Frequent use of AI may hinder students’ academic performance

Marina Lepp, associate professor of informatics at the University of Tartu Institute of Computer Science, together with co-author Joosep Kaimre, a recently graduated master’s student, examined in a research article the impact of artificial intelligence tools on students’ academic outcomes. A total of 231 students took part in the study.

Since its public release in 2022, ChatGPT has sparked a true artificial intelligence boom worldwide. The novel chatbot quickly attracted attention in education, industry and science. At the same time, questions emerged about how the use of AI affects knowledge acquisition and skills development.

The rise of AI has had the strongest impact on computer science, where chatbots can write code snippets, fix errors and explain them. Yet little research has so far been carried out on their actual effect on students’ learning and performance.

This question was the focus of researchers at the University of Tartu Institute of Computer Science, who studied the use of AI tools among students in an object-oriented programming course. In total, 231 students completed the questionnaire. They were asked how frequently they used AI tools and for what purposes. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, and Spearman’s rank correlation analysis was performed to examine the strength of the relationships.

The results showed that students mainly used AI assistance for solving programming tasks—for example, debugging code and understanding examples. A surprising finding, however, was that more frequent use of chatbots correlated with lower academic results. One possible explanation is that struggling students were more likely to turn to AI. Nevertheless, the finding suggests that unguided use of AI and over-reliance on it may in fact hinder learning.

According to associate professor Marina Lepp, the role of AI in the learning process should primarily be supportive. She emphasizes that students need guidance to ensure they use AI tools as learning aids rather than shortcuts that risk slowing the development of critical skills. “AI must support learning, not replace it,” Lepp notes.

The study also revealed that many students applied AI creatively—for instance, using it to translate code from Python into Java, which in turn supported learning a new language.

The work of the University of Tartu researchers provides valuable insights not only for computer science lecturers, but also more broadly, for professionals in the field of education, helping to shape strategies for integrating AI into teaching in a meaningful and effective way.