Best practice for using AI includes citing AI. This applies to instructors, too! Demonstrating transparency in our use of generative AI tools can provide a model to help students consider when and where it is appropriate and ethical to use these tools themselves.
Disclosure Rule of Thumb: If you would credit a human for similar assistance, credit the language model (for example, ChatGPT, Bing, etc.,), and the unknown human authors it was trained on.
Being transparent about AI use is crucial for both ethical and accountability considerations:
Image generated by DALL-E on April 16, 2024, using the prompt: "create a cartoon image of an ashamed-looking, older male college professor who was just caught by his female student plagiarizing course materials. The student and the professor are inside a classroom and other students are present."
Text adapted from Navigating the Future: Open Education with Generative AI, developed and offered under the auspices of College of the Canyons, serving as Technical Assistance Provider, for the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office Zero Textbook Cost Degree Grant Program (April 2024), CC BY 4.0
Faculty may decide when and how to permit student use of AI in classwork. Your best bet is to establish clear policies upfront that your students can easily locate in your syllabus and in Canvas. Policies range from outright bans of the technologies to those that allow and even encourage AI usage. For example, the University of Delaware offers four possible approaches to student use of these tools (and each approach may be context-specific):
The Eberly Center at Carnegie Mellon University offers some additional examples of syllabus language for your consideration.
Text adapted from Navigating the Future: Open Education with Generative AI, developed and offered under the auspices of College of the Canyons, serving as Technical Assistance Provider, for the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office Zero Textbook Cost Degree Grant Program (April 2024), CC BY 4.0
Consider training students to use AI effectively and ethically. You are encouraged to utilize and share the LAVC Library's guide to Generative Artificial Intelligence for Students.
As an educator, it is important to ensure that students have an understanding of the practical applications, limitations, and ethical implications of generative AI for their education, careers, and daily lives. Striking a balance between AI assistance and independent learning is key.
To achieve this balance, educators should:
Encourage AI literacy: Provide students with resources and opportunities to learn about AI technologies, their applications, and their limitations.
Teach responsible AI usage: Emphasize the importance of using AI as a tool to support research, not replace critical thinking and problem-solving skills.
Discuss ethical considerations: Foster open discussions about the ethical implications of AI in research, including issues of bias, fairness, transparency, and accountability.
Promote collaboration: Encourage students to collaborate with AI, leveraging its strengths to overcome their weaknesses and vice versa.
Stay updated: As AI technologies continue to evolve, ensure that both faculty and students stay informed about the latest developments, best practices, and potential pitfalls.
Adapted from Teaching and Mentoring with AI by C. Lizárraga, used under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
Potential applications for AI in instruction are broad, but here are a few ideas to get you started.
Adapted from Teaching and Mentoring with AI by C. Lizárraga, used under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
