data—but mounting evidence suggests this widespread adoption may be undermining the very skills education aims to develop.

A comprehensive Brookings Institute study published in January analyzed interviews and focus groups with over 500 educators, parents, and students across 50 countries, alongside more than 400 existing studies. The researchers concluded that "risks of utilizing generative AI in children's education overshadow its benefits."

Why it matters

As schools rush to integrate AI without clear guardrails, students may be developing dependency rather than capability. The pattern mirrors historical failures in educational technology dating back a century, raising urgent questions about how to deploy powerful tools without atrophying the cognitive skills students need to become independent thinkers and problem-solvers.

The cognitive offloading problem

The concern centers on what researchers call "cognitive offloading"—outsourcing thinking to machines rather than developing internal capabilities. A February 2025 Microsoft study found AI use associated with worse judgment and critical thinking skills among students.

"The cognitive offloading, and the cognitive decline that's associated with that, the decline in critical thinking, and just even reading and writing and knowledge of basic facts—I absolutely believe that," Mary Burns, an education consultant and co-author of the Brookings study, told Fortune.

Neuroscientist Jared Cooney Horvath testified before Congress in January that Gen Z represents the first generation in modern history to be less cognitively capable than their parents, citing Program for International Student Assessment data. He attributed this decline to unfettered classroom technology access, noting correlations between increased screen time and lower standardized test scores.

A century-old pattern repeating

The current AI integration echoes failures dating to 1924, when Ohio State professor Sidney Pressey invented the first "teaching machine." Students learned to answer questions the device generated but couldn't apply that knowledge elsewhere—a pattern Horvath sees repeating with AI.

"The tools experts use to make their lives easier are not the tools children should use to learn how to become experts," Horvath said. "When you use offloading tools that experts use to make their lives easier as a novice, as a student, you don't learn the skill. You simply learn dependency."

A University of Wisconsin survey published last month found that among 303 in-state educators and 132 nationwide education professionals, fewer than one-third reported implementing policies or guardrails around AI use.

The implementation gap

Burns, who supports educational technology when properly deployed, argues the issue isn't technology itself but how it's integrated. Teachers are using AI to create lesson plans, and the technology offers genuine benefits—such as adjusting reading passage complexity for English language learners.

"To say that technologies are a failure is not true," Burns said. "To say technology is a mixed bag is true."

The challenge lies in distinguishing between personalizing learning—adapting instruction to individual student needs—and merely individualizing it, which isolates students without building transferable skills.

These findings were first reported by Fortune.