Research Wednesday | September 18th, 2024

This week’s evidence is a shocker, at least to me. As you may recall from previous research updates, I’ve been enthusiastic about artificial intelligence's ethical and effective use. Banning it is futile, and our students need to know how to use it and improve on the output from Chat GPT and other AI programs. But my enthusiasm was tempered by Erik Baker in Harpers. The relevant passage is: “The Harvard Crimson’s survey of the graduating class of 2024 found that nearly half admitted to cheating, almost twice the figure in last year’s survey, conducted when ChatGPT was still new. The population of cheaters includes close to a third of students with GPAs rounded to 4.0, more than three times what it was just two years ago.” 

While many will use this news to make the case that AI should be banned from the classroom, I maintain that this data makes an even stronger case for my suggestion that teachers require its use and then require that students submit both the AI version of the answer to the essay question and a revised version in which students demonstrate that they are the master of AI and not its slave, that the human mind adds value to AI and does not merely copy and paste. I realize that you, my colleagues, may have sharp disagreements with my perspective and I promise that you can have equal time in these postings to express your perspective.  

The full article is here:  https://harpers.org/archive/2024/09/what-are-you-going-to-do-with-that-erik-baker-college-education/

 Another timely article: NY Times Audio on Banning Phones in School

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/09/03/podcasts/the-daily/phone-ban-school.html?searchResultPosition=1