By Genesis Muckle
As of Feb. 27, 2025, OpenAI announced that they would be releasing a preview of the latest update to ChatGPT, known as GPT-4.5. This newest app model is supposed to improve natural language understanding and enhance contextual awareness to allow it to have more human interactions.
In a recent study by the University of California San Diego, MetaAI’s Llama-3 and OpenAI’s GPT-4.5 passed the Turing test. During the study, 284 participants believed that GPT-4.5 was human 73% of the time. It succeeded because rather than giving logical reasoning, it was able to mimic human emotions and natural conversation flow. These results raise many moral and psychological concerns regarding human and AI interactions. So, how does this affect education?
Academic Impact
ChatGPT 4.5 features like enhanced memory allow for more coherent interactions with the ability to remember the student’s name and learning styles, and to provide instant feedback 24/7. It even possesses interactive features that help students with problem-solving, debate practice, and roleplay conversations, offering a more personal and humane private tutor experience.
Despite its advantages, there are concerns about it hindering students and allowing them easy access to answers without work. If students rely too heavily on AI, it can take away their ability to think independently and creatively. Additionally, even though AI is presented as all-knowing, it can be misleading and incorrect at times, leading to students still having to fact-check the information it gives them.
Emotional Impact
In “How ChatGPT Impacts Student Engagement from a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Study,” 1,735 students were analyzed. It was found that while students’ emotional engagement was enhanced in terms of learning, the use of the app raises the concern that people become overly reliant on AI for not only learning but also companionship.
Human interactions have decreased significantly, not only with major events such as COVID-19 but also with the rise of technology. Many people, particularly those within the adolescent to young adult years, don’t feel the need to interact with people anymore. ChatGPT has now upgraded the app to where it can understand things such as the tone and offer a new level of emotional support and empathy that it has never had before.
Replacing real-life people and experiences with ChatGPT can give students a false sense of security and make it harder for them to open up and seek help from professionals. Students might feel like they are getting the support that they need. But using AI to sort their emotions can lead to isolation and loneliness due to the one-sided conversation.
Some would argue that this new emotional intelligence upgrade could help with human interactions and communication.
Madison Malaga, criminology and criminal justice major at The University of Tampa, said it could benefit students who feel lonely, but they should not give up on real human connections.
“As a college student, it makes me feel good because you have someone to talk to if you’re alone,” she said. “[But] I think everyone should have a social life.”
The Guardian also explains how this app has become a platform where those who struggle with social anxiety could have a place to get reassurance and practice what it would be like to speak to people without the feeling of judgment.
ChatGPT’s advancements in education and communication have the ability to transform many college experiences and create a more customized educational experience. However, we also need to remember that there must be a balance between using AI and maintaining real human connections. AI is the future of the world, but it’s up to us to decide how we want to use it.
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Photo courtesy of Genesis Muckle.