{"id":25770,"date":"2025-11-25T11:29:47","date_gmt":"2025-11-25T03:29:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/varsity.com.cuhk.edu.hk\/?p=25770"},"modified":"2026-03-10T11:44:21","modified_gmt":"2026-03-10T03:44:21","slug":"genai-makes-me-feel-stupid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/varsity.com.cuhk.edu.hk\/index.php\/2025\/11\/genai-makes-me-feel-stupid\/","title":{"rendered":"GenAI Makes Me Feel Stupid"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

University students find GenAI useful for getting better grades and efficiency but not for learning. <\/strong>

By Justin Tai<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

University student Lau Tsz Ho used to spend hours or even days struggling to solve difficult science questions from classes. He might not find the answers in the end, but he still tried hard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, he just feeds the questions he cannot solve to Generative Artificial Intelligence, better known as GenAI, and gets instant answers with a smart device in his hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

University student Lau Tsz Ho uses GenAI to tackle science problems on his laptop<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cGenAI is not just a tool. It\u2019s my lifesaver. A messiah,\u201d the science major student says.

\u201cIf AI disappeared tomorrow, I\u2019d probably be kicked out of my university. Without it, my grades would fall, and I wouldn\u2019t be able to work out answers for my study on my own,\u201d the Year 2 student says. 

Students like Lau emphasise that they use GenAI in accordance with the course outlines provided by their universities for research and learning support. However, they admit they find that despite following these guidelines, they have doubts about whether they are truly learning or just prompting their way through GenAI.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI feel like I\u2019m not using my brain anymore. I feel dumber the more I rely on AI for schoolwork,\u201d he shares.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI basically just dump questions to GenAI and hope for the best. Whether it\u2019s about solving complex equations, writing lab reports, or preparing PowerPoint presentations,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSometimes I don\u2019t even know what the machine is talking about, but it sounds smart, so I go with it,\u201d he adds. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet, his grade cards show a different story. \u201cI used to get Bs and Cs. Now, I\u2019m seeing As and A-minuses, even though I\u2019m not actually learning anything,\u201d he says. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to a 2025 survey done by the UK-based Higher Education Policy Institute, 88 percent of students in  the UK had used GenAI tools for their assessments, from explaining complex concepts to brainstorming research ideas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Hong Kong, universities are responding to this shift cautiously. All eight public universities now offer access to an array of GenAI tools designed to support student learning, from writing assistants to coding tools. These tools are integrated under each institution\u2019s ethical guidelines, which emphasise transparency, academic integrity, and responsible use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another university student, Liu Sai Ho was sceptical about the use of GenAI at first, but his view changed after GenAI helped him score A- for an assignment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI was hesitant at first. GenAI gives you answers so fast that I don\u2019t need to process anything in my head. I was scared of losing my ability to think critically,\u201d the architecture major student says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Liu has integrated GenAI into his study after taking a digital literacy course which taught students how to use AI responsibly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFor my essay on the middle class and poverty in China, I used GenAI to scout sources and analyse the assigned article. It gave me ideas and helped me highlight key points. I ended up earning A- for that assignment,\u201d he says. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI feel guilty sometimes, however. I do half of the thinking, and AI does the rest. But it still feels like my learning is coming entirely from the machine. My creative thinking has definitely weakened,\u201d he says. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like Lau, Liu is drawn to using AI for better grades and efficiency. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDoing coursework ourselves surely helps hone our skills, but GenAI boosts my efficiency so much. I can now finish a paper in less than an hour. It used to take me a whole day. Sometimes its ideas are even better than mine. It\u2019s hard to turn the clock back,\u201d the Year 2 student says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt saves time and my grades have improved. But I wonder if I\u2019m trading away my ability to think for convenience. That\u2019s what makes me feel stupid, even when I\u2019m doing well in terms of my grades,\u201d he adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chu Ka Hai, a postgraduate student researching artificial intelligence, believes GenAI makes him do less thinking, despite his rich knowledge about technology. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI used to struggle a lot with long essays. So I turned to AI to help me check grammar and develop my ideas. After that, I couldn’t resist using it anymore,\u201d Chu shares. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI can\u2019t write grammatically correct paragraphs in English without GenAI now. I tried once doing it on my own, and my draft was full of grammar slips and awkward phrasing. It\u2019s easier to let AI sort it out for me. But that means I\u2019m not really learning English, processing information and forming the structure of a piece of writing myself,\u201d he explains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite the convenience, Chu is aware of the potential risks of the overreliance on GenAI.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAlthough I enjoy everything GenAI offers, I worry that we\u2019ll stop using our brains to think and learn. It could be dangerous for humankind and society if people aren\u2019t aware of what\u2019s happening or why, and just keep being fed information by AI,\u201d he adds. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Dr. Kecheng Fang from The Chinese University of Hong Kong says university courses and curriculum need to be redesigned and reimagined. (Photo courtesy of Kecheng, Fang)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Professor Fang Kecheng of the School of Journalism and Communication at The Chinese University of Hong Kong, who researches the role of technologies such as AI in shaping the media landscape, warns heavy reliance on GenAI might disconnect students from the vital experience of learning and intellectual growth. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cLearning should be difficult, and even painful. No pain, no gain. If students avoid this pain by relying on AI, they might lose their interest in any learning and future development opportunities,\u201d he says. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fang stresses that a university degree is not just about completing assignments or passing exams. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt should show a student knows how to learn, has been part of a learning community, and can critically reflect on their lives and society,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With many students feeling their education lacks meaning in today’s AI-driven world, Fang believes it is high time for universities to rethink their educational approach, rediscover humanity by nurturing human creativity, amplify human values, and preserve human spirits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cCourses need redesigning and curriculums should be reimagined. Students should learn how to work with AI, how to assess AI’s output, and find their uniqueness that cannot be replaced by AI,\u201d he urges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Edited by <\/em>Kieon Paek<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sub-edited by <\/em>Myo Min Htin<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

University students find GenAI useful for getting better grades and efficiency but not for learning.  By Justin Tai University student Lau Tsz Ho used to spend hours or even days struggling to solve difficult science questions from classes. He might not find the answers in the end, but he still tried hard. Now, he just […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":26065,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-25770","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-our-community"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/varsity.com.cuhk.edu.hk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25770","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/varsity.com.cuhk.edu.hk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/varsity.com.cuhk.edu.hk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/varsity.com.cuhk.edu.hk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/varsity.com.cuhk.edu.hk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25770"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/varsity.com.cuhk.edu.hk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25770\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26066,"href":"https:\/\/varsity.com.cuhk.edu.hk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25770\/revisions\/26066"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/varsity.com.cuhk.edu.hk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/26065"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/varsity.com.cuhk.edu.hk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25770"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/varsity.com.cuhk.edu.hk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25770"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/varsity.com.cuhk.edu.hk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25770"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}