I Quit Teaching Because of ChatGPT

LLMs and student learning

• Many worry that students will offload thinking and writing to LLMs, skipping the “cognitive workout” needed to build real skills.
• Others see LLMs as powerful, patient tutors and editors that can lower barriers to learning, especially for those who struggle with traditional schooling.
• Several compare LLMs to calculators: useful once fundamentals are mastered, harmful if used before basic skills are learned. Others argue this is a false equivalence because LLMs can generate entire essays, not just answers.
• Some note that younger people already struggle with focus, reading long texts, and analytical thinking; LLMs may exacerbate this trend but are likely a symptom, not the root cause.

Cheating, assessment, and academic standards

• Many see current assignment and grading structures as brittle: anything that can be done asynchronously and alone is easily outsourced to AI.
• Proposed responses include more in‑class, pen‑and‑paper or supervised writing; low‑stakes frequent writing; and public/peer‑visible work to discourage generic AI output.
• There is concern that students can now obtain degrees with shallow understanding, as AI-generated work is “good enough” to pass.
• Others argue this simply exposes how much schoolwork was already busywork.

Teachers adapting with AI

• Some teachers report using LLMs to generate quiz questions, lesson plans, reports, and feedback, freeing time for direct student interaction.
• Others feel grading AI‑written essays is demoralizing and unsustainable, prompting thoughts of quitting.

Tools vs crutches: analogies to other tech

• GPS, backup cameras, calculators, and spellcheck are cited as precedents: tools that atrophy some skills but increase safety and efficiency.
• Counterpoint: these tools are narrow, predictable, and easily supervised; LLMs are broad, hard to detect, and can replace entire cognitive tasks.

Equity, class divides, and long‑term effects

• Some predict a split: those who use AI as an amplifier of existing skills vs those who use it as a crutch and never develop depth.
• There is debate over whether AI will democratize high‑quality tutoring or entrench new forms of dependence and control, especially given corporate ownership and opacity.