AI: GOMEP-NG President Warns Excessive Use Could Weaken Human Thinking

By Charity Uwakwe

As AI becomes a bigger part of everyday learning, a warning from GOMEP-NG President Akpovoke Otiti is raising a deeper question: What happens when young people stop exercising the ability to think for themselves?

Artificial Intelligence is changing how students learn, work and access information. But as AI tools become increasingly common in classrooms, homes and tutorials, GOMEP-NG President Akpovoke Otiti has warned that excessive dependence on the technology could come at a cost — the gradual weakening of human thinking.

Excessive reliance on Artificial Intelligence could weaken critical thinking, creativity, concentration and independent reasoning among young people, GOMEP-NG President Akpovoke Otiti has warned. He urged schools, parents and policymakers to ensure that AI remains a learning tool rather than a replacement for human thinking, reading, writing and practical learning.

ABUJA — The growing dependence on Artificial Intelligence (AI) among young people could weaken critical thinking and other essential human abilities if the technology is allowed to replace independent learning, the President of the Guild of Online Media Editors and Publishers of Nigeria (GOMEP-NG), Comr. Akpovoke Otiti, has warned.

Otiti raised the concern while speaking at a programme in Abuja, where he examined the growing influence of AI on education, young people and everyday life.

He warned that society could face serious consequences if children and young adults become overly dependent on AI-powered devices to perform tasks that require human reasoning, creativity and judgment.

According to him, the rapid spread of AI in homes, schools and classrooms should be approached with caution.

He said the world was gradually losing sight of its responsibility to protect and develop human intellectual capacity, warning that the consequences could become difficult to reverse if the trend continues unchecked.

Otiti said the increasing use of digital devices in education should not be allowed to replace traditional learning activities such as reading, writing, critical reasoning, human interaction and practical learning.

«“The danger is that we may gradually stop exercising the very abilities that make us human,” he said.»

He stressed that education should go beyond the ability to access information.

Instead, he said students must be taught to analyse information, ask questions, reason independently and arrive at original conclusions.

The GOMEP-NG president also expressed concern over reports of declining attention spans and weakening executive-function skills among young people.

He said the development had made responsible technology use an urgent issue for parents, teachers, schools and policymakers.

Otiti further pointed to reports that some technology executives were choosing low-tech educational environments for their children.

He described the reported trend as a development that should prompt society to take a closer look at the effects of excessive technology use on children and adults.

However, he clarified that AI itself should not be rejected.

Rather, he said the technology should remain a tool for enhancing human abilities instead of becoming a replacement for them.

According to Otiti, the major challenge facing society is finding the right balance between technological advancement and the preservation of human intellectual capacity.

«“The coming era will be the ability to think deeply, knowledgeably and originally, and to be the best of what the human being can be, not a pale imitation of AI,” he said.»

He therefore called on educators, parents and policymakers to develop responsible guidelines for the use of AI in education.

Such guidelines, he said, should ensure that activities that promote independent thought, creativity, concentration, problem-solving and human interaction are preserved.

His position adds to the growing debate over the impact of generative AI on education, as schools and educators seek ways to benefit from the technology without allowing it to undermine students’ ability to think, learn and solve problems independently.