International Journal of Science Annals, Vol. 8, No. 1, 2025 рrint ISSN: 2617-2682; online ISSN: 2707-3637; DOI:10.26697/ijsa LETTERS TO THE EDITOR LETTER TO THE EDITOR Does Artificial Intelligence in Education Contribute to Social Development or Cognitive Degradation? Borshch K. K. 1 1 Uzhhorod National University, Ukraine Received: 12.05.2025; Accepted: 20.06.2025; Published: 30.06.2025 Abstract Background and Artificial intelligence (AI) has become a strategic element of the modern Aim of Study: educational space. Adaptive platforms, automated assessment systems, intelligent tutors, generative models, and big data analytics create new opportunities for individualized and inclusive learning. However, critics point out that excessive reliance on automated solutions can lead to decreased student independence, superficial knowledge acquisition, and disruption of long-term memory formation. The impact of AI on social development and cognitive dynamics is becoming a key issue in 21st-century educational research. The aim of the study: to analyze current issues related to the impact of AI on education and identify the conditions that ensure its positive influence on the educational process. Conclusions: AI in education has the potential to significantly enhance social development, expand access to knowledge, and foster new collaborative skills. However, without thoughtful implementation and pedagogical support, AI technologies can contribute to cognitive degradation, a decline in critical thinking, and a weakening of social competencies. Therefore, a key challenge for modern science and practice is finding the optimal balance where AI acts as a tool to enhance, rather than replace, human intelligence and social interaction. To this end, educators and educational institutions must take a comprehensive approach that covers the following areas: educators acting as mentors when working with AI; using AI as a mentor in education; and promoting transparency and digital literacy in education. Keywords: artificial intelligence, education, cognitive degradation, social development, critical thinking Copyright: © 2025 Borshch K. K. Published by Archives of International Journal of Science Annals DOI: https://doi.org/10.26697/ijsa.2025.1.7 Conflict of interests: The author declares that there is no conflict of interests Peer review: Double-blind review Source of support: This research did not receive any outside funding or support Information about Borshch Kostiantyn Kostiantynovych (Corresponding Author) – the author: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3310-9315; k.borsch@uzhnu.edu.ua, Doctor of Philosophy in Sociology, Affiliated Associate Professor, Uzhhorod National University, Uzhhorod, Ukraine. Dear Editor, Artificial intelligence (AI), being implemented in with its broad opportunities, the penetration of AI into educational systems, is fundamentally changing education has become a new challenge for national traditional forms and methods of teaching, student education systems, a natural consequence of interaction with information, and the structure of digitalization, and a subject of scientific debate (Chan & pedagogical processes. Adaptive learning technologies, Colloton, 2024; Melnyk & Pypenko, 2024). intelligent tutors, and automated progress monitoring According to scientists and educators, AI in education systems are becoming tools capable of enhancing the contributes to social development in several key ways. effectiveness of knowledge acquisition and First, it personalizes learning and makes it inclusive. AI personalizing the educational process. However, along systems allow for the individual characteristics, pace, 60 International Journal of Science Annals, Vol. 8, No. 1, 2025 рrint ISSN: 2617-2682; online ISSN: 2707-3637; DOI:10.26697/ijsa and learning style of each student, including children Thirdly, this promotes the development of positive skills with disabilities and socially vulnerable groups. This in learners. The use of AI tools develops skills in contributes to the creation of an inclusive educational formulating queries, critically evaluating results, environment, fostering empathy and tolerance verifying information, and creatively integrating various (Crompton & Burke, 2023). knowledge sources. They complement the educational Second, it expands educational access. Online platforms process with the benefits of digital communication and powered by AI technologies enable the provision of have become commonplace in higher education systems education in remote and sparsely populated areas, (Chan & Colloton, 2024). thereby reducing social inequalities in access to quality At the same time, however, conflicting expert education. Automatic translation and multimodal assessments of the use of AI models directly in the information presentation technologies make educational educational process are emerging in the scientific content accessible to people with different language debate. Research by Lee et al. (2024), Melnyk and skills and special educational needs. AI assistants for Pypenko (2024) indicate that the situation is not entirely people with visual, hearing, or motor impairments open clear-cut, as the use of AI creates not only benefits but up new opportunities for inclusive education, promoting also significant risks for learners (Table 1). social integration and reducing educational inequalities (Aler Tubella et al., 2024). Table 1 Benefits and Risks of Artificial Intelligence Benefits of artificial intelligence Risks of artificial intelligence Improved learning efficiency and student engagement Ethical issues and data privacy Individualized approach to each student Possible decreased role of human interaction in learning Reduced administrative burden on teachers Technology dependency and technical failures Objective assessment and rapid feedback Need for technical user training The uncontrolled use of ChatGPT and other AI models in While memory has always been part of the human academic settings for completing academic assignments psyche, radically reducing the load on biological memory (writing papers, essays, and term papers) creates new can have unintended consequences for the brain’s problems in the higher education