Is AI the future of learning — or the fastest way to stop learning altogether?

Across classrooms in Bangladesh and beyond, teachers are being told that generative AI will “transform education.” It promises to save time, personalise tutoring, and make every student more creative. But what if those promises come with a hidden cost?

In this episode of EBTD Research Bites, we take a hard look at the evidence behind the hype. Drawing on new studies from Harvard, Dinsmore & Frier, and Carl Hendrick, this deep dive separates science from speculation.

You’ll discover why some AI tutors can double learning gains, while others quietly undermine critical thinking. We explore the Model of Domain Learning — showing how expertise develops through struggle, feedback, and cognitive effort — and why removing that friction can destroy genuine understanding.

This is the real debate every teacher and policymaker should be having:
Is AI acting as a scaffold, supporting students as they build knowledge?
Or as a crutch, letting them skip the hard thinking that makes learning last?

From classrooms in Dhaka to rural schools across Bangladesh, this episode unpacks what “AI in education” really means for teachers, students, and the future of learning.

Because the question isn’t whether AI will change education — it already has.
The question is: Will it make us smarter, or just faster at forgetting?

🎧 Listen now to “Why AI Might Be the Best — and Worst — Thing to Happen to Education” — and explore all episodes of EBTD Research Bites at www.ebtd.education.