In an argument, if you don’t understand it, you can’t write it. Conversely, to write it requires that you make the hard effort to think it through. I view with alarm the idea that AI suggests we can safely move away from requiring students to write. In my experience, the tough discipline of clearly reducing a line of thought to words on paper is far and away the best way to realize and retain an idea. Skimming and editing text presented to you is useful. But it is not the best way to gain understanding. And while we are at it, let’s acknowledge that the road to an adequate written vocabulary is though exposure to our rich literary tradition. Watching is fun and easy and sometimes informative. But it does not hold a candle as a developer of judgment and understanding to concentrated absorption in a good book. STEM learning is practically important. But it would be tragic to consider it alone as the window to a rich life or a wise citizenry.