system, as it negatively cognitive abilities, especially during critical periods of influences learning and academic performance, violates childhood and adolescent development. the principles of academic integrity, undermines trust in Of particular concern is the impact of AI models on the universities, and reduces motivation for learning (Aler development of written language and critical thinking. Tubella et al., 2024; Melnyk & Pypenko, 2023). This reduces the ability to formulate one’s own thoughts, Bastani et al. (2024), based on a field experiment with mental flexibility, and the ability to reason student groups, concluded that caution should be independently. The psychological effect of passively exercised when implementing generative AI, as it consuming ready-made answers leads to superficial contributes to the loss of critical independent work skills. information processing, reduced cognitive control, and a Peters et al. (2024) note the potential harm of actively deterioration in the ability to distinguish between reliable using AI models in social science instruction, as they may and unreliable information (Kurtz et al., 2024). undermine students’ critical thinking and creativity. To further promote the positive use of AI in education, All of this is forcing educational institutions to entirely we believe that educators and educational institutions or partially ban the use of AI. For example, to prevent must strike a balance between the AI benefits and risks. cheating, Sciences Po (France) banned ChatGPT Working with AI in educational institutions requires a altogether, including the possibility of student expulsion comprehensive approach that includes the following (Reuters, 2023). Russell Group universities in the UK areas: (including Oxford University) have prohibited the use of Educators as mentors when working with AI AI in grading papers, considering its use a violation of They should teach students how to select an AI model, academic ethics and unfair practice (The Tab, 2023). It is manage it, verify AI conclusions, and critically interpret worth noting that 18% of US universities ban AI by them. AI should primarily perform labor-intensive default without instructor permission (Caulfield, 2025). mechanical tasks (e.g., error checking), but not replace According to researchers and educators, delegating thinking. cognitive tasks to AI poses significant risks to the AI as a mentor in education development of fundamental intellectual abilities, Students should optimally use models that ask questions, leading to a decline in memory and critical thinking provide hints, and encourage inquiry, rather than provide skills, as well as a tendency to avoid complex intellectual ready-made solutions. problems (Pypenko, 2024). Transparency and digital literacy in education A classic example is the phenomenon of “digital When working with students, a key condition is amnesia”, in which people stop remembering developing an understanding of how AI models are information despite knowing it is available in digital structured, identifying potential errors, and learning how systems when using AI assistants (Musa et al. 2023). to avoid cognitive dependence when interacting with AI. 61 International Journal of Science Annals, Vol. 8, No. 1, 2025 рrint ISSN: 2617-2682; online ISSN: 2707-3637; DOI:10.26697/ijsa Conclusions construction and memory retention. Khizanah Al- Thus, AI in education can promote social development Hikmah: Journal of Library Science, Information by expanding access to knowledge, personalizing Science, and Archival Science, 11(2), 313–326. learning experiences, and fostering interaction skills. https://doi.org/10.24252/kah.v11i2cf1 However, it can also exacerbate cognitive decline if used Kurtz, G., Amzalag, M., Shaked, N., Zaguri, Y., Kohen- as a substitute for thinking rather than as a tool for Vacs, D., Gal, E., Zailer, G., & Barak-Medina, E. enhancing it. (2024). Strategies for integrating generative AI Therefore, the key factor is the pedagogical strategy and into higher education: Navigating challenges and the level of digital competence when working with AI. leveraging opportunities. Education Sciences, When implemented correctly, AI becomes a catalyst for 14(5), Article 503. intellectual and social growth when used unsupervised, it https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci14050503 can weaken students’ cognitive functions. Lee, D., Arnold, M., Srivastava, A., Plastow, K., Strelan, P., Ploeckl, F., Lekkas, D., & Palmer, E. (2024). Ethical Approval The impact of generative AI on higher education The study protocol was consistent with the ethical learning and teaching: A study of educators’ guidelines of the 1975 Declaration of Helsinki as perspectives. Computers & Education: Artificial reflected in a prior approval by the Institution’s Human Intelligence, 6, Article 100221. Research Committee. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.caeai.2024.100221 Funding Source Melnyk, Yu. B., & Pypenko, I. S. (2023). The legitimacy This research did not receive any outside funding or of artificial intelligence and the role of ChatBots support. in scientific publications. 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Artificial intelligence university-bans-use-chatgpt-prevent-plagiarism- in higher education: The state of the field. 2023-01-27/ International Journal of Educational Technology The Tab. (2023, March 3). These are the Russell Group in Higher Education, 20, Article 22. unis that have banned students from using https://doi.org/10.1186/s41239-023-00392-8 ChatGPT. https://thetab.com/2023/03/03/these- Musa, N., Mukhtaruddin, & Bakkara, V. F. (2023). The are-the-russell-group-unis-that-have-banned- effects of digital amnesia on knowledge students-from-using-chatgpt Cite this article as: Borshch, K. K. (2025). Does artificial intelligence in education contribute to social development or cognitive degradation? International Journal of Science Annals, 8(1), 60–62. https://doi.org/10.26697/ijsa.2025.1.7 The electronic version of this article is complete. It can be found online in the IJSA Archive https://ijsa.culturehealth.org/en/arhiv This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en). 62