Editorial

Artificial Intelligence: 

Creativity Booster or Thief?

By Joseph Tejada

Let’s face it. In this modern, technology-dominated era, the large majority of people, specifically teenage students, have used artificial intelligence (AI) at least once in their lives. Some people use AI for studying while others might use it to come up with ideas or recipes. Others might use it to create funny videos, or even just to learn something new. Whatever the use may be, there’s no denying that over recent years, AI platforms such as ChatGPT, DeepSeek, and Gemini have drastically risen in popularity. Although students might argue AI platforms like Grammarly and Gauth benefit their learning experience, teachers might say that platforms like ChatGPT’s easy accessibility motivates students to use AI to cheat on assignments. AI has a negative reputation among teachers as many students use it to do the work for them, essentially skipping out on learning. Some people even use AI constantly as a “copilot” on a day-to-day basis. But as AI’s impact on how students function in their daily school lives grows, an intriguing question arises: Is AI really enhancing the creativity of students, or quietly taking it away? To answer this question, we must dive deeper into the ways school-age students use AI, how often they do so, and the effects it has on their social lives.

Let’s start with the good side of things. To put into perspective just how widespread AI usage among young students and even educators has become, we can look at the numbers. A CDT article reveals a shocking study result: “...85 percent of teachers and 86 percent of students report that they have used AI in the past school year…” (Center for Democracy and Technology 2025) The numbers uncover the true magnitude of the effect of modern technology in schools. However, another study on two thousand students found that AI positively affected a lot of them. “The research, carried out on 2000 students in the UK, found that 90% of students have developed a new skill related to schoolwork by using AI.” (Forbes 2025) Additionally, AI comes with a variety of benefits for students who use it, such as specific student-tailored learning based on their strengths and weaknesses and individualization, to name a few. “By analyzing student performance data, AI-powered tools can determine which students need support to improve their learning experience…” (Walden University 2025) If used correctly, artificial intelligence has the potential to be a powerful, beneficial tool in the classroom for students and teachers alike. 

But do the positives of AI truly outweigh the negatives? From the teacher perspective, plagiarism might be increasing along the growth of AI usage. Although some teachers use AI for lesson planning and workplace tasks, they fear that it steals creativity and critical thinking skills from students. “Most teachers said AI streamlines routine tasks. But they feared increased plagiarism on the part of students and diminished student creativity.” (Los Angeles Times 2025) Furthermore, some students who have used AI for learning surprisingly report the same. “Six in ten students also believe AI has negatively affected their learning in some way. A quarter say it makes schoolwork too easy, and 12% feel it limits their creativity.” (Forbes 2025) Dependency on AI to complete assignments is undoubtedly also rising. Moreover, AI is even starting to intrude on students’ relationships with teachers and their parents. “Half of students agree that using AI in class makes them feel less connected to their teacher…thirty-eight percent of students agree that it is easier for them to talk to AI than their parents.” (Center for Democracy and Technology 2025) These sources and studies illustrate how much students really rely on technology and AI, as well as how it affects areas in their daily lives outside of schoolwork.

All things considered, it is important to know that AI can revolutionize learning and classroom experiences. Nevertheless, it is even more important to keep in mind the large influence it has on many young people’s school and social lives. Whether AI impacts the creativity and other vital cognitive skills of students worldwide positively or negatively ultimately depends on one’s perspective and experiences. What do you think about the impact of artificial intelligence on student creativity?

Works Cited

Blume, Howard. “What Students and Teachers Have to Say about Using AI in the Classroom.” Los Angeles Times, 27 Sept. 2025, www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-09-27/what-students-teachers-say-about-ai-school.

“CDT Survey Research Finds Use of AI in K-12 Schools Connected to Negative Effects on Students, Including Their Real-Life Relationships.” Center for Democracy and Technology, 8 Oct. 2025, cdt.org/press/cdt-survey-research-finds-use-of-ai-in-k-12-schools-connected-to-negative-effects-on-students-including-their-real-life-relationships/.

Fitzpatrick, Dan. “Inside the Minds of AI-Native Students: 8 in 10 Use AI for Schoolwork.” Forbes, 15 Oct. 2025, www.forbes.com/sites/danfitzpatrick/2025/10/15/inside-the-minds-of-ai-native-students-8-in-10-use-ai-for-schoolwork/.

Walden University. “5 Pros and Cons of AI in the Education Sector.” Www.waldenu.edu, Walden University, 2025, www.waldenu.edu/programs/education/resource/five-pros-and-cons-of-ai-in-the-education-sector.