The most unexpected thing I've learned in T-STEM was the importance of English, and writing. The importance often overlaps with why you shouldn't use AI for English class.


Multiple reasons to not use generative AI for English:

- If you use it to generate ideas, this impairs your skills as a critical thinker, and researcher. It's important to be able to generate new ideas since ChatGPT can overlook things (it isn't very original, by definition), can be vague, and doesn't have access to all the content (ex. a book w/o an online copy, your personal stories, concept of current society and culture, non-public research, anything beyond its update year). It is best to practice doing this yourself and not relying on GPT, even if right now it seems to get the job done.

- If you use it to understand text, I wouldn't suggest it unless you are really struggling. Reading comprehension is a skill I overlooked, and it is hard to learn it right before SAT. Learning to see clues AND being able to do it fast is something you have to practice. This will be especially important for your junior year (AP Lang) where you will have to analyze text (& generate ideas!) often in a short amount of time and write an analysis essay on it. That said, you can use it cautiously, but smartly: I'd suggest asking ChatGPT to highlight clues and phrases to help you learn what to look out for.

- If you use it to write sentences, you will learn less about writing. This includes grammar skills and spelling, but more importantly, VOICE! Your unique style of writing will develop less, and ChatGPT's style is actually really obvious, and VERY dull. "Using ChatGPT can sometimes hinder my writing voice by introducing a more generic tone that may overshadow my unique style and personal expression."

- In addition to voice, it is ESSENTIAL to learn how to elaborate. This is different from 'yapping': saying meaningless, tenuous words. Elaboration is important, yappery is not. If you want to be a politician, maybe yappery is good, but if you want to be a scholar, its bad. That was a bit of yappering right there. Now I will elaborate on why it is important to elaborate: It helps you develop reasoning skills, along with the ability to make logical connections. It is the skill to predict and address "why?" and "how?" that is continuously asked by the reader. The reason learning to write, and to elaborate, is so important is because it helps you convince your audience of your argument. This is a skill you use in debate, daily conversation, and to make people believe you. Don’t sleep on these skills! It is useful for any job, even in group projects.

- I remember Mr. Ngyuen saying he notices improvements in writing over the year. If he doesn't see that, you're likely to get a worse grade. Also, it makes it less enjoyable to be a teacher. Imagine reading 5 essays with the same tone and same, generic ideas. If everyone used it, this scenario is basically guaranteed. A mad teacher often means less tolerance on your sweet GPA.

- It is easy to get caught, especially if you don't rephrase enough. Understand the importance of academic integrity! Teachers talk to each other, and those teachers will give you grades and write your recommendation letters. Not a good look, caused by an easily preventable act.

Simply put, it just makes you a bad writer and communicator, and teachers will not like you. Also, it is very obvious when you do use it for English.

How to use ChatGPT properly:

When you are using it for other classes, make sure they don't directly create content (especially when fact checking is important, like in history), and keep in mind it sucks at doing calculus & chemistry once the topics get harder.

Remember:

"Education is not the learning of facts, but the training of the mind to think."

If you rely on gpt to do the thinking for you, that ruins the purpose of school.

Thinking and struggling is valuable!