19 How Do I Use Artificial Intelligence?
Ben stared at the computer screen, ready to type the query. Ben had a project to turn in the next morning in class but hadn’t even started it. And his favorite television show was coming on later that evening. Ben looked again at the clock, realizing that he had no chance of watching his show and indeed little chance of even completing his class project, even if he devoted the whole evening to it. Ben began to type the query into the search box on the screen, knowing that with each stroke, he was getting closer to violating his instructor’s rule not to use artificial intelligence for the project. But what was he to do? Ben knew that he should have started the project the day before rather than going to the game or even that morning instead of going to breakfast with his friends. And where had the afternoon gone? Yet it was too late now. Ben finished typing the query and hit enter. The screen instantly filled with a full draft of the whole project. Ben sat back in his chair and stared at it, wondering what he should do next.
Capacity
Internet searches for ready answers generally aid students in their learning. You can quickly look up how to spell a word or use a phrase and can confirm other facts and data such as historical dates and the name and title of famous figures. Yet artificial intelligence tools now instantly turn simple searches into long-winded answers and explanations. Artificial intelligence applications also spell check, grammar check, and even organize, edit, and otherwise improve student work. Artificial intelligence can also readily solve problems, propose themes, generate options, suggest analyses, evaluate arguments, recommend research, supply research citations, and do much of what instructors may recommend, ask, or require that students do. Artificial intelligence is plainly having a substantial impact on education. Your question is not so much whether to use AI applications but instead how and when to use them to aid your learning.
Temptation
As the brief story at this chapter’s beginning illustrates, the capacity of artificial intelligence to instantly answer academic questions and problems, and complete and improve academic work, can be a great temptation to students. If an AI application readily available to a student, whether by an inexpensive subscription or even free, can do the student’s work on a relatively simple prompt, or even by simply typing in the instructor’s assignment, then some students will use that application. The temptation to substitute AI-generated work for original and independent student work can be substantial, for any assignment of moderate difficulty. But the temptations increase when other students are already using AI applications, the assignment is especially difficult, time is short, stakes are high, an instructor’s rules and instructions are ambiguous, or a student is confident in avoiding detection. Beware these and other temptations to misuse artificial intelligence.
Impact
The adverse impact of substituting artificial intelligence for academic striving can be significant. You’ve seen in the chapters above how learning and memory generally require attention, concentration, processing, elaboration, spaced repetition, application, analysis, evaluation, and other generative activity. When you instead call on AI applications to produce work that the instructor designed to help you process the material, you are missing out on all of that useful and developmental activity. Your failure to strive denies you the challenges you need for your maximal growth. Having the AI product in hand may satisfy your immediate academic needs but is destroying the goal of your academic program. You may be learning to deploy AI applications effectively in certain settings for certain tasks. And that learning may be of future value to you in the workplace or other settings. But unless learning how to use AI applications is your educational goal, when you substitute AI misuse for your own effortful striving after new learning, you are depriving yourself of achieving the very goal for which you attend school.
Policies
The rapid advance of AI applications, and their rapidly expanding availability, has forced schools and their personnel to respond. Your school, program, department, or instructor may have a published policy on using artificial intelligence. Indeed, you may find multiple policies among your school, program, department, and instructor. AI policies can be all over the map, some prohibiting any use, others permitting some use but prohibiting other use, and some permitting any use. AI policies may even conflict in some respects among your instructor, department, program, and school. In the case of ambiguity or conflict, seek clarification. If you cannot obtain clarification, then generally rely on your instructor’s syllabus, instructions, and other guidance as to your permissible use of AI applications in that specific course and on that specific assignment. If you intend to use AI for any academic work that your course or instructor requires, confirm first with your instructor. Do not attempt to conceal your use of AI applications in your schoolwork, whether you know it to be against a school policy or not. Use AI applications for schoolwork only when expressly authorized or expressly disclosed and confirmed as approved.
Misuses
Student misuses of artificial intelligence, when expressly prohibited by school, program, department, or instructor policy, can run the gamut from simple spell checking and grammar checking up to editing or improving written work, generating ideas and organization for written work, or creating written work wholesale. Students may also misuse artificial intelligence to answer questions and complete problems on take-home exams or do homework problem sets, exercises, or other assignments submitted for credit. Students may also sneak devices into exams to access AI applications to improve exam performance. Students may also misuse AI applications to generate or improve graphic designs and images, and prepare slide shows or other presentations. Students may also misuse AI applications in the classroom to take notes, summarize discussions, and create outlines. The potential misuses are as common as the academic activities in which students engage. Beware your potential misuse of AI applications.
