I recently read a provocative article about the return of Bluebooks. At first, I felt a sense of satisfaction. I thought, “Yes! Let them suffer like we once suffered!” But that reaction quickly gave way to a more important question: Is this really what is best for our students?
I understand the value of writing as a way to demonstrate knowledge. It is a critical skill in many careers, and there is a strong case for preserving it in education. But is it so essential that we must now design assessments specifically to avoid the influence of AI?
In K–12 education, beginning in third grade, students are required to write as part of their TNReady ELA assessments. The writing portion, while only one component of the larger test, plays a significant role in how we assess literacy. I am still confirming the exact weight of this section, though some estimates suggest it is around 30 percent. Regardless of the number, the emphasis is clear: writing matters.
And it should. Writing helps students organize their thinking, communicate effectively, and engage with the world in thoughtful and nuanced ways. But in a world where AI can generate grammatically correct, well-structured text in seconds, we must ask ourselves a different question. Are we preparing students to write in isolation, or are we preparing them to write with the tools they will actually use in their future?
This is where things become more complex. I write every day in my job, and I rarely do so without the help of tools like ChatGPT or Grammarly. Even this blog post has benefited from those supports. At the same time, I hold an English degree, a master’s degree, and a doctorate. I wrote a dissertation before AI tools were widely available. That background matters.
So maybe the question is not whether students should use AI, but rather when they should use it. What foundational skills do they need before they are ready to use AI as a tool for productivity instead of as a shortcut?
Writing is not only a skill but also a process. And let us be honest—most people love having written more than they love the act of writing itself.
This is what makes the conversation about AI more complicated. If a tool can help a student brainstorm, organize, and revise their work, is that cheating? Or is it simply becoming part of the writing process?
I certainly do not have all the answers. But I believe it is time for educators to reimagine how we use writing to assess knowledge, and to consider whether it should always be the default.
What about speeches? What about presentations or creative projects? These options do not lessen academic expectations. In many cases, they may better align with the upper levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy, including the categories of analyze, evaluate, and create. This is where we want students to be—thinking deeply, making meaningful connections, and producing original work. If AI is changing the way we write, perhaps it is also signaling that it is time to change the way we assess.
AI Disclaimer
All ideas and perspectives in this blog were generated by the author. AI tools, including ChatGPT and Grammarly, were used to support organization, wording, and revision. Final content was written and edited by the author.