Does AI make educators doubt their judgment?

Send us Fan MailHighlights* Over-reliance on AI can subtly erode an educator's judgment and authenticity, leading to moments of self-doubt even for seasoned professionals who *know* their material is good.* Generative AI's confident fluency can lead students (and educators) to project human intent and authority onto it, making them susceptible to "persuasion-bombing" and outsourcing their own critical judgment.* Humans possess three irreplaceable qualities that AI cannot replicate: the capacity for *purpose* (asking 'why,' understanding consequences), *character* (authenticity, integrity, empathy), and the creation of *mental models* coupled with *interoception* (embodied sensing and understanding).* Allowing AI to constantly outsource writing or problem-solving can lead to "cognitive atrophy," where students feel worse about their own abilities and lose their unique voice, highlighting the need for "beneficial friction" in AI use.* Educators must design tasks that demand depth, care, and imagination, pushing students beyond cool AI answers to grapple with the underlying 'why,' consider real-world fallout, and cultivate their own transferable understandings and embodied learning.* Strategies for educators include "authoring first" before AI refinement, setting limits on AI usage, prioritizing human relationship, consciously noting what AI *cannot* do, and maintaining vigilant oversight.Mentioned* Deborah Ancona* Kate W. Isaacs* MIT Sloan Management Review* ChatGPT* BCG study* Renee Gosline