Rethink Learning Labs

There are three things - regarding AI - that students tend to do more often as they get older. The first is use AI for help on their homework. What do you think the other two are? Check back Friday and Monday for more!

Image description: a groovy yellow and orange splash of colors, with a fun fact inside. The fun fact reads "Did you know? The older students get, the more likely they are to use AI for help on their homework." There is a citation which reads "Source: Schwartz H.L. and Diliberti M.K. More Students Use AI for Homework, and More Believe It Harms Critical Thinking (2026) p 10-12"

Image description: a geometrically interesting purple background with a box that has a purple lightbulb and a fun fact. The fun fact reads "Did you know? Students in middle school were more likely than older students to say that their school had no rule about AI usage, or that they didn't know if their school had a rule about AI usage." There is a citation which reads "Source: Schwartz H.L. and Diliberti M.K. More Students Use AI for Homework and More Believe It Harms Critical Thinking (2026) p. 10.

It's !
The older students get, the more likely they'll report that rules for AI use depends on the teacher or professor. This is especially true for college students.

Image description: a tan background with leaves and question marks. To the right there is a cartoon drawing of a woman pondering the fun fact, which is to her left. The fun fact reads "Did you know? Over half of all college students said that the rules for AI usage depended on the teacher. Some allowed it, others did not." There is a citation which reads "Source: Schwartz H.L. and Diliberti M.K. More Students Use AI for Homework, and More Believe It Harms Critical Thinking (2026). p 9-10."

The higher the grade level, the more likely a student is going to say that the rules about AI usage varies depending on the teacher.

Image description: a teal background with a yellow beam being shined from a megaphone. Inside the beam is a fun fact that reads "Did you know? Older students tended to say that rules about AI usage depended on the teacher." There is a citation that says "Source: Schwartz H.L. and Diliberti M.K. More Students Use AI for Homework, and More Believe It Harms Critical Thinking (2026). p 9-10."

Did you guess correctly from last week?

Image description: An orange background with a cartoon megaphone in the corner. There is a speech bubble with a fun fact reading "Did you know? If students reported that their school had a schoolwide rule about AI use, it was more likely going to be prohibiting AI than allowing it." There is a citation reading "Source: Schwartz H.L., and Diliberti M.K., More Students Use AI for Homework, and More Believe It Harms Critical Thinking (2026). p 9-10."

It's !
One third of students report that their school has a schoolwide rule about AI use.
Do you think more schools have rules prohibiting AI, or allowing it?
Find out the answer on Monday.

Image description: A teal background with raised circles the same color as the background itself.
There is a little cartoon megaphone in the corner and a speech bubble coming out of it. The speech bubble has a fun fact which reads "Did you know? One third of students said that their school has a schoolwide policy about AI use for homework." There is a citation which reads "Source: Schwartz H.L. and Diliberti M.K. More Students Use AI for Homework, and More Believe It Harms Critical Thinking (2026). p 9-10."

Whether students believe that AI use is cheating depends on what they're using the AI to do.

Image description: a beige background with a picture of a kitten. To the right is a fun fact which reads "Did you know? Most students feel that using AI to clarify assignments or brainstorm isn't cheating. However, they think using AI to write or get answers could be considered cheating." There is a citation which reads: "Source: Schwartz H.L. and Diliberti M.K. More Students Use AI for Homework, and More Believe It Harms Critical Thinking (2026). p 7-9."

The four most common ways students use AI (from most to least common) are: Getting better explanations for their assignments, brainstorming, looking up facts, and drafting or revising their writing. Did you guess any of these?

Image description: A yellow background. There is a large three-dimensional looking question mark on one side. On the other is a fun fact that reads "Did you know? There are four things students use AI for more than getting answers for their homework: getting better explanations for their assignments, brainstorming, looking up facts, and drafting or revising their writing." There is a citation which reads "Source: Schwartz H.L. and Diliberti M.K., More Students Use AI for Homework, and More Believe It Harms Critical Thinking (2026). p 7-9."

It's !
Only around a quarter of students are using AI to explicitly get answers to their homework. But that's not the biggest reason they use it. What do you think the reason is? Find out on Monday if you were right.

Image description: An orange background with a hollow question mark on the right, surrounded by three little black question marks. On the left is a light bulb above a fun fact that reads "Did you know? Roughly a quarter of all students use AI to get answers for their homework." There is a citation which reads "Source: Schwartz H.L., and Diliberti M.K., More Students Use AI for Homework, and More Believe It Harms Critical Thinking (2026). p 7-9."

When students use AI, they mostly use chatbots. And most of the time, it's ChatGPT.

Image Description:
A yellow background with a lightbulb on one side and a question mark on the other.
In the middle is a photograph of a person gardening, and a box with a fun fact reading "Did you know? The AI tool that students use the most is ChatGPT. As of December 2025, over half of all students use ChatGPT." There is a citation which reads "Source: Schwartz H.L., and Diliberti M.K., More Students Use AI for Homework, and More Believe It Harms Critical Thinking (2026). p 5-7."