Should AI homework help make you try before it shows the answer?

A finished worksheet can hide an empty desk drawer. A new preprint following 26,811 Chinese students found that after generative-AI adoption, homework scores rose and completion got faster while closed-book exam scores fell. It does not settle every question about AI tutoring, but it is a useful product test. If a student asks for help with a history question, “show answer” should not be the main button. Let them write what they remember first. Then offer one hint, then ask them to explain it back in their own words. The answer can still be there when they are stuck; it just should not make a polished page look like understanding. What would you want an AI homework tool to ask before it hands over the answer?