Learning Without AI

Recently, the growing presence of artificial intelligence (AI) in society has prompted conversations about the use of this technology in education. Deerfield stands deliberate with its approach to AI.

Last year, in his Fall Family Weekend remarks, Head of School John Austin highlighted Deerfield’s commitment to “time-tested teaching practices that deepen attention, enrich our capacity for slow thinking, and support the habits of disciplined inquiry.”

Assistant Head of School for Academic Affairs Brian Hamilton emphasized the importance of maintaining “the analog skills we prize at Deerfield,” since he believed that they “are going to get more prized in a world of mechanized thinking and generic machine-produced work.”

Analog skills refer to non-digital human capabilities — debating with rhetoric, textual analysis, dialogue and discussion.

 He explained that these values are not exclusive to Deerfield. The idea of resisting AI is part of many different groups and institutions across the United States.

Studies regarding global AI diffusion at Microsoft have reported that despite the rise of AI integration in the working population, only 16.3% of the workforce uses artificial intelligence on a daily basis. 

Harvard professionals, including Senior Lecturer on Applied Physics John A. Paulson, revisited Mr. Hamilton and Dr. Austin’s comments on AI with regard to the Deerfield learning experience. 

Although Dr. Paulson admitted that “AI can engage in processes that resemble critical thinking,” he maintained that “critical thinking requires the human experience, the human insight, and ethics and moral reasoning [which] machines today lack.” 

Albeit teaching a course aimed to “demystify AI” — AI & Human Cognition — Dr. Paulson sustained that human work was irreplicable. 

As a senior at Deerfield Academy, Ted Freedman ’27 noticed changing conversations in Deerfield’s academic environment as AI became more accessible. Regarding Deerfield’s goals to protect foundational skills, Freedman noted that “they’ve prioritized the humanities aspect of work — getting us to analyze and think. Curriculum-wise, I think that’s good development and makes some classes effectively harder.”

Building on Mr. Hamilton’s beliefs of prioritizing analog skills over digitization of resources and abilities, Dean of Students and Associate Department Chair of Academic Affairs Lydia Hemphill spoke of what classroom environments at Deerfield seek, as a place where “teachers get to know our students and our students are expected to engage in class discussions, think on their feet, and be able to argue their points.” 

Ava Cederholm ’27 said that “Deerfield’s education and inquisitive nature give students the skills to use AI as a tool and a jumping point to craft groundbreaking research.”

Mr. Hamilton reiterated the role of Deerfield’s curriculum in aiding students with necessary skills to succeed in their future occupations or roles. As part of the History and Social Sciences Department, he emphasized his role in teaching students “foundational skills — the same skills that the creators of frontier models learned when they were in high school.” 

“Our office is charged with protecting student learning and guaranteeing and safeguarding the integrity of academic work in Deerfield,” Mr. Hamilton said. He explained that AI is a barrier between students and the mistakes that “build durable learning.”

He emphasized the cyclical nature of traditional skills and the importance of them as foundational building blocks for future occupations. Underscoring Deerfield’s commitments, he outlined the importance of teaching these values and preserving a learning environment based on analog skills for students.