Quick Answer: Yes, when used correctly. According to Coursera’s February 2026 survey of over 4,200 students and educators across five countries, 80% of students say AI improved their academic performance. Khanmigo produced an average 1.4 grade-level improvement in math in pilot districts (Khan Academy, 2025).
But a Brookings Institution 2026 global report based on a 50+ country study warns that unchecked AI use currently poses more risks than benefits for students, including over-reliance and academic integrity issues.
The pattern that consistently produces grade improvement: students use AI to understand errors and practice more, not to generate submissions. Students who use AI to do their work instead of understanding it see no lasting improvement.
Key Highlights: Can AI Help Students Improve Their Grades?
- 80% of students in a February 2026 Coursera survey said AI improved their academic performance (survey of 4,200+ students and educators across five countries)
- 92% of students globally used AI for school in 2025, up from 66% in 2024, according to DemandSage 2026 data
- Khanmigo produced an average 1.4 grade-level improvement in math pilot districts in 2025, according to Khan Academy
- Brookings Institution’s 2026 global report warns that unchecked AI use poses risks outweighing benefits, particularly over-reliance and cognitive shortcutting
- Students who use AI to generate assignments without doing the work themselves show no lasting grade improvement and perform worse on exams
- The assignment-to-exam grade gap is the clearest warning sign that a student is using AI as a shortcut rather than a learning tool
The Honest Answer to Whether AI Improves Grades
The research in 2026 points in two directions simultaneously, and both are true. AI tools, when used as learning aids, produce measurable academic improvement. AI tools, when used to bypass the learning process, produce short-term grade inflation followed by poor exam performance. The difference is entirely in how students use them.
This matters especially for Ontario students because OSSD final exam results and university conditional offers are based on demonstrated independent performance, not on assignment grades. A student whose assignment average is inflated by AI-generated submissions but who has not developed the underlying skills will fail to meet their conditional offer when June marks are submitted. Our guide on how to avoid that outcome covers the most important steps.
The Evidence That AI Helps with Grade Improvement
The Coursera 2026 Research
A February 2026 Coursera survey of over 4,200 students and educators across the US, UK, India, Germany, and Australia found that 80% of students say AI has improved their academic performance. Immediate feedback, available tutoring, and personalized explanation were the primary reasons students cited. The survey also found that 75% of students said they feel more confident in their academic abilities since using AI tools. That confidence gain is meaningful because anxiety is a genuine barrier to performance for many students.
Khanmigo: 1.4 Grade Level Improvement in Math
Khan Academy’s 2025 pilot data showed that students using Khanmigo, its AI tutor that uses Socratic questioning rather than direct answers, improved an average of 1.4 grade levels in math. The key mechanism is that Khanmigo refuses to give answers directly. It asks students what they already know, what they have tried, and where they are stuck. That approach forces cognitive engagement rather than passive consumption. For students working on Grade 12 math or science courses, this is the AI tool with the strongest evidence base for actual grade improvement.
Duolingo’s Language Learning Research
Duolingo’s 2024 research showed that AI-powered adaptive language practice is equivalent to four university semesters of Spanish in 150 hours of practice. While this is language-specific, it illustrates how AI can compress the time required to reach a measurable proficiency threshold when practice is personalized to the learner’s specific gaps and completed consistently.
The Evidence That AI Can Harm Grades
Brookings Institution 2026: The Risk of Over-Reliance
The Brookings Institution published a major 2026 report titled ‘A New Direction for Students in an AI World: Prosper, Prepare, Protect’ based on a year-long global study covering students, teachers, parents, and technologists in over 50 countries. Its central finding was that given current patterns of use, the risks of generative AI for students currently outweigh the potential benefits.
The primary concern is cognitive over-reliance: when AI does the thinking, students do not develop the reasoning, analytical, and problem-solving skills that exams and university demand. Brookings cited Martin West of Harvard: ‘Some uses of generative AI can undermine learning, particularly when the tools are used to do the cognitive work of thinking for students rather than to support their learning.’
