Stanford professor teaches his classes ‘tech-free’—here’s the skill he wants his students to build

Cnbc · May 12, 2026 · 1007 words · By Jamil Zaki; Contributor

Cognitive Decline AI and Education Human Connection

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What to know about Cognitive Decline

A 2025 Inside Higher Ed survey found that 85% of undergraduates use AI in their coursework, and a large chunk simply let bots write essays on their behalf.

Claims checked 8

Techniques found 3

Topics 3

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center75%

Right25%

4 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

A 2025 Inside Higher Ed survey found that 85% of undergraduates use AI in their coursework, and a large chunk simply let bots write essays on their behalf.

Why it matters

Every one of my courses is now held tech-free, and since 2024, exams in the Psych One Program I direct at Stanford University have been conducted via blue books.

Common ground

The bound paper booklets in which students hand-write their responses to test questions have surged in popularity during the AI explosion.

Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language, Appeal to Fear, Exaggeration / Hyperbole: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

Follow-up questions

What new context would change how readers understand this Cognitive Decline story?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that Writing about emotional events even reduces symptoms of anxiety and depression by helping us gain perspective?
How does this story connect Cognitive Decline with AI and Education over the next few days?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.cnbc.com/2026/05/12/stanford-professor-teaches-tech-free-classesthe-…

psychologyPropaganda Techniques Detected

eFinder identified 3 propaganda techniques in this article. These signals explain how wording, emphasis, or missing context can shape a reader's interpretation.

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Loaded Language 90% confidence

Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.

Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.

Why it matters: Recognizing loaded language helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

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Appeal to Fear 70% confidence

Building support by instilling anxiety or panic in the audience.

Why it matters: Recognizing appeal to fear helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

warning

Exaggeration / Hyperbole 80% confidence

Overstating facts or claims to create a stronger emotional response.

Why it matters: Recognizing exaggeration / hyperbole helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 8 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 4

verified Verified By Reference 3

info Single Source 1

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Claim 1: “Writing about emotional events even reduces symptoms of anxiety and depression by helping us gain perspective.”

CORROBORATED

Multiple independent web sources state that expressive writing and journaling reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression and help in processing emotions.

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web search NEUTRAL — rates of anxiety and depression.
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02673843.2019.1…

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web search NEUTRAL — Symptom Reduction. Decreases symptoms of depression and anxiety. Improved Well-Being. Enhances overall mental health.Reduces Depression Symptoms. Helps in processing and understanding emotions. Breaks…
https://www.promptpanda.io/blog/journaling-prompts-for-anxie…

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web search NEUTRAL — The effectiveness of journaling in reducing symptoms of anxiety and depression has been well-documented. Studies indicate that expressive writing and gratitude journaling can lead to notable reduction…
https://www.grandrisingbehavioralhealth.com/blog/journaling-…

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Claim 2: “Research finds that writing deepens critical thinking and improves memory.”

CORROBORATED

Multiple web search results indicate that writing (specifically by hand) increases brain connectivity crucial to memory building and information encoding, and other sources link writing to improved critical thinking.

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web search NEUTRAL — About Press Copyright Contact us Creators Advertise Developers Terms Privacy Policy & Safety How...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dItUGF8GdTw

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web search NEUTRAL — Researchers showed that connectivity between different brain regions is more elaborate when letters are formed by hand. This improved brain connectivity, which is crucial to memory building and inform…
https://www.psypost.org/writing-by-hand-may-increase-brain-c…

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web search NEUTRAL — Specifically, research has pinpointed declines in the frontal lobe, which includes your prefrontal cortex, or the area that handles executive functions. Dr. Ranganath describes it as the part of your …
https://www.self.com/story/how-to-improve-memory-in-30s

info

Claim 3: “In one study, students who used AI produced more scientific arguments more quickly — and almost all of them were shallower and lower in quality.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The evidence discusses AI in schools generally and AI hallucinations, but does not provide a specific study comparing the speed and quality of scientific arguments produced by students using AI.

