They didn’t have to figure out how to solve the problem. Instead of struggling a bit, which is where the learning happens, they would likely go to ChatGPT for the answer. When the answer bot was taken away, they weren’t prepared to think about how to solve the problem and work it out.
I’ve noticed this even using Copilot in VS Code. I rarely use it, but if I start pulling it out, I notice at the first hint of actually thinking about how to do something, my brain seeks to ask Copilot instead. It’s like there is an off switch that gets flicked when there is an easy button available. If I were to figure it out on my own, I’d know what to do next time I run into a problem like that… if I use Copilot, I’ve learned nothing, other than next time I run into this, use Copilot.
It’s a crutch when it comes to learning.
Exactly. I stopped using it entirely, and I noticed that I would write something and then pause, expecting copilot to take over for a while after quitting. It felt like my brain wasn't really engaged.
Its anecdotal, but I feel a lot better after giving it up and I think I can do a lot more when I can fully reason about the problem after poking at it from different angles.