The Assignment-to-Exam Grade Gap
Students who use AI to complete assignments without genuine understanding develop a diagnostic gap: their assignment grades look strong but their test and exam grades are significantly weaker. This gap is detectable and is increasingly flagged by Ontario schools.
For Grade 12 students, this gap directly threatens their conditional university offers, which are based on final exam marks. If your assignments average 85% but your exams average 65%, you need to change how you are studying immediately. Our guide on improving grades before final exams covers the fastest routes to closing that gap.
5 Specific Ways Students Can Use AI to Actually Improve Their Grades
1. Use AI to Understand Your Errors, Not to Avoid Making Them
The most productive use of AI for grade improvement is post-attempt error analysis. Complete a practice problem or assignment on your own first. When you get something wrong, ask AI to explain specifically why your approach failed and what the correct thinking is. This builds understanding rather than dependency. Students who open AI before attempting anything develop no skills.
2. Generate Practice Questions on Your Weakest Topics
Ask ChatGPT, Khanmigo, or NotebookLM to generate 5 practice questions on the specific topic you struggled with most in your last test. Work through those questions independently. Then check with AI. For Grade 12 Chemistry (SCH4U) or Physics (SPH4U), this targeted practice is far more efficient than re-reading the entire chapter.
3. Use AI-Generated Explanations to Prepare Questions for Your Teacher
After using ChatGPT to get a concept explained, you may still have follow-up questions that AI cannot answer accurately. Write down those questions before your next class. Students who arrive with specific, intelligent questions get more from teacher interaction and demonstrate engagement that can positively influence teacher assessments of their learning skills.
4. Turn Your Own Notes Into Practice Tests
Upload your notes to Google NotebookLM and ask it to generate a 10-question quiz based only on your notes. Answer the quiz without looking at the notes. Check your answers. This is active recall, the most evidence-backed study technique for long-term retention. For subjects like Grade 12 Biology (SBI4U) with large volumes of content, this method consistently outperforms passive re-reading.
5. Use AI to Set Realistic Weekly Targets and Track Against Them
AI tools can help you build a study schedule based on your upcoming deadlines and your current performance. Ask ChatGPT: ‘My next Chemistry test is in 8 days. I scored 62% on my last test. I have roughly 45 minutes per night to study. Build me a day-by-day study plan.’ The output will not be perfect, but it gives you a structured starting point that is far better than unplanned studying.
When AI Will Not Help Your Grades
- If you are using AI to write your assignments and submit them as your own work, you are building no skills
- If you are using ChatGPT to check math answers, you are getting unreliable feedback
- If you read AI explanations but never test yourself without the tool, you are not retaining anything
- If your study sessions involve more AI screen time than independent thinking time, the AI is not helping your grades
If your Grade 12 marks are not where they need to be for your university target programs, the most effective solution is direct teacher support combined with structured practice. USCA Academy’s tutoring program in Mississauga works with students on the specific gaps that are holding their grades down, with human teachers who can identify exactly where understanding breaks down in a way AI cannot.
| Need help improving specific Grade 11 or 12 course marks before university deadlines? USCA Academy offers credit course upgrades and tutoring designed around the Ontario curriculum. Call +1 (905) 232-0411 or visit credit courses in Mississauga. |
Frequently Asked Questions About AI and Grade Improvement
1. Can AI help a student go from 70% to 80% in a course?
Yes, in many cases. Moving from 70% to 80% typically requires identifying 3 to 5 specific knowledge gaps and building procedural fluency in those areas through targeted practice. AI tools are very good at both identifying gaps (through diagnostic quizzing) and providing targeted practice. Khan Academy and Khanmigo are particularly effective for math and science in this range. The improvement requires consistent AI-assisted study over 4 to 6 weeks, not a single session.
2. Does using AI to study count as cheating in Ontario?
Using AI to study, practice, and understand content is not cheating. Using AI to generate submissions you present as your own original work is cheating under every Ontario school board’s academic integrity policy. The distinction matters. A student who uses Khanmigo for 2 hours of math practice every week is building genuine skills. A student who uses ChatGPT to write every essay is not. For a full breakdown of what Ontario boards permit and prohibit, read our guide on can students use ChatGPT for homework in Ontario.
