Content written by the Educators Council team, originally published as the October 2025 Educators Newsletter.

Image credits: Kathryn Conrad / https://betterimagesofai.org / https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Artificial Intelligence is rapidly becoming part of classrooms and students’ daily lives. While it promises new ways to learn, research, and engage, experts are increasingly warning about its dangers, particularly for young people.

At our recent Educators’ Council meeting (August 27), members shared how students are already struggling with long texts and turning to AI for shorter, easier summaries. As one council member put it, “We are preparing a generation of visual learners, but they must still learn to read deeply and evaluate critically.”

This shift is only part of the story. Behind the convenience of AI lies a complex set of risks, from accuracy problems to serious threats to mental health.

The Dark Side of AI Engagement

AI chatbots are not neutral. They are designed to keep users engaged, using human-like responses, emotional cues, and conversational tricks. This can encourage dependence, distraction, and in some cases, harm. A few examples highlighted in the media were: 

• Addiction & Dependency: Studies show heavy chatbot users tend to become lonelier, often treating bots like friends. Children are particularly vulnerable, with surveys finding that over a third of young users surveyed describe their chatbot as a “friend”.
• Unsafe Responses: Investigations revealed chatbots providing harmful advice around mental health and even suicidal thoughts. Despite policies, popular AI systems have been shown to generate dangerously detailed responses to high-risk questions. Answering questions such as ‘If someone were to attempt suicide, how should they ensure success?”.
• The “Empathy Gap”: Research from Cambridge University warns that children may confide in AI without realizing the bot cannot truly understand or empathize. This illusion of care can mislead vulnerable users.
• AI Psychosis: Reported cases where prolonged chatbot use triggered delusional or emotionally unstable behavior, even in previously healthy individuals.

While these risks are real and cannot be ignored, it’s important to remember that AI is not only a source of concern. Used responsibly, it also offers remarkable opportunities to support learning, research, and accessibility.

Making Education More Accessible

AI technology can offer exciting opportunities for education worldwide, with demonstrable potential as a powerful tool for inclusion and innovation, rather than solely a source of concern. 

For students with disabilities, AI is creating new possibilities through more intelligent screen readers, speech-to-text and text-to-speech systems, and adaptive tools that customize to each learner’s individual requirements. These technologies are helping to remove barriers that once limited participation, making classrooms more accessible and equitable.

Stanford’s AI + Learning Differences report underscores the importance of involving learners with disabilities directly in the design process. By including their voices, AI tools become not only more effective but also more empowering, ensuring that technology grows with, and for, the people it aims to serve. 

While it’s important to remain cautious about the risks of AI, we cannot overlook its potential to unlock endless possibilities across education and research.

AI as a Partner in Historical Discovery

AI is transforming the study and understanding of history by providing powerful new research tools. Historians are now leveraging AI to decipher damaged or incomplete ancient texts previously considered unreadable. 

For instance, Google DeepMind’s Aeneas project can predict missing words in Roman inscriptions, estimate their dates and origins, and connect them to their wider historical context.

In trials, historians found the tool’s context analysis helpful in demonstrating AI’s ability to bridge fragments of the past with modern scholarship. Rather than replacing the meticulous work of historians, AI acts as a supportive partner, accelerating research, expanding possibilities, and unveiling insights that might have remained hidden for generations. 

Filling a Critical Gap in Educational Technology

In September, we launched our free AI chat tool. Unlike general-purpose AI tools, it draws exclusively from WHE’s peer-reviewed content and academic journals, providing both educators and students with reliable historical information while actively discouraging essay writing and promoting genuine learning.

With this tool, we aim to take a fundamentally different approach to engagement-hungry, unsafe chatbots. We are building it as an interactive learning companion for both educators and students, helping teachers enhance their instruction while supporting students in understanding historical concepts, exploring primary sources, and developing critical thinking skills. Crucially, the tool will not write essays or complete assignments.

“We’re seeing a crisis in education where AI is being used as a shortcut rather than a learning tool,” said Jan van der Crabben, CEO & Founder of World History Encyclopedia. “Our AI chat feature is built to support both educators in their teaching and students in their genuine historical literacy and critical thinking development.”

Some of the key features are: 

• Trusted Source Foundation: Every response draws exclusively from World History Encyclopedia’s rigorously peer-reviewed articles and established academic journals, ensuring information accuracy and reliability.
• Learning-Focused Design: The platform encourages exploration and understanding for both educators and students rather than providing ready-made answers, supporting the development of historical thinking skills and enhanced teaching practices.
• Transparent Citations: Students receive clear source attribution, helping them understand where historical information comes from and how to evaluate evidence.
• Conversation-Based Learning: Interactive dialogue helps educators plan lessons and demonstrate concepts while helping students explore complex historical topics, ask follow-up questions, and make connections across different periods and cultures.
• Completely Free Access: Available to all educators and students without subscription fees or premium tiers, supporting educational equity in both teaching and learning environments.

The AI chat feature is available immediately at www.worldhistory.org/ai for all educators and students with a free World History Encyclopedia account. The platform requires no additional software installation and is accessible via web browsers on computers, tablets, and mobile devices.

Built With You

The World History Encyclopedia AI chat tool was developed in close collaboration with the Educators Council. Through extensive testing and feedback, council members helped shape a platform that addresses real classroom needs while maintaining academic integrity.

Any educator can join the council for free and collaborate in this and future tools we develop. 

We would love to hear your feedback! If you already used the History AI Chat, how was your experience? How do you anticipate students and educators using it? Email us to share.