Quizlet report: students more likely to see AI as beneficial to learning than teachers

While 82% of college students say they've used AI technologies, just 58% in high school say the same

Artificial intelligence is touching literally every industry right now, from healthcare to logistics to eductation: globally, the AI in edtech market size is expected to grow exponentially, from $3.65 billion in 2023 to $92.09 Billion by 2033.

Yet, not all levels of education are adopting these technologies at the same pact, according to the second annual State of AI in Education report from global learning platform Quizlet, which it released last week.

The report, which surveyed 1,001 students aged 14 to 22, and 500 teachers at either the high school or college level, found that while 82% of college students say they've used AI technologies, that number drops to just 58% of high school students. In addition, while 41% of college students say that their institutions have established a code of conduct regarding AI use, that number was a mere 18% for school students. 

Yet, high school students are the ones who are most interested in using AI, as the survey found that high school teachers are more likely to be approached by their students with permission-based AI questions, 67% versus 52% of college professors. And for good reason, as the technology is already showing outcomes in higher education: 63% of college students reported AI technologies have had a higher positive impact on their efficiency, while 59% said it helped with learning support, and 52% noted it gave them access to personalized learning or study materials.

Nearly half, 46%, of students of all ages who use AI technology for school say they use it to do research, while 38% use it to summarize or synthesize information, and 31% say they use AI to generate study guides or materials.

From the educator point of view, however, the picture is less rosy, with only 52% saying they had positive or neutral feelings about the technology's impact on learning. In fact, the percentage of educators who say AI will have a positive impact dropped 13 percentage points from 2023 to 2024, from 51% to 38%. In addition, only 28% of high school and college teachers said AI technologies positively impacted their students' overall learning experience, while 46% of students reported the same.

Students are also more likely than teachers to say AI creates a more equitable education system, with 41% of students saying so, as compared to 33% of teachers.

For high school teachers, they see the greater impact of AI on their students' overall learning experience is it giving the students more confidence, with 58% citing this; in higher education, meanwhile, 49% of professors reported that the number one impact is that students learn new concepts faster.

"College students are adopting AI at a rapid pace, illustrating that this technology isn't a trend but rather a profound shift in how they learn and engage with curriculum," Meghann Lomas, Sr. Director of Product at Quizlet, said in a statement. 

"Students want to use AI responsibly, and guidance from educators and administrators, along with the edtech companies building these solutions, can help them."

(Image source: managedoutsource.com)