“Okay! Now it’s time to pull out your computers and open up ChatGPT or Gemini. You have 15 minutes to do research on your assigned company…” This — and other similar prompts — are not uncommon things to hear assigned to you while in a business class here at Goshen College. 

While in many classroom settings there is a very strict policy on the use of any AI whatsoever, there are many classes in the business department that are highly involved in the use of artificial intelligence systems. In fact, throughout my courses here in the business department, there have been multiple classes where the use of AI to research, analyze and synthesize information has been built into the requirements of our assignments. 

It is often emphasized that the goal of these assignments aren’t to make us dependent on the use of artificial intelligence, but rather to help us understand how to incorporate these systems into our work as we grow closer to having a career in a society that expects its employees to use technology in the day to day workplace. 

While understanding how to smartly approach the use of AI to make our work easier in the business world, it is still just as important to acknowledge the limitations and mistakes that AI can make in any setting. Additionally, the use of AI to enhance our work may be the easier route and what is expected of any of us going forward into the world of business, but this shouldn’t take away from the genuine process of collaborative idea generating and problem solving. 

With the expectation of using AI in the classroom, it seems that as students, we are getting closer to losing the concept of originality and authentic critical thinking as we are more inclined to take the easy route of implementing AI into our work even when it is not expected of us. 

Although we are evidently moving closer towards a society centered on technology and making everything simpler for humans, we need to remember that AI shouldn’t be the first place we turn, but rather to depend on each other for ideas and growth — this is what starts in the classroom.