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web search NEUTRAL — In the field of artificial intelligence, a hallucination or artificial hallucination is a response generated by AI that contains false or misleading information presented as fact. This term draws a lo…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hallucination_(artificial_inte…

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web search NEUTRAL — It can be used to personalize learning. AI can help you tailor your content to individual student needs and learning styles, based on AI-driven analytics that give you insight into student performance…
https://education.illinois.edu/about/news-events/news/articl…

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web search NEUTRAL — Those without an AI summary? They clicked on a traditional result in 15 percent of their visits. As for actually clicking the source links in AI summaries? Pew's study found that one percent of Google…
https://www.engadget.com/ai/google-actually-ai-in-search-is-…

verified

Claim 4: “A 2025 Inside Higher Ed survey found that 85% of undergraduates use AI in their coursework”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

The provided evidence mentions general predictions for AI in higher education in 2025 and a McKinsey survey about business AI use, but none of the sources mention an 'Inside Higher Ed' survey specifically stating that 85% of undergraduates use AI in their coursework.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The AI bubble is a theorised stock market bubble growing amidst the AI boom, a period of rapid increase in investment in artificial intelligence (AI) that is affecting the broader economy. Speculation…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AI_bubble

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Anthropic is an American artificial intelligence (AI) company headquartered in San Francisco. It has developed a range of large language models (LLMs) named Claude and focuses on AI safety. Anthropic …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthropic

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Claude is a series of large language models developed by American software company Anthropic which were first released in 2023. The Claude line of models is used for chatbots, analyzing data, and for …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claude_(language_model)

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 5: “He is the author of "The War for Kindness" and "Hope for Cynics."”

CORROBORATED

Multiple web sources confirm Jamil Zaki as the author of 'The War for Kindness' and 'Hope for Cynics'.

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web search NEUTRAL — Hope for Cynics. The War for Kindness.Jamil Zaki’s new book is beautiful, wise, and important—a sensible, scientific, and much-needed tonic for what ails us.” Daniel Gilbert, author of the New York Ti…
https://www.jamil-zaki.com/

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web search NEUTRAL — 'In this masterpiece, Jamil Zaki weaves together the very latest science with stories that will stay in your heart forever' - Angela Duckworth, author of Grit 'Scientific, gripping, groundbreaking and…
https://www.amazon.com/War-Kindness-Building-Empathy-Fractur…

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web search NEUTRAL — A Q&A session will follow Zaki’s presentation, and the Office of Equity and Inclusion will be providing books for those interested in participating in a reading group on “Hope for Cynics.” Supplies ar…
https://www.umass.edu/news/article/stanfords-jamil-zaki-pres…

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Claim 6: “Jamil Zaki is a full professor of psychology at Stanford University and director of the Stanford Social Neuroscience Lab.”

CORROBORATED

Three independent web sources explicitly state that Jamil Zaki is a full professor of psychology at Stanford University and the director of the Stanford Social Neuroscience Lab.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Ibn 'Arabī (July 1165–November 1240) was a Sunni Muslim Arab scholar, Sufi mystic, poet, and Muslim philosopher from al-Andalus, who exercised notable influence within Sufi metaphysics and Islamic tho…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ibn_Arabi

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Just Mercy is a 2019 American biographical legal drama film co-written and directed by Destin Daniel Cretton and starring Michael B. Jordan as Bryan Stevenson and Jamie Foxx as Walter McMillian, toget…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Just_Mercy

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) is the highest honor bestowed by the United States federal government on outstanding scientists and engineers in the early sta…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Presidential_Early_Career_Awar…

+ 3 more evidence sources

verified

Claim 7: “since 2024, exams in the Psych One Program I direct at Stanford University have been conducted via blue books”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

The evidence provided contains general information about Stanford University and psychology degrees, but there is no mention of the 'Psych One Program' or the specific use of blue books for exams since 2024.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D. or D.Psych.) is a professional doctoral degree intended to prepare graduates for careers that apply scientific knowledge of psychology and deliver empirically based se…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doctor_of_Psychology

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Otis–Lennon School Ability Test (OLSAT), published by the successor of Harcourt Assessment—Pearson Education, Inc., a subsidiary of Pearson PLC—is according to the publisher, a test of abstract th…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otis–Lennon_School_Ability_Tes…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — In a physical examination, medical examination, clinical examination, or medical checkup, a medical practitioner examines a patient for any possible medical signs or symptoms of a medical condition. I…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Physical_examination

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 8: “Researchers found that when given logic problems, most people who were given a chance to use AI did so. And when a bot produced the wrong answer, barely 20% noticed.”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

While the evidence discusses AI hallucinations and AI tools, there is no specific research study mentioned in the provided text that corroborates the claim about logic problems and the 20% detection rate of wrong answers.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — AI slop (also known as slop content or simply as slop) is digital content made with generative artificial intelligence that is perceived as lacking in effort, quality, or meaning, and produced in high…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AI_slop

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Perplexity AI, Inc., or simply Perplexity, is an American privately held software company offering a web search engine that processes user queries and synthesizes responses. Perplexity products use la…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perplexity_AI

+ 3 more evidence sources

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.