As artificial intelligence becomes more integrated into educational environments, a new survey reveals how it’s transforming student interactions and raising concerns about privacy and mental health. Nearly one in five high school students report knowing someone who has formed a romantic relationship with AI, while 42% say they or someone they know uses AI for companionship, according to the Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT).
The CDT’s research involved national surveys of around 800 public school teachers from sixth to twelfth grade, 1,000 high school students, and 1,000 parents. The data shows that a large majority—86% of students, 85% of educators, and 75% of parents—utilized AI during the previous school year.
AI’s Role in Education and Its Ripple Effects
Elizabeth Laird from CDT, a co-author of the report, highlights that increased AI usage in schools correlates with students identifying AI as a friend or romantic partner. “The more ways that a student reports that their school uses AI, the more likely they are to report things like ‘I know someone who considers AI to be a friend,’ ‘I know someone who considers AI to be a romantic partner,'” Laird notes.
Data Breaches and Trust Issues
The report also raises alarms about data privacy. Schools using AI extensively—defined as seven to ten uses for teachers and four to six for students—are more prone to data breaches and AI-related deepfake incidents. These deepfakes, manipulated videos or photos, are emerging as a new form of bullying and harassment.
Laird, with her background as a data privacy officer, warns that the more data schools share with AI systems, the higher the risk of breaches. “AI systems take a lot of data, they also spit out a lot of information too,” she explains.
Teachers who rely heavily on AI report more frequent failures of AI systems and a decline in community trust. Schools using AI to monitor student devices sometimes trigger false alarms, leading to incidents like student arrests, particularly affecting those who cannot afford their own devices.
Concerns for Student Wellbeing
High AI usage in schools is linked to students using AI for mental health support, companionship, and romantic relationships. Alarmingly, 31% of students using AI for personal reasons did so on school-provided devices.
Laird stresses the importance of AI literacy, stating, “I think students should know that they are not actually talking to a person. They are talking to a tool, and those tools have known limitations.” The report suggests that the current level of AI literacy and training for students is minimal.
Only 11% of teachers have been trained to handle situations where AI might harm a student’s wellbeing. While educators using AI often see benefits in their teaching and time management, students express concerns about feeling less connected to teachers and the potential negative impacts of AI.
Laird concludes, “What we hear from students is that while there may be value in this, there’s also some negative consequences that are coming with it, too. And if we’re going to realize the benefits of AI, you know, we really need to pay attention to what students are telling us.”
