Is AI Helping Kids Think or Thinking for Them?

By Jill Murphy, Common Sense Media
Edition #26 | August 21, 2026

Who's Doing the Homework?

We just ran a nationally representative survey of over 1,000 U.S. teens through our Youth AI Safety Institute, and one number really jumped out: 7 in 10 teens are now using AI for schoolwork.

At this point, the more useful question isn't whether they're using it, but rather how they're using it.

Among teens who use AI for schoolwork, about 6 in 10 say they've used it to get an answer directly. At the same time, more than three in four have used it without asking for the answer—and that can look like brainstorming an essay angle, checking their work, or getting unstuck on a problem they've already tried.

All of that counts as "using AI for homework," but it doesn't necessarily amount to the same thing.

A lot of the value in schoolwork happens before the answer at the bottom of the page. It's in trying something, getting it wrong, going back, and figuring out why. Skip those steps enough times and a teen can look like they're keeping up while falling behind on the skills the assignment was actually built to teach.

A few questions worth asking tonight:

• Where does AI enter the process? Are they using it before they've thought anything through, or after they've already tried, gotten stuck, and need a nudge?
• What guidance are they getting at school? Do they know what their teachers consider OK, and has anyone explained how these tools actually work?
• Can they explain the work themselves? If AI helped with an assignment, see if they can still walk you through how they got there.

That last one can tell you quite a bit. If they can walk you through their thinking, Al was a tool that most likely helped somewhere along the way. If they can't, it may have done more of the assignment than they did.

For the full report and details, check out my colleague Geoff Fowler's story: AI isn't just doing students' homework. It's doing their thinking. You can also hear from teens directly, here.

Teachers Just Might Need a "Parent Edit" Too

Everything we talk about here—the group chats, AI shortcuts, device settings, sleep—is playing out in classrooms as well. Teachers are having many of the same conversations we are, often with a room full of kids all at once.

So we built them their own newsletter. It covers the same kinds of trends and practical tips you get here, but framed for educators trying to navigate the complexities of tech in the classroom.

If you're a parent, share it with your school. If you're doing double duty as a parent and an educator, sign up yourself. What's going on in the classroom matters at home, and it goes the other way, too.

Clinging to the Last Days of Summer

Happy as I may be to work from home in peace and quiet while my daughters are back at school, there are parts of these long summer days I'm not quite ready to give up.

Before backpacks, cleats, and carpool lines fully take over again, this weekend feels like a good time to just ... pause. No big production. Just a few hours dedicated to being unproductive before homework and practice schedules settle back in.

A good movie or show still does the trick. There's a solid batch of stuff returning or new to streaming right now, so you don't have to spend your actual downtime scrolling around trying to find something everyone agrees on.

Tonight's to-do: Pick something from the lists below, put the phones in a pile, and let the weekend be quiet for a little while.

Worth a scroll:
→ Best New TV This Month
→ Best New Streaming Movies

I'm off to buy one more thing from our school-supply list that we apparently missed on the first three trips.

See you next week.

—Jill