Embracing AI in Education: Understanding the Surge in Large Language Model Use by Secondary Students

Middle and high school students are using LLMs at a higher rate than college students

Zhu, T., Zhang, K., & Wang, W. Y. (2024). Embracing AI in Education: Understanding the Surge in Large Language Model Use by Secondary Students. arXiv. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2411.18708

Despite school restrictions, our survey of over 300 [US] middle and high school students revealed that a remarkable 70% of students have utilized LLMs, higher than the usage percentage among young adults, and this percentage remains consistent across 7th to 12th grade. Students also reported using LLMs for multiple subjects, including language arts, history, and math assignments.

The study also found that students with paid subscriptions to LLMs use LLMs more frequently.