In this day and age, AI is the go-to help for students with any task, be it work, chores or a random how-to; AI is always ready to help. Although many educational institutions have been taking firm measures against AI usage for assignments, students continue to find new methods to cheat the system be it text humanizers, paraphrasing or changing syntax and vocabulary.

Now here's where my story begins. My exams were around the corner, and my English teacher threw in a bunch of essay topics due in a week. As usual, I fell in the trap of the "I have enough time" deception.

Suddenly it was Friday, there were two days left, and I had five essays to complete. Helplessly I resorted to the one thing my I promised myself I wouldn't go back to- ChatGPT. This is an account of how AI ruined my writing skill.

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The Beginning of My AI Reliance

I logged into my ChatGPT account and typed out the dreaded question "Can you generate five argumentative essays for a 10th-grade student?" Like magic, five polished essays were displayed on my screen, it was so perfect that I had to change up certain words so it looked more like "my writing." Some paraphrasing and humanizing later— a perfect assignment was created.

Flash forward to Monday, my teacher checks my essay with absolutely no possibility of ChatGPT generated text. So instead of a scolding, I receive a pat on the back for my good work. I go home and boast about the compliments showered on me— completely unaware of the path of self-destruction I choose for myself.

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The Mock-Exam (a.k.a. The Realisation)

A week before my English Grammar exam, my teacher decided to give us a mock-essay within a stipulated time. A fresh sheet of paper lay before me with four essay topics to choose from— I blanked out. I mentally framed my essay but writing it down seemed impossible, thirty minutes later— a disaster was created. My grammar, flow, and even the idea seemed haywire, I knew the result I would get out of the mock-exam.

After lunch, I was back in class as my English Teacher distributed checked essays in the class. She placed my essay on my desk and asked me for a moment after class. She discusses some key grammar rules and tips for acing our exams before ending the class.

I sat expecting a hefty scolding for the obvious difference in my essays from the perfect assignment compared to the disastrous mock test. As expected, I did receive a scolding and a new essay to complete over the weekend. The catch was I had to write it within thirty-minutes and without AI assistance. I reached back home, my heart ridden with guilt and the hope to reclaim my writing skill.

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The Reclamation

I sat down at my desk, cup of coffee in one hand and pen in another. In front of me lay a fresh sheet of paper, I knew I was on my own this time. I mentally framed my essay and jotted down all the points which came to my mind with no care for punctuation and grammar.

After I got the main points of my essay sorted out, I began to divide them in sections and read out the essay in my mind while writing. Each time I wished to reach out to AI for assistance, I reminded myself that I won't have this privilege in my examination. The alarm rang, and the blank paper had transformed into a well-written essay, I immediately emailed my teacher. Minutes later I received an email saying "You're better off without AI, All the best for your examination!"

As expected, I aced my essay in my examinations with a 18/20. Shocker? I know. This entire journey of using AI to write my exams to switching to self-reliance was indeed a lesson I'd like to share.

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The Lesson

AI in this generation isn't a sin nor does it mean you're on mental crutches, although utmost dependence does imply that. AI is vital like Google was a while back.

To the students reading this, all I'd like to say is use AI but don't depend on it, and I won't lie— I use AI for my essays every now and then for topics, grading and even grammar errors. We must use this as a competitive advantage, as in the coming future, even minimal jobs will require basic knowledge of Artificial Intelligence. This is my journey, and I believe many of us go through various phases using ChatGPT. But keep in mind, we need to understand the limit of using such apps.

In the end, keep using AI platform while keeping the mindset to CREATE.