When ChatGPT debuted last fall, reactions to the new artificial intelligence (AI) tool ranged from surprise and curiosity to astonishment and panic. This includes school officials who are already concerned about cheating in the online age and academic misconduct.
Now, about two months later, a series of professors and academic integrity experts are sharing their more cautious reactions to developer OpenAI’s ChatGPT bot. ChatGPT bots can quickly spit out human-like sentences, computer code, and more, based on training from billions of samples from the web. .
They check the bots themselves, grow them with their colleagues, and even bring them into the classroom. Some call this a teaching opportunity as a reminder for both students and professors to regularly reassess new technologies and how they measure student learning.
For colleagues at the university who “think a lot about how best to teach in a digitally mediated space and help students learn,” there’s no need to panic about ChatGPT. I am an assistant professor, studying information and media studies.
“ChatGPT is just one of many technological curveballs that higher education has had to deal with over the last few years,” says the historical, ethical, and social implications of AI, machine learning, and similar technologies. Stark, who studies the impact, said.
“I think it’s an opportunity for all of us to recognize the new things that technology can do and the impact this will have on our students.”
Stark covered ChatGPT in his class when it opened to the public last fall. This is a move that encourages allies to do the same.
“I’ll do a little research on my own and then bring it up in class. Make it clear to the people in front of you what you know about these systems…that someone might be using them.” You know, technology can shape discourse, language and writing,” he said.
“The important thing is to engage [and] Be honest with your students and remind them that they want to be here. they want to learn ”
Liane Gabora, a professor of psychology at the University of British Columbia (UBC) Okanagan Campus, told a class about ChatGPT last fall, and after testing ChatGPT with her students, her initial feelings were a mixture of surprise and concern. I admit
After tinkering with the bot, getting used to it, and discovering its limitations, Gabora is now exploring what new opportunities the bot offers when used in engaging challenges that encourage creativity and critical thinking in students. increase.
“They are having fun [ChatGPT assignments]They are playing with it. They’re investigating it…they’re testing the boundary conditions. They’re trying all these jailbreak techniques to get out of the default constraints,” she explained.
Gabora first told students in his introduction that UBC administrators are fully aware of ChatGPT, as well as new software that detects AI-generated essays. But she believes that incorporating new tools like this is the way forward.
“We can’t turn back, can we? It’s here with us and will remain.”
Authority to monitor the situation
UBC takes an “educational approach” to AI tools and services, said Simon Bates, the school’s current vice president and vice president for teaching and learning.
An advisory group of both faculty and student representatives said, “We are looking at ways to do more in the pedagogical side of academic integrity. How can we design courses to support academic integrity? The challenge is to consider whether it can be used and how to better define what is and communicate it to students “is unacceptable in the context of different courses,” he said in a statement.
With over 88,000 students across three campuses, the University of Toronto, Canada’s largest university by enrollment, takes a similar approach.
“We regularly monitor and evaluate the development of technology tools that may impact learning, teaching and assessment, and pay close attention to ChatGPT and other emerging technologies,” said the statement.
The University of T has formed a group to oversee generative AI techniques and provide guidance to instructors on evaluation. Meanwhile, professors and students “discuss these techniques as well, which is important to ensure that we develop a common understanding and approach,” she said.
Bob Mann, Manager of Discipline and Appeal at Dalhousie University in Halifax, has yet to come across instances of ChatGPT being used for assignments — he says we are still “curiosity and interest.” We believe we are at a stage — our Academic Integrity Policy is clear.
“We don’t just collect assignments, regardless of where they come from. We want things from you,” he said.
“[It] The same applies whether you’re asking a cousin or friend to do the work for you, borrowing materials from the Internet, or using artificial intelligence and technology to do the work for you. “
Mann acknowledges that his computer science colleagues have alerted him to the potential of these new AI tools, and he reassures himself of the “gut instinct” warnings professors and teaching assistants have already heard. I have. For example, it will still be valuable going forward.
“At the very least, our process is such that we can offer students a shot across the bow…”Listen, you’re on our radar. I’ll read on.” Something is a little off about this. “
polarization reaction
Some colleagues felt that the idea of exploring AI tools and their ethical use in the context of higher education was “a bit similar.” Star Trek,” is a topic that has fascinated academic integrity researcher Sarah Elaine Eaton for some time.
The associate professor at the University of Calgary School of Education is currently working on research on AI tools and applied for the first grant in 2020.
“Someone messaged me on social media, [from those] “This is plagiarism and needs to stop,” she said, going from “this is the greatest creative mess of our lives.”
“Right now, I’m kind of on the halfway road because I seem a little polarizing in my attitude. [approach] Just trying to figure out how to use this without going to extremes. “
Eaton believes artificial intelligence will play a growing and game-changing role in society, but he believes it will never replace the human touch. No. Creativity is going nowhere,” she said.
In a statement to CBC News, an OpenAI spokesperson said that the explosion of interest and real-world use of ChatGPT since November “has enabled us to develop and deploy capable and secure AI systems. It is an important part of doing so,” he said.
“We do not want ChatGPT to be used for misleading purposes in schools or anywhere else, so we have mitigations to allow anyone to identify the text generated by that system. We are already developing it and look forward to working with educators on useful solutions and other ways to help teachers and students benefit from artificial intelligence.”
