Why Did the Worst Students at Programming Become the Biggest Winners in the AI Era?

To help students cultivate the qualities that will almost certainly enable them to thrive in any given future — an unquenchable curiosity, independent critical thinking, a profound insight into human needs, and, most importantly, the preservation of their essential human agency.

Yesterday and the day before, the two courses I taught this semester both concluded with assessments. Students went on stage to give presentations, followed by a Q&A session with follow-up questions. Just as we routinely did after every lab session this semester.

On the surface, it seemed like just another semester cycle. I’ve been teaching the “Information Systems Development” course since 2011, making this the 14th year. “Machine Learning” is already in its 3rd iteration. However, this year was extraordinary — it was the inaugural year I fully integrated AI into my teaching.

Turning Point

From the first year I taught the Machine Learning course, I encouraged students to use AI. When I found students weren’t using it effectively, I would give demonstrations and…