The debate surrounding AI in higher education often centres on issues like plagiarism and the potential for more efficient learning. However, it tends to overlook deeper concerns regarding the erosion of academic rigour and the exacerbation of inequality. It is vital to approach the integration of AI into education with caution, as there are two key issues that require attention.
Over the past year, I’ve attended several workshops on AI in teaching, where the focus was on its ability to help students summarise texts and paraphrase – functions generally deemed acceptable in academic guidelines. But while large language models are praised for streamlining research tasks and clarifying complex ideas, they overlook a crucial point: when AI generates summaries, students bypass the cognitive engagement required to actively interpret academic work.
It is precisely this engagement – the effort to comprehend, synthesise and relate ideas – that catalyses learning. The more students rely on AI for these tasks, the less they engage in the intellectual struggle that underpins meaningful academic growth. This tendency towards passive consumption of information risks reducing learning to a mere act of “sorting”, rather than critically engaging with complex ideas. As a result, it engenders intellectual laziness, not only in reading and writing but, more importantly, in thinking.
The process of learning involves much more than reading texts; it requires students to grapple with intricate concepts, compare and contrast ideas, and navigate the nuanced arguments presented in academic literature. This sharpens critical thinking, cultivates original thought, and builds the foundation for intellectual independence. The tools provided by AI, while efficient, cannot replicate this process of active cognitive engagement and may lead students to forgo the critical, though often lengthy and challenging, process of reflecting on their learning and identifying areas in need of further attention.
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This failure to actively engage with content could impair memory formation and hinder the consolidation of knowledge into long-term memory, ultimately undermining students’ ability to retain and apply what they have learned. It is no surprise to me that a recent study involving 494 university students found that frequent use of AI tools like ChatGPT correlates with reduced academic performance and poorer memory retention.
In short, the unchecked use of AI could ultimately undermine the very intellectual rigour that makes higher education meaningful.
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The other key issue we need to address around AI is that the digital literacy and technical expertise that are prerequisites for engaging with AI technologies are unevenly spread. That is because access to the education and training necessary to develop these skills is also unevenly distributed. Affluent individuals, households and organisations are better positioned to invest in and capitalise on AI technologies. This digital divide risks exacerbating pre-existing social and educational disparities.
Although many young people are familiar with digital tools such as smartphones and computers, their proficiency often remains limited to basic or social uses. Advanced competencies, including programming, data analysis and understanding AI technologies, are inconsistently taught and often inaccessible in underfunded or low-income schools.
A particular concern in universities is AI-mediated assessments: those who can afford advanced, paid-for versions of AI are better positioned to perform well in these, which is patently unfair.
To ensure that higher education remains a space for critical thought and inclusive opportunity, targeted interventions are required to ensure that disadvantaged students don’t suffer from barriers such as high costs, low digital literacy, poor internet access and limited availability of essential resources.
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We must balance the benefits of AI with safeguards that preserve academic rigour and address systemic inequities. Without this balance, we may be putting higher education’s role as a space for intellectual growth and inclusion at serious risk.
Zahid Naz is senior lecturer in academic and professional education at Queen Mary University of London.
