The German Teachers’ Association (DL) is concerned about the potential end of homework assignments due to students’ increasing use of artificial intelligence. Stefan Düll, the president of the DL, told the “Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung” that there is a risk that homework may become impossible to manage. According to him, anything that occurs outside the classroom could theoretically be completed with or by AI, which is difficult for teachers to monitor. Therefore, the DL president suggested that handwriting requirements should be maintained for homework and in lower-grade exams to prevent cheating. Furthermore, large assignments created outside of class, such as specialized research papers, are also affected. In such cases, the only remaining method to gauge a student’s actual ability might be through discussion. In the future, assessment must focus more on the developmental process; “I cannot test the content, but rather ask: How did you arrive at this content?”
However, Düll warned against generalizing negative judgments about young people’s interaction with new technologies. He argued that current discussions about teenagers, such as those concerning social media addiction or AI use, tend to pathologize and criminalize them. Düll maintained that students are capable of using digital resources diligently. He concluded that both society and schools must accept that competencies are changing between generations, stating, “We must be able to accept that today’s young people are developing different skills than the ones we possess”.