OpenAI has introduced Study Mode for ChatGPT, a new feature designed to help students actively engage in learning rather than simply receiving answers. When users prompt the AI chatbot with a question, it responds with guiding questions and hints intended to lead them toward a solution.
In the blog post announcing the Study Mode feature, Sam Altman’s company acknowledged that many students use ChatGPT to help with their assignments; however, OpenAI said it aims to “ensure [ChatGPT] is used to support real learning, and doesn’t just offer solutions without helping students make sense of them.”
Rival AI startup Anthropic launched a similar tool in April for its Claude chatbot called Learning Mode.
Tailored lesson plans and personalised feedback
In Study Mode, students can ask ChatGPT what they want to learn about or upload previous exams to work through specific questions. The chatbot then creates a custom lesson plan and provides the first guiding question. It follows up with feedback on the students’ response, then offers another prompt or a mini quiz, continuing this cycle throughout the session.
OpenAI said ChatGPT will adapt its instruction style to each user’s skill level based on their answers and past interactions. A student who tested the feature described it as “a tutor who doesn’t get tired of my questions.”
The system instructions for Study Mode were developed in collaboration with teachers, scientists, and pedagogy experts. According to OpenAI, this ensures that the lesson plans ChatGPT draws up encourage active participation, maintain student interest without becoming overwhelming, enhance learning, and deliver actionable feedback.
While OpenAI does say it sometimes exhibits “inconsistent behavior and mistakes,” it is still a work in progress. Users will also be able to switch off Study Mode whenever they get tired of being guided through the answer and just want to finish their homework.
Availability across ChatGPT plans
Study Mode is available to logged-in users with Free, Plus, Pro, and Team plans; it will be added to ChatGPT Edu, a version built specifically for universities, within the next few weeks. Users can access the feature by clicking Tools in the prompt box and then selecting Study And Learn from the dropdown menu.
Increased buzz about AI and education – not all of it is positive
Some students, including at the college level, are using ChatGPT to help with their assignments, or in some cases, even to cheat.
In TechnologyAdvice writer Grant Harvey’s recent comprehensive article about the use of ChatGPT in education and cheating, he wrote, “90% of college students and 82% of undergrads admit to using ChatGPT for schoolwork, creating an ‘assessment crisis’ where the line between tool and cheating has blurred completely.”
In June, a study from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology revealed how AI tools like ChatGPT may result in “cognitive debt” as users don’t fully engage with the task they set it to, thereby diminishing learning and critical thinking.
And, Study Mode landed just a few days after CEO Altman said his child probably will not attend college, predicting the education system will change fundamentally in 18 years, shaped by a world where AI is more intelligent than humans.
OpenAI is looking to mend its reputation in the education space; it has launched online guides on how to incorporate AI into the classroom and a free AI academy for teachers with Microsoft and Anthropic.