AI usage linked to higher homework scores but lower exam performance

Research indicates that while artificial intelligence can improve homework performance, it may negatively impact exam results due to cognitive offloading. A 30-month study of over 26,000 Chinese secondary students found that AI usage increased homework scores by 18 per cent and reduced completion time by approximately 30 per cent. However, these students saw a decline in exam performance; after two years, scores on high-school entrance exams fell by 24 per cent and college entrance exams by 18 per cent.

A similar study involving nearly 1,000 Turkish high schoolers showed that students using conventional AI tutors scored 48 per cent higher during mathematics practice, but scored 17 per cent lower on exams once the AI was removed. Researchers suggest that AI tutors designed with guardrails—providing hints rather than direct answers—may mitigate these effects, as they boosted practice scores by 127 per cent without the subsequent decline in exam performance.