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Teens divided over AI use for schoolwork finds latest OUP reseach

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New research from Oxford University Press (OUP) reveals teenagers are unclear over appropriate use of AI in their education. While only four in ten (44%) think it is cheating to use AI to complete all of their homework, almost one in five also think it is cheating to simply ask an AI tool to give them homework tips. Students are calling for more support from schools with just 15% stating they have been given enough guidance.

Almost 4,000 13–18-year-olds took part in the research, which surveyed 3,100 teenagers across the UK, as well as additional qualitative studies conducted with more than 700 students in UK schools.

Qualitative studies indicate young people are hesitant about using AI as default for schoolwork

In qualitative studies, students were asked to complete a simple written exercise and offered the choice of using a generative AI tool if they wished. Of those who had access to AI, almost three quarters (72%) decided not to use it. Of those who didn’t have access, less than a quarter (23%) said they would have liked to have used an AI tool if they had been able to do so. Reasons varied, with many students stating they preferred to express their own opinion than use AI.

The qualitative studies mirror survey findings, which highlight that young people do not use AI as a default for their homework with only one in four (24%) regularly seeking out AI tools. Furthermore, one in three (34%) only use AI tools to help with their homework if suggested by their teachers compared to just 13% who are influenced by their friends.

Students want teachers to use AI in lessons but value teacher’s skills which AI can never replace

The new report, which follows OUP’s previous 2025 research into student attitudes to AI in education, reveals that over three-quarters of school children (77%) would like to see their teachers use AI to support their class in lessons. Key areas include using AI to make complex work easier to understand and lesson planning. Pupils also emphasised their teacher’s unique value however, with 73% pointing to a skill their teacher has which AI can never replace such as personability, empathy, and human understanding.

Dr Alexandra Tomescu, Head of Product AI for Oxford University Press, said ‘Whilst the research highlights that the appropriate use of AI is still a grey area for students, it’s reassuring to see young people’s sophisticated attitude towards AI. Both the research and qualitative studies show AI is not necessarily a default for all students, and despite being excited about its impact on their education they still inherently value the role of their teachers and look to school for guidance. It’s vital therefore that we support teachers with the resources and tools they need to responsibly guide their pupils and harness AI’s potential in the classroom.’

Despite concerns, school are pupils excited about the opportunity AI offers for their education

Four in ten students (39%) are more excited than worried about the impact of AI on their education, compared to 16% who said they were more concerned and less than one in three (30%) who felt neither way. When asked what helps them learn more effectively when using AI, the majority expressed preferences for AI tools that suggested tasks they can do to help them understand the subject better (44%) or asked them questions to help them reach the answer on their own (41%), compared to just one in five wanting an AI tool to give them the answer straight away.

A teacher from an Academy in South-East England, who took part in the research, said “From talking to the students about Generative AI – something that I probably would not have done – it is clear that they are using it widely but not always effectively. However, it is also clear that they see it as a tool and not a replacement for putting in some effort. Doing this has prompted me to have a discussion with the technology team in school in terms of perhaps extending any of the AI work we are doing as teachers to include groups of students.”

OUP launches trial of new AI planning tool to support teachers

To support schools, OUP has updated its AI information resource site for teachers and published a new report, which hears from students and teachers across the country on their attitudes and approaches to AI in education. OUP has also launched the trial of a new AI tool Plan Assist, to help teachers save time by being able to create personalised resources based on trusted Oxford content. Plan Assist will enable teachers to create custom materials such as lesson plans, glossaries, flashcards and more. The tool will be available for AQA GCSE Sciences and AQA GCSE French via its Kerboodle platform initially as OUP works with teachers to gather feedback and recommendations before rolling it out more widely.

3,100 students aged 13–18 across the UK were surveyed in May 2026 by strategic insights agency Opinium.

An additional 704 students across 20 schools in the UK took part in the qualitative studies conducted by Oxford’s Educational Research Forum in May 2026.

 

 

New OUP research quizzes the AI-Native Generation on use and attitudes

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New research by Oxford University Press (OUP) into AI in our classrooms reveals the extent to which young people are using Artificial Intelligence in their schoolwork. The report also examines their attitudes to it.

For Teaching the AI-Native Generation, OUP surveyed 2,000 students aged 13–18 across the UK. It finds that 8 in 10 young people use AI tools in their schoolwork, 9 in ten in London.

‘I now think faster than I used to’ male student, 14

Almost all young people agreed AI has helped them develop a skill with problem solving rated top by almost one fifth (18 percent) along with creating new ideas (15 percent), and revision and exam preparation (13 percent). Yet six in ten students (62 percent) felt AI had also negatively impacted skills in relation to their schoolwork with a quarter (26 percent) stating AI made it too easy to do work for them and one in ten (12 percent) believing it limits their creative thinking and impacts their creative writing (10 percent).

‘It does not allow me to challenge myself’ female student, 13

Among the top concerns for students (60 percent) was AI tools encouraging copying rather than original work and over half (51 percent) worry that AI resources may be biased or reinforce untrue stereotypes. Furthermore, 48 percent of young people are concerned pupils in their year are secretly using AI to do their schoolwork and almost as many (47 percent) worry their teachers are unable to spot when this happens.

