Will AI Replace Human Tutors and Teachers?

 

Written by Benjamin Fouché

There is no denying that over the past few years, AI has heavily impacted our culture.  With the introduction of sophisticated tools such as ChatGPT, the academic world has been confronted with a very tricky dilemma.  Teachers are struggling to define what is acceptable and unacceptable when it comes to AI assistance.  Some are not opposed to its use (under specific conditions) while others argue against students using it entirely.  And of course, many students are fully taking advantage of these tools while their teachers continue to argue.  Yet there is a question that will likely linger even well after the dust of this 21^st century pandemonium has subsided.  Will AI eventually replace human tutors—and perhaps even teachers?  Indeed, such a question cannot be answered easily, as there are many variables to consider.  Nevertheless, it is certainly a question of grave importance—and especially one that should not be disregarded as simply fearmongering.

First, let us examine what we—at the moment—do currently know.  According to a study conducted by Intelligent.com, it appears that students do in fact favor ChatGPT over human tutors.  Out of the 3,017 high school/college students surveyed, 85.38% preferred using ChatGPT.  Likewise, out of the 3,234 parents of younger children surveyed, 96% preferred ChatGPT over human tutors.  Intelligent.com thus explains that “9 in 10 prefer studying with ChatGPT over studying with a tutor.”  But this still doesn’t tell us enough.  Specifically, for what subjects do students depend upon ChatGPT?  According to the same study, Math and “Hard” Sciences were the top two.  English and Art/Music were the least common subjects for which students consulted ChatGPT (Intelligent.com).  Perhaps this offers a glimmer of hope to tutors in the branches of humanities, which—as the name implies—has a far greater emphasis on the human aspect.

Still, what is incredible (and equally frightening) about these trends is that ChatGPT was only released as recently as November 30^th, 2022 (Marr).  One can only imagine where the technology will be a decade from now—and how it will impact schooling across the globe.

Intelligent.com’s article goes on to share the sentiment of a student named Johnson Adegoke: “As a current student using ChatGPT, I have found it to be a helpful and convenient tool for studying […] Unlike seeing a tutor, ChatGPT is available 24/7 and can answer my questions immediately” (Intelligent.com).  Once more, it should be noted that this is far more representative of Math and “Hard” Science subjects, which possess problems that only have objective/right-or-wrong answers.  Thus, further studies would need to be conducted as to how efficient ChatGPT and other AI tools are at helping students with subject/opinionated answers to questions (such as one’s own personal take on a piece of literature or music). 

Notwithstanding, the student’s response definitely gives an insight into a much larger trend—and the thought process of many students alike.  They see convenience and instant answers to their academic inquiries.  Even so, where students see a savior, many teachers see a machine lacking the most important human elements.  In an article advocating for human teachers over artificial intelligence, author Sarah Hanawald explains the advantages of human beings as instructors when she says:

AI tools can help provide personalized learning for a student but only when directed to do so by a skilled and empathetic teacher. AI cannot discern emotions beyond a coded response, and even a bot “trained” to be supportive will be limited when compared to a human teacher […] Teachers are flexible in adapting their approach to their students’ varying needs and learning styles, flexing their ability to read their students’ emotions, and respond accordingly with empathy and support (Hanawald).

While this may certainly ring true to many teachers and tutors alike, there are others who argue that the cost of AI services such as ChatGPT is far cheaper than tutors—many of whom charge hourly rates (Intelligent.com).  Thus, although the human element of a tutor is undeniable—parents and students will likely choose the cheaper route—especially with the rising costs of basic necessities thanks to inflation (Chiwaya; Milden).  However, it should be noted that many institutions offer free tutoring services to their students—meaning that pricey, hourly rates do not necessarily have to be a concern.  And, despite previous problems with funding, there have been recent efforts starting back during the 2020 pandemic to fund tutoring programs in schools by many state governments (Wall, et al.).

In addition to these concerns, Harvard University began to implement an AI instructor into their coding courses as recently as July of 2023 (NewsNation).  Moreover, Sal Khan of the extremely successful Khan Academy has also endorsed AI tutoring and believes it will have positive, revolutionary impacts on global education (TED).  Still, others would disagree.  Special Education and Inclusive Learning states that AI cannot help teach children “soft skills” and “behavioral/emotional development.”  Furthermore, they claim that the development of emotional skills is also something AI cannot teach children (Special Education and Inclusive Learning).  Thus, it appears that many of the arguments coming from tutors and teachers alike revolve around AI’s lack of genuine empathy and moral support that a human can offer.  Conversely, those in favor of AI—especially students and parents alike—argue that AI is affordable and convenient.  This consequently leads to another question: is the sincere human element more important than expediency and lower prices?

            According to an article from the National Library of Medicine, a human teacher is not only a necessary element—but an extremely crucial one—in the social and emotional development of young students.  This is evident when the authors explain:

Teachers of young students are charged with the task of guiding students toward proficiency in a range of academic topics. At the same time, teachers in the early grades often directly and indirectly instruct students in social-emotional competence, such as how to get along with diverse peers and strategies to focus on and follow directions […] [T]eachers are prime candidates to consider as socializers of emotion-related behaviors (Valiente, et al.).

Again, the human aspect is indeed instrumental in the development of students.  Thus, to replace teachers and tutors with AI instructors would risk children learning and developing the aforementioned soft skills.  For indeed, if especially young students develop their social and emotional abilities through their relationship with human teachers, how will these soft skills develop if their teacher is merely a machine?  It doesn’t seem likely.

