Teens use, hear of ChatGPT more than parents: poll

As generative artificial intelligence (AI) technology rolls out, kids appear more apt to use and hear about popular tools than their parents, according to a poll released Wednesday. 

Fifty-eight percent of surveyed students aged 12 to 18 said they have used ChatGPT, compared to just 30 percent of surveyed parents of school-aged children, according to the poll commissioned by Common Sense Media, a children’s media safety nonprofit group.

While 54 percent of the students said they had heard “a lot” about ChatGPT, only 30 percent of parents said the same.

ChatGPT is OpenAI’s popular generative AI chatbot tool. Its popularity has skyrocketed since it launched in November, and rival products, including one from Google, have hit the market since. 

The chatbot gives users a detailed response to inquiries without a user having to click through links, as they do with a traditional search engine response. Nearly as soon as it was available to the public to use, it raised concerns about how children will use it in schools, either for cheating or to aid their education. 

The poll found that kids appear to be using ChatGPT for school assignments without their parents’ or teachers’ knowledge. 

Half of students aged 12 to 18 said they have used ChatGPT for school, but only 26 percent of parents of kids in that age range reported knowing their child used the tool for school, according to the poll. 

The poll also found that 38 percent of students said have used ChatGPT for a school assignment without their teacher’s permission, and 56 percent said they have a friend or classmate who has done so. 

Still, 68 percent of parents and an overwhelming 85 percent of students said AI tools like ChatGPT will help kids learn, based on the poll. 

At the same time, the vast majority of parents, 82 percent, and students, 85 percent, said ChatGPT has the “potential to both greatly benefit the world or cause great harm.” And the majority of parents and students said they are concerned about kids becoming too dependent on it for school, using it to cheat, and generating inappropriate content. 

Sixty-one percent of parents and 51 percent of students said they think schools should limit the use of AI programs like ChatGPT until safeguards can be put in place. 

The poll was conducted by Impact Research between March 28 and April 9 in English and Spanish. It surveyed 1,181 parents with children aged 5 to 18 enrolled in kindergarten through 12th grade, and 300 students aged 12 to 18 in K-12. The margin of error is 2.9 percentage points for the parent results and 5.7 percentage points for the student results.