The report finds that fewer than half of UK pupils (47 percent) feel confident identifying accurate AI-generated information. One third (32 percent) stated they can’t tell if AI content is true, whilst a fifth (21 percent) were unsure.

Almost half (48 percent) of pupils want support from their teachers to help them understand what content generated by AI is trustworthy and reliable, with 51 percent of pupils calling for more clarity on when they should be using AI tools in their schoolwork. A further third of students believe their teachers are not confident in using AI tools in lessons and one in three pupils want their teachers to make more use of AI resources in the classroom.

Alongside the report, OUP is also unveiling their AI and Education Hub, a dedicated site regularly updated with articles, insights and top-tips from experts across the EdTech industry, including teacher led advice for peer-to-peer support. It includes further guidance for teachers on how to mitigate against the negative impact on skills and capitalise on the benefits AI offers in relation to education.

Amie Lawless, Secondary Product Director, at Oxford University Press, said, ‘It’s encouraging to see from the research how aware young people are of the challenges surrounding AI and how eagerly they want to collaborate with their teachers to address the issues. We know that teachers are under many different pressures, which is why we developed our new AI and Education Hub to bring together educators and experts across the industry to provide guidance, inspiration and support to schools as AI becomes increasingly integrated in the classroom. Most importantly however, the findings offer a valuable reminder of bringing together trusted content and sound learning design principles with responsible AI tools which put the learner’s needs at the core.’

On the AI and Education Hub schools will also find OUP’s AI Framework for UK School Resources, outlining the set of guiding values and principles OUP follows in the design of their AI tools for UK schools.

Read the report in full. It also includes Top Tips for embedding AI in the classroom.

OUP Study raises concerns about vocabulary development

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Oxford University Press’ (OUP) Oxford Language Report, an annual study of vocabulary development in under 18s in the UK, points to an increasing number of children in the UK falling behind in their English vocabulary development. More than 800 teachers and parents were surveyed across the UK as part of research and a majority of teachers felt this is impacting their learning.

Teachers are keen for schools to work with parents to tackle the issue, with 85% believing schools could do more to encourage parents to be involved in their child’s vocabulary development. Equally over two thirds of parents surveyed are eager to engage with schools, with 68% of parents welcoming more guidance when it comes to developing their child’s vocabulary.

Overwhelmingly, teachers highlight the significant consequences of the pandemic with 95% believing school closures and disruptions during Covid-19 contributed to a widening vocabulary gap. The study publishes as OUP reveals plans for the second year of its Raise a Reader initiative. Launched in 2022 in partnership with the National Literacy Trust, Raise a Reader aims to support children’s literacy in the wake of the pandemic.

To help tackle the issue, OUP will be extending its Oxfordshire Raise a Reader programme to an additional ten schools across the county in 2024, including Banbury, Witney and Oxford. Almost 3,000 children growing up in some of the most disadvantaged areas in Oxfordshire benefitted from the programme in 2023, which saw dedicated libraries set up in ten primary schools as part of the and NLT Libraries for Primaries campaign. 5,000 books were donated to the schools, along with a range of soft furnishings and books storage. Each school received in-person specialist training to help develop effective whole-school literacy strategies and ongoing support from OUP across the year.

Avnee Morjaria, Policy Director, Education at Oxford University Press, said, ‘We can see first-hand the impact the pandemic had on young people’s education and this is one of the key reasons why we launched our Raise a Reader campaign last year. Falling behind on vocabulary development is a significant issue for many children, and one which can impact their learning at school and later life chances. The research captures the views of teachers and parents across the UK and based on their feedback, aims to give practical advice on the different ways in which we can support children’s literacy and language development. We are looking forward to working with the National Literacy Trust to support more schools next year and ensure that all children have the tools and opportunities to become life-long readers’.

Sinéad Naidoo, National Literacy Trust, Senior Programme Manager, Raise a Reader, said, ‘This report is further evidence of the need for every primary school to have a library. School libraries are essential in helping to fuel a child’s imagination, build a rich vocabulary, and give them the literacy skills they need to succeed in life. When families across the country may be struggling to afford books at home, school libraries can be a child’s only access to books and the joy of reading. We are delighted to be working with Oxford University Press for a second year to get ten wonderful new reading spaces into primary schools in Oxfordshire.’

To support parents with developing vocabulary at home, OUP has also updated its free Raise a Reader pack for parents filled with tips and activities based on the latest research to support vocabulary development and reading at home. The packs include advice from teachers, as well as three key approaches to building vocabulary: conversation; reading; and activities.

Other key findings in the Oxford Language Report included:

  • Over half of teachers report that there has been an increase in the number of children who have fallen behind in their vocabulary knowledge compared to previous years
  • Teachers almost all agree that parents should be actively involved in their child’s vocabulary development – but only 44% of schools encourage parents to do so
  • All parents surveyed consider it ‘important’ or ‘very important’ for their child to have a broad English vocabulary
  • 68% of parents would like more guidance from schools when it comes to developing their child’s vocabulary
  • 52% of schools do not have a school-wide vocabulary policy or strategy in place
  • Among parents who look for help and guidance, only 36% consult their child’s teacher for guidance.

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