It’s also worth noting that as far back as 2014—before this new age of AI commenced—technology had already been a major concern for many people.  Morgan Hampton of Brigham Young University wrote about this at length in an article entitled “Technology: Is it making kids anti-social?”  One of the first problems Hampton addresses is the decline and absence of personal relationships.  She explains that such a void cannot be filled with technology, as “[r]elationships are essential; humans are social creatures. Human nature craves human interaction, and that interaction cannot be effectively replaced by technology” (Hampton).  Another critical factor Hampton brings up is low self-confidence resulting from excessive reliance on technology; she explains that “teaching children the value of personal relationships” is ultimately what will secure their future in a world where technology is central to daily life.

            But while it is quite encouraging to see many people recognizing the significance of human educators and their value in society, there still remain trends that paint a rather grim picture of the future of education.  For instance, Mark C. Perna of Forbes explains that it is a field that very few young people wish to venture into—and one of which few veteran teachers would recommend to younger generations.  Poor workplace environments, few benefits, and extremely low salaries are factors that have contributed to far less people seeking to become educators (Perna).    What’s equally worth noting is that, according to neaToday, current educators are already anticipating leaving their profession early while “[i]n the last 10 years alone, the number of people completing traditional teacher-prep programs has dropped by 35 percent” (Flannery).  It also does not help that educators—due to these shortages—are experiencing “[…] higher levels of anxiety, stress and burnout” (Walker). 

With this in mind, the question remains that if fewer people are becoming teachers—and many teachers are leaving their profession behind—will the implementation of AI instructors become more convenient and cost efficient?  Although it is too soon to fully answer such questions, these are scenarios that should nevertheless be paid close attention to as this decade continues to unfold.  Of course, and as noted earlier, AI may likely be used more heavily in certain branches of education than others.  Whereas Science and Math are shown to be ones for which students most frequently use ChatGPT, students are less likely to use AI assistance with English and Art/Music.  Thus, AI taking over tutoring roles in every field is not likely to happen all at once—nor equally.  But, with that being said, we already see major universities like Harvard implementing AI instructors; this should be concerning, as it certainly sets an historical precedent.  The day might come when some individuals propose AI as a solution to the increasing lack of educators.  Humanity is undoubtedly at a crossroads—and sooner or later, a choice will have to be made on how we wish to educate future generations.  And indeed, we will have to choose soon.

Works Cited:

“How AI Could Save (Not Destroy) Education.” TED, 1 May 2023, https://youtu.be/hJP5GqnTrNo?si=HfujAL2eecuZ_Fcr.

“New Survey Finds Students Are Replacing Human Tutors With ChatGPT.” Intelligent.com, 24 Oct. 2023, https://www.intelligent.com/new-survey-finds-students-are-replacing-human-tutors-with-chatgpt/.

“Why A.I will never replace teachers.” Special Education and Inclusive Learning, https://inclusiveteach.com/2023/07/08/why-a-i-will-never-replace-teachers/. Accessed 4 Mar. 2024.

“Will AI robots replace teachers in the classroom?” NewsNation, 7 July 2023, https://youtu.be/LPOUal0Xvz8?si=SDzKTDHN0OZT_Apo.

Aldeman, Chad. “Why Are Fewer People Becoming Teachers?” Education Next, 28 Sep. 2022, https://www.educationnext.org/why-are-fewer-people-becoming-teachers/.

Chiwaya, Nigel, et al. “Inflation in America: Where are prices rising and falling?” NBC News, 16 June 2022, https://www.nbcnews.com/data-graphics/inflation-tracker-how-much-prices-rising-us-consumers-n1296378.

Flannery, Mary Ellen. “Missing: Future Teachers in Colleges of Education.” neaToday, 29 Mar. 2022, https://www.nea.org/nea-today/all-news-articles/missing-future-teachers-colleges-education.

Hampton, Morgan. “Technology: Is it making kids anti-social?” The Daily Universe, 22 Aug. 2014, https://universe.byu.edu/2014/08/22/technology-is-it-making-kids-anti-social/.

Hanawald, Sarah.  “Why Teacher Intelligence Will Always Matter More Than Artificial Intelligence.” Educational Records Bureau, 12 Sep. 2023, https://www.erblearn.org/blog/ai-wont-replace-teacher-intelligence/#:~:text=AI%20tools%20can%20help%20provide,compared%20to%20a%20human%20teacher.

Marr, Bernard. “A Short History Of ChatGPT: How We Got To Where We Are Today.” Forbes, 19 May 2023, https://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2023/05/19/a-short-history-of-chatgpt-how-we-got-to-where-we-are-today/?sh=574cf95a674f.

Milden, Dashia, et al. “Inflation Rose in January to 3.1%, Dimming the Prospects for Interest Rate Cuts in March.” CNET, 14 Feb. 2024, https://www.cnet.com/personal-finance/banking/advice/inflation-interest-rates/.

Perna, Mark C. “No More Teachers: The Epic Crisis Facing Education In 2024.” Forbes, 3 Jan. 2024, https://www.forbes.com/sites/markcperna/2024/01/03/no-more-teachers-the-epic-crisis-facing-education-in-2024/.

Valiente, Carlos, et al. “Emotion-Related Socialization in the Classroom: Considering the Roles of Teachers, Peers, and the Classroom Context.” National Library of Medicine, 1 Mar. 2021, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7041856/.

Wall, Patrick, et al. “Tutoring help reaches few students despite nationwide push.” Chalkbeat, 10 March 2023, https://www.chalkbeat.org/2023/3/10/23629236/learning-loss-tutoring-students-pandemic-funds-covid/.

Walker, Tim. “Getting Serious About Teacher Burnout.” neaToday, 12 Nov. 2021, https://www.nea.org/nea-today/all-news-articles/getting-serious-about-teacher-burnout.