Sociology Teachers, Postsecondary

Today’s colleges already use software and some AI for easy tasks. For example, many schools use online gradebooks and attendance apps, and one Chinese university even has an AI system where students check in on their phones and it sends reminders to absentees ^{[1] [2]}. Grading is partly automated too: computers can quickly score multiple-choice quizzes and run plagiarism checks, and some professors experiment with AI help.

One instructor had an AI summarize each essay’s key points before she graded it herself ^{[3] [2]}. Universities also use AI chatbots for recruitment – surveys say answering student questions by AI can boost enrollment while cutting calls to admissions staff ^{[4] [2]}. But the core teaching role is still mostly human.

Activities that need judgment or a personal touch – leading discussions, advising students, serving on committees, and doing original research – remain in professors’ hands ^{[2] [3]}. In other words, AI can help with routine record-keeping and grading, but it largely augments rather than replaces the human teacher.

AI tools are already available for many tasks (like online quizzes, plagiarism filters, or basic chatbots), so colleges can try them if budgets allow. In fact, some large online universities are piloting AI grading for very big classes ^[4]. But costs and rules slow wider use.

Buying new AI software for every student can be very expensive – one report said licensing tools campus-wide is often “prohibitive” ^[5]. At the same time, money pressures encourage AI where it clearly saves effort ^{[4] [5]}. Many campus AIs today handle simple back-office work (Turnitin’s AI, for example, checks writing for plagiarism) ^[4].

High-stakes uses are handled carefully. For instance, one AI admissions screening tool was scrapped when it showed biased results, because colleges watch fairness closely ^{[4] [4]}. Students and teachers also expect personal feedback – one student said it felt unfair when AI helped grade her essay, and worries a computer can’t judge complex answers fairly ^{[3] [4]}.

In short, schools may adopt AI slowly in areas that save time or money, but classroom teaching and advice still rely on human skills and ethics. Over time, we expect AI to remain an assistant (handling routine data tasks) while teachers keep doing the creative, caring work that machines cannot.