Is AI destroying higher ed?
“Students use AI to write papers, professors use AI to grade them, degrees become meaningless, and tech companies make fortunes. Welcome to the death of higher education.”- Ronald Purser
Wow, I just saw this quote in the attached article. It is a long read, but worth it. There is no shortage of AI articles in the news. We have published several in HigherEdRisk ranging from AI governance to mental health chatbots.
While our focus is risk-based, I do think we have to ask ourselves, what is the real reason why we use AI? Is it to be more efficient? Is it because everyone else is? Is it because, if we don't embrace it, we are seen as a Luddite? Is it because it flatters us, making us feel special?
As 2025 comes to a close. I think we all have to ask ourselves: are we losing a bit of ourselves each day as AI becomes increasingly integrated into every part of our society?
For example, I use Grammarly (for the dreaded semi-colon and other minor punctuation) for my LinkedIn posts. I often receive this "response" whenever I share an opinion-"Do you want to sound more confident?" How about I want to sound like I want to promote dialogue and not be so absolute?
To finish off with another quote from Ronald Purser's article:
"This erosion is already visible in classrooms. Students arrive fluent in prompting but hesitant to articulate their own ideas. Essays look polished yet stilted—stitched together from synthetic syntax and borrowed thought. The language of reflection— I wonder, I struggle, I see now —is disappearing. In its place comes the clean grammar of automation: fluent, efficient, and empty."
What are your thoughts? Are we losing our humanity? Please share in the comments.
PS: And, if you like to read magazines that still have a human feel, follow HigherEdRisk. I admit it's hard not want to get 100% from the proofreader, but I have learned that being at 93% makes me human. And, at HigherEdRisk, you have two humans who edit the magazine, and we will keep it that way.
https://lnkd.in/gCq6kxcW
