EP340 Stay human: Teaching students to protect their brain power in an AI world

"If AI can write my essay in 30 seconds, why should I spend 30 minutes doing it myself?" I believe students asking this question deserve a thoughtful response ... or even better, an invitation to think critically about their own values and personal philosophy around artificial intelligence. In this episode, I'm offering some tools to help you facilitate these conversations with students, breaking down the neuroscience of why writing matters in ways AI can't replicate. We'll explore three core principles: 1) Writing is brain-building: When students write, they create neural pathways through neuroplasticity. Every time they struggle to find the right word or rewrite a sentence, they're strengthening cognitive infrastructure they'll use for life. When AI does the writing, those pathways never form. 2) Writing is thinking: Writing isn't just a way to show your thinking—it IS the thinking itself. The act of translating thoughts into words forces a level of clarity that thinking alone doesn't require. 3) Writing is uniquely human: Students are still discovering who they are as thinkers and writers. They haven't written enough to find their unique voice yet. When they default to AI, they...