Detection
Avoid any academic activity, including the use of AI applications, that you would not readily disclose to your school and instructor. AI applications include systems to detect the potential use of AI applications. Schools regularly deploy AI-detection tools to scrutinize academic work for which the school or instructor has prohibited AI use. If you use AI tools, your school and instructor have the ready capability of detecting their use. If you use AI applications when prohibited, and your school or instructor requires you to certify that you did not use AI or questions you and you deny it, you may face school academic-misconduct charges not only for the AI misuse but also for dishonesty and obstructing a disciplinary investigation. No matter the temptation or justification, do not misuse AI applications. If you face circumstances in which using AI seems necessary or justified when your school or instructor have prohibited it, take up the issue with your school or instructor rather than violating the instruction.
Procedures
AI-detection software isn’t perfect. AI-detection software can produce false positives, flagging as if AI-generated a student’s own original work on which the student did not use AI. You might face cheating charges alleging your AI misuse, when you did not use AI. You might alternatively face AI-misuse charges when you did use AI but did so with the express or implied permission of your school, program, department, or instructor, or under other extenuating circumstances. Schools maintain disciplinary procedures that students can invoke to dispute charges or to present evidence in mitigation of any punitive sanction. Don’t admit to AI misuse that you did not commit, and don’t concede to discipline for AI use for which you had authorization. Instead, invoke your school’s protective procedures to present a full, accurate, and fair defense to the charges. Get qualified defense representation if your stakes are high. A record of serious academic misconduct can cripple your education.
Integration
Schools are still learning how to accommodate student use of artificial intelligence. Schools are also still learning to integrate artificial intelligence into academic studies. Student use of AI applications could in certain ways enhance their education. Students will also likely be using AI applications in their future education, vocation, and lives outside school and the workplace. Schools could legitimately undertake to teach students how to use AI applications effectively and ethically, as part of a student’s general education or specific program. Expect your school to increasingly integrate AI training into your educational program and permit your use of AI tools to some degree and in certain circumstances for your academic work. But beware any school, program, or instructor that encourages you to substitute AI use for your own generative learning. Prioritize developing your cognitive, analytic, evaluative, and ethical capacities over your capacity to use a machine to think for you.
Tutoring
Some schools and services are helping students learn how to use AI applications after the manner of a tutor. AI tutor bots, trained to specific instructional programs and even to specific students and their needs, can instantly answer questions a student might pose to clarify a topic. AI tutor bots can also instantly score student work with detailed feedback on student responses. AI tutor bots can also generate practice exercises and questions for the student to complete and for the bot to then provide feedback on the student’s responses. AI tutor bots can also guide students toward ideas, answers, and other fruitful work, through prompts and questioning, helping students develop generative skills. AI tutor bots can also locate and alert students to available resources and suggest research opportunities and routes. Don’t overlook the potential value of an AI tutor bot to support your learning. Just don’t let AI applications do work that you should do for yourself to sharpen your skills and develop your full capacities.
Reflection
Does the search engine that you currently use automatically generate and feature AI responses to your queries? If so, are you reviewing and using those responses, whether within or outside of your academic work? What is your school’s policy on student AI use? Does your program or department have any other AI policy of its own? Do your instructors address student AI use and set their own rules and conditions? Are you using AI in your academic work? Does your AI use comply with school and instructor rules? Whether or not your school or instructor permit it, are you disclosing your AI use or instead concealing it? If your instructor knew exactly how you are using AI, would your instructor approve? Are you aware of other students misusing AI against school or instructor policy? If so, how is that misuse impacting you? Are you aware of whether your school and instructor are using AI-detection software to evaluate your academic work for AI use? How effectively, if at all, is your school integrating AI applications into the school’s instructional program? Have you tried an AI tutor bot? If not, what would prompt you to do so?
Key Points
The capacity and availability of AI applications continue to increase.
Students face temptations to deploy AI tools for academic work.
Substituting AI for your own generative work can cripple development.
Schools and instructors have varying policies on student AI use.
Schools use AI-detection software to catch student AI misuse.
Challenge false AI-misuse allegations through school procedures.
Schools will integrate AI applications into instructional programs.
AI tutor bots are already widely available as student learning aids.