Critical thinking in the age of AI
Students used to copy-paste from Wikipedia.
Now they copy-paste from Gen AI tools.
How do we teach students in an age where AI outperforms humans at analyzing data, generating arguments, and solving problems?
We should be teaching them critical thinking. We should be teaching them to engage with AI as a partner, challenging its outputs, and layering their unique perspective on top of what it provides.
From Creating to Co-Creation
Critical thinking is the skill that helps us blend the efficiency of machines with our uniquely human insights. While AI provides a baseline of information and ideas, only you can add the depth and nuance needed to make the outcome truly meaningful. “Critical thinking allows us to go beyond the baseline that AI generates. The content must reflect your personal knowledge, your voice, and your perspective. Otherwise, who are you?” stated Dr. Marc-Oliver Gewaltig, a computational neuroscientist and co-creator of Thesify.aiin a conversation for an upcoming podcast.
Think about it this way: if you can get all the information you need from an AI prompt, what’s the point of reading a Forbes column on critical thinking in the age of AI? In fact, what’s the point of any human generated content or analysis if you could simply ask AI for it?
The answer lies in the process. As Dr. Gewaltig put it, “If everybody is using AI, you don’t have an advantage. Critical thinking allows us to go beyond the obvious, beyond the first step everyone can do.” If all you’re doing is writing content based on data or knowledge, AI can do it faster and better. But AI can’t replicate your personal brand of back-and-forth thinking through the problem, the answers, the data, and the context—to generate what becomes your very own AI-aided ideas.
Critical Thinking: The Human Advantage
At the heart of critical thinking today is the ability to combine AI’s capabilities with human creativity, intuition, and ethical judgment. While AI handles tasks like processing vast amounts of information, humans contribute the personal context, nuanced judgment, and ethical considerations needed to make outputs truly meaningful. When humans and machines work together, critical thinking becomes a layered conversation, evolving through continuous refinement and questioning. Each response prompts refinements or new questions, building depth and insight. The conversation—not just the question or prompt—is key. A generic query will yield a generic answer. In contrast, a layered conversation—shaped by personal expertise and creativity—can lead to breakthroughs. This approach transforms AI from a simple tool into a dynamic partner in your ability to think critically.
Take this article, for example. It was written with the aid of AI but not by AI. It took a multi-day iterative process: prompting AI for ideas, looking up sources, analyzing data, asking follow-up questions, and refining its outputs by integrating personal perspectives. The conversation—not the initial prompt—is what enabled the arguments to deepen and the content to be tailored to provide value and new perspectives.
Mastering Critical Thinking with AI
Like any skill, it takes practice to engage critically with the ideas and outputs developed in partnership with AI tools. The AI generated output is not the end of your process, it’s the beginning. To think critically and layer your own perspectives to generate your personalized AI-aided content, it helps to consider these guiding questions:
1. What assumptions or biases underpin the output? Are there any gaps in the data the AI relied on? How can you challenge these assumptions?
2. What perspectives might be missing? Look for voices, arguments, or viewpoints that the AI may have overlooked. How might including these perspectives strengthen the analysis?
3. Does the output align with or challenge existing ideas? Use AI to explore counterarguments or alternative perspectives, ensuring a more nuanced understanding.
4. Is the information consistent and accurate? Cross-reference AI outputs with reliable sources to validate the data and identify any discrepancies. What gaps remain, and how might you address them?
5. How does the iterative process refine your thinking? Actively seek deeper engagement with your work. Reflect on how each iteration improves the quality of your arguments and understanding, possibly opening up new avenues to explore.
By asking these questions and iterating on the outputs, you not only ensure accuracy but also develop a deeper, more thoughtful perspective. Engaging critically with AI in this way transforms it from a simple tool into a collaborator that enhances your learning and creativity.
Why This Matters Now
The stakes have never been higher.
If schools don’t revamp curricula to emphasize how to engage with AI critically, they risk graduating individuals unprepared for future work. Skills such as framing iterative questions, validating AI outputs against reliable sources, and identifying gaps or biases in AI-generated data should be central to modern education. We must equip individuals with the ability to think critically and adaptively in collaboration with AI, ensuring they can effectively navigate and contribute in an AI-driven world. Tools like Thesify.ai can support this shift by fostering personalized, real time, iterative learning and encouraging deeper critical engagement, acting as valuable aids in developing these skills.
Similarly, professionals who rely solely on AI without bringing their unique perspective to the table will struggle to stand out in an increasingly automated world. For people in the workplace, critical thinking is about using AI to enhance—not replace—their creativity and expertise. As AI raises the baseline of what’s possible, individuals who can integrate human judgment, creativity, and ethical reasoning into their work will lead the way.
By balancing AI’s efficiency with human ingenuity, critical thinking in the age of AI keeps the individual—not the machine—at the center of the creative process. In the end, the future of work won’t belong to AI alone. It will belong to those who can merge machine efficiency with human creativity, ensuring that our unique insights remain at the forefront of progress.
