Check your work the smart way
Asking AI to check your working can teach you a lot, or nothing at all. The difference is whether it points at the mistake or fixes it for you.
Traffic light: green
Checking work you've already done is green. Asking for the answer before you've tried is red.
Finding your own mistake is where the learning is
If AI hands you a corrected version, you read it, nod, and move on. Next time you'll make the same mistake, because you never worked out what went wrong. If it only tells you where the problem is, you have to find it and fix it yourself, and that is the bit that sticks.
Point, don't fix
Is this right? [paste your working]
Here is my working for this question: [paste the question and your working]. Don't correct it or give me the answer. Tell me the first line where something goes wrong, if any, and give me one hint about what to check.
Then go back to that line yourself. If you still can't see it, ask for a second hint, not the fix.
The checker can be wrong too
- ! It can mark a right answer wrong, or a wrong one right. It predicts what's likely, and likely isn't the same as true. If it flags a line you're sure about, check with your textbook or teacher before you change it.
- ! Try first, every time. Pasting a question you haven't attempted isn't checking. It's asking for the answer.
Keep going
Getting good at spotting where working goes wrong is a skill of its own. Practise it on answers where every sum is right and something is still wrong.
Last reviewed: 25 September 2026