As students turn to AI tools for academic support, experts red flag over-reliance

Srinagar, Jan 30: The use of Artificial Intelligence tools by students in Kashmir is drawing attention, with differing views emerging from learners, educators and parents.

For students pursuing professional courses, AI has become a regular study companion. Huzaif, an engineering student at the Islamic University of Science and Technology (IUST), says, “I mostly use ChatGPT, Gemini and Blackbox to understand difficult concepts, reframe answers, make short notes, and sometimes just to check if I’m studying in the right direction.”

Recalling a stressful moment before an examination, Huzaif adds that AI played a crucial role in boosting his confidence. “Once, when I felt completely unprepared and stressed before an exam, AI helped me revise important topics in a few hours and gave me enough confidence to face the paper.”

Absaar, a Class 12 student, says AI has become an additional academic resource for him. “I began using AI tools to obtain study material. It has been very useful and has worked as a backup at times when classes are delayed or study notes are limited,” he says.

Postgraduate students dealing with dense academic material also acknowledge AI’s usefulness. Aalima, a postgraduate student at Kashmir University, says she turned to ChatGPT while reading a research paper on international organisations. “The paper had a lot of jargon and very complex concepts. ChatGPT simplified the language, explained the concepts clearly and made crisp notes, which helped me later during revision,” she says.

Huzaif believes AI has a broader relevance for students in the Valley. “For students in Kashmir, AI feels like a constant academic companion that keeps learning going even when everything else feels uncertain. Since it has been introduced recently at the academic level, it will help even more students,” he says.

However, educators caution that excessive reliance on AI could have long-term consequences. Dr Suhail Ahmad, Assistant Professor at Government College for Women warns that instant, AI-generated answers may discourage independent thinking. “When answers are generated instantly, students stop thinking, questioning, analysing and creating on their own. Over time, an AI-dependent generation may lose the capacity to think independently,” he says.

While acknowledging AI’s potential, Dr Ahmad stresses the need for responsible use. “If used judiciously, AI can be a formidable ally for students. Unfortunately, many students are renting their thinking faculty to AI, and this senseless use will gradually erode the foundations of independent thinking and creative expression,” he adds.

Similar concerns are echoed by schoolteachers. Saba Qayoom, a teacher at Kashmir Harvard, says the growing dependence of students on AI for writing is alarming. “I fear that tomorrow students may not even be able to write an application on their own,” she says, adding that even idea generation is increasingly being outsourced to AI instead of students using their cognitive abilities.

Parents, too, remain uneasy about the trend. Dr Tammana Tariq, a parent, says unchecked use of AI could hamper creativity among children. “AI is worrisome because it leads to kids not doing anything on their own, making them less creative. It is ruining thinking capabilities for those who use it blindly as a helping tool. They may not realise it now, but time will prove it,” she says.

AI is becoming part of how students learn, but its role remains uncertain. Striking the balance between support and over-reliance will define how effectively it shapes education.

By: Faria Bhat