RUME 28
2026
Alexandria, Virginia
The Impact of AI Tools on Metacognition and Study Skills
Page: 1262
The rapid integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into higher education has introduced new opportunities and challenges for student learning. This study, conducted at Timberline University (TU) during the Fall 2025 semester, examines how AI tools influence metacognition, study habits, and academic performance. Using a mixed-methods design, the research analyzes quantitative and qualitative data from student surveys, focus groups, and instructor feedback to identify patterns of AI use and their relationship to learning behaviors. The study explores how students engage with AI in ways that affect reasoning, persistence, and self-regulation. In particular, it investigates how AI supports or shapes metacognitive processes, including students’ ability to plan, monitor, and evaluate their own learning strategies, recognize gaps in understanding, and adjust approaches to problem-solving. Additionally, the study examines the impact of AI on study habits, such as time management, task prioritization, note-taking strategies, and the development of consistent, effective practice routines. By highlighting the interplay between AI use, metacognition, and study habits, findings aim to clarify how AI supports or hinders the development of key cognitive and academic skills, and to provide insights into how AI can be effectively integrated to promote self-directed learning, reflective thinking, and long-term academic success.