New research finds an increase in USA high school students using AI tools.
Recent research from College Board in the USA found that that 84% of high school students were using generative AI tools for schoolwork in May 2025. This is a significant increase from a survey undertaken just months before in January 2025, when 79% said they were using it.
Most students say they use ChatGPT, with 69% reporting they’ve used it for brainstorming ideas, editing essays and conducting research for homework and class assignments.
Is AI a good thing for students?
However, this widespread adoption comes with mixed feelings from students, teachers and parents.
Students themselves appear uncertain about AI’s overall value, with half neither agreeing nor disagreeing that the benefits outweigh the risks. Parents seem more optimistic, with nearly 60% believing it’s better for their children to use generative AI than to avoid it entirely. School administrators recognise the importance being AI literate, with over 85% viewing it as valuable for students to learn to use these tools as part of their education.
Concerns over AI in learning
Educators are concerned over students’ potential loss of essential learning skills as they learn to rely on AI for the ‘answers’. Another concern is their own AI literacy and whether they themselves have adequate knowledge and support to be able to guide their students appropriately with such fast-changing technology.
Attitudes to AI in America’s high schools
While 55% of high schools haven’t blocked AI access, there’s no single method in place on how schools can manage its use. Around 40% of schools don’t allow students to use AI at all, while about 20% allow it without any formal policy. Only 13% actively encourage AI use across all classes.
Technology is changing fast, and the education sector is struggling to keep up. It’s a huge shift for teaching and learning everywhere – and schools are trying their best to preserve the ‘learning’ part of the equation as far as they possibly can.
Reference
New Research: Majority of High School Students Use Generative AI for Schoolwork. Available at: https://newsroom.collegeboard.org/new-research-majority-high-school-students-use-generative-ai-schoolwork (Accessed 27 October 2025).
