Beyond the Algorithm: Supporting Faculty as the Curators Students Rely On

Teaching in the TikTok & AI Era: Why Faculty Deserve Better Tools — and a Trusted Partner

Walk into any classroom today and you’ll feel it immediately: students are learning from everywhere. Papers citing YouTube tutorials. TikTok “how-to” videos used as explanations. ChatGPT summaries pasted into discussion posts. It’s not that students are trying to cut corners—they’re simply turning to the tools they’re used to. The problem is that those tools don’t always offer accuracy, depth, or context.

And that’s where faculty step in.
Not as gatekeepers.
Not as tech skeptics.
But as curators of what’s real, what’s reliable, and what actually prepares students for the careers waiting for them.

At ACI Learning, we believe deeply in that role—and we built Skill Labs to support it.

Where Students Get Information Has Changed. Your Support System Should Too.

The recent data is clear:

• About 26% of U.S. teens ages 13–17 now say they’ve used ChatGPT for schoolwork—double the share from 2023.
  (Pew Research Center: https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2025/01/15/about-a-quarter-of-us-teens-have-used-chatgpt-for-schoolwork-double-the-share-in-2023/)

• Teens are increasingly comfortable using ChatGPT to “research” new topics, with 54% saying it’s acceptable for that purpose—even though only 18% say it’s acceptable for writing their essays.
  (Pew/VPM reporting: https://www.vpm.org/npr-news/npr-news/2025-01-18/more-teens-say-theyre-using-chatgpt-for-schoolwork-a-new-study-finds)

• Among computing students, only 6.3% reported never using ChatGPT by late 2024.
  (arXiv paper: https://arxiv.org/abs/2412.16453)

Students aren’t just Googling anymore. They’re consulting algorithms. They’re accepting answers without always understanding how those answers were generated. They’re grabbing “information” that wasn’t necessarily created by experts, vetted by educators, or aligned with any learning standard.

And that shifts the weight.
It shifts it onto you.

You—who must keep lessons accurate.
You—who must correct half-truths from TikTok.
You—who must create hands-on, real-world experience students can’t get from a 60-second video.

We see that. And Skill Labs is our answer to it.

Good Teaching Needs Good Tools. We’ve Got You.

Skill Labs Gives You the Kind of Support AI Can’t

Everything we build is designed to reinforce your role as the expert in the classroom. Here’s how:

1. Pre-Built, Real, Hands-On Labs (Not Simulations)

Students don’t just watch cybersecurity, IT, or digital forensics concepts—they perform them.
Our labs run on real virtual machines, and – for hardware – on simulations.
Read more: https://www.acilearning.com/blog/why-our-top-labs-are-the-best-for-building-real-world-it-skills/

They troubleshoot networks, analyze malware, respond to incidents, and test their skills in environments designed by certified experts who teach and train these topics daily.

2. AI-Proof Integrity

TikTok, YouTube, and AI tools can spark curiosity—but they don’t guarantee accuracy.

Our content is built by industry experts, vetted, updated, and intentionally aligned to certification pathways including A+, Network+, Security+, digital forensics, and more.

This makes you the guide—not the fact-checker for every video your students found at 1 a.m.

3. Tools That Give You Your Time Back

Skill Labs supports you so you can support students:

• Auto-grading

• Advanced performance tracking

• Accessible help desk support

• LMS integration

• Ready-made labs you don’t have to build from scratch

Everything is designed to reduce your workload without diluting your authority or instructional style.

4. Student-Ready and Classroom-Tested

With 14+ million lab sessions and more than 500,000 learners served, Skill Labs has been proven in real classrooms—high schools, community colleges, universities, and workforce programs.

These aren’t experiments.
They’re field-tested learning environments.

Teaching in a Noisy, Fast-Moving Digital World

When a student says:

“ChatGPT told me this…”
“I saw on TikTok that…”
“There’s a YouTube video that says…”

You don’t have to groan, roll your eyes, or spend an extra hour Googling to debunk it.

Instead, with Skill Labs, you can say:

“Great—let’s test that idea in a real environment.”

In other words:
You shift them from consuming to doing.
And that’s where learning becomes real.

Why Good Tools Matter for You—and for Them

Skill Labs help you:

• Keep learning grounded in real systems, not viral content

• Maintain academic standards without becoming the “AI police”

• Give students the hands-on practice employers actually care about

• Spend more time teaching, explaining, and mentoring

• Help students distinguish between information and understanding

This isn’t about replacing your teaching.
It’s about strengthening your impact.

You bring expertise.
We bring the tools.
Together, students get the clarity and skill they deserve.

Ready When You Are. Let’s Make Real Learning Happen.

Learn more about Skill Labs for classrooms: Hands-on, virtual labs for students | IT & Cybersecurity