AI and school assignments
An AI tool can produce a fluent paragraph in seconds. That does not tell us whether the student has read the text, understood the question, or learned to explain an idea. Those are the skills an English assignment is meant to develop.
Start with the assignment rules
Read the teacher’s instructions before using a tool. If they do not say whether AI is allowed, ask the teacher what uses are permitted and whether they must be disclosed. Do not submit AI-generated writing as your own work. A school may have more specific rules: for example, East York Collegiate Institute says AI-generated material may be submitted for assessment only when the teacher explicitly allows it for that assignment.
If the teacher permits it, use it to practise
- Ask for an explanation of a grammar rule, then write your own examples and check them.
- Ask for practice questions on a topic you have studied, then answer without looking at a generated answer.
- Ask what is unclear in a paragraph you wrote, then decide yourself whether the criticism is fair and revise in your own words.
Check any factual claim against the assigned reading or a reliable source. Keep your own notes and drafts so you can explain how you arrived at your answer. Avoid putting a student’s personal information or private schoolwork into an unapproved tool.
A better test of understanding
Close the tool. Can you explain the point aloud, point to the detail in the reading that supports it, and write it in your own words? If not, there is still learning to do. That is a useful place to begin a tutoring lesson.
For current school guidance, see the TDSB’s digital learning tools page and, as one school’s example, East York Collegiate Institute’s assessment policy. Your teacher’s instructions for the particular assignment still govern your work.