The Digitally Diluted Mind: A Crisis of Cognition in Classrooms

Pranav Srinivas, Asha G R

Abstract: This general article explains the accelerating incorporation of artificial intelligence (AI) in educational settings and explores its far-reaching effects on pedagogy, ethics, and student development. AI provides efficiency gains through automated grading, personalised feedback, and fast content creation. However, these benefits carry significant risks that threaten the core values of education. The article argues that AI systems lack ethical reasoning, contextual understanding, and human judgment, which can compromise academic integrity and stifle creativity and critical thinking. Learners are increasingly relying on AI, which means they skip the important challenges that foster deep learning and intellectual growth. Additionally, this paper points out the hidden financial, psychological, and social costs tied to using AI, including growing educational inequality and the commercialisation of learning. As AI tools become common, the focus in education shifts from active, student-centred learning to passive content consumption. This change undermines students? sense of agency and ownership. This work advocates for a human-centred educational paradigm that preserves the indispensable role of teachers, prioritises learning processes over outcomes, and cultivates ethical, imaginative, and resilient learners. Without this recalibration, widespread reliance on AI in education may yield a generation efficient in task completion yet deficient in original thought and moral discernment.

Keywords: Ethical Implications of AI, Academic Integrity, Educational Equity, Human-Centred Learning

How to Cite?: Pranav Srinivas, Asha G R, "The Digitally Diluted Mind: A Crisis of Cognition in Classrooms", Volume 14 Issue 12, December 2025, International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR), Pages: 57-61, https://www.ijsr.net/getabstract.php?paperid=SR251128191414, DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.21275/SR251128191414