On November 30th 2022 we welcomed ChatGPT into the vast and ever expanding internet. Though it wasn’t the first AI tool, ChatGPT exploded in popularity, giving people their answers within seconds. Over the past year or two more and more students have begun using AI for school. Whether they only use it occasionally or everyday, most students I know have used it in the past year. Once they learn what it can do, these students continue to use it. I asked some students going to SMCC and USM a few questions about A.I. This is what they had to say. 

The first couple people I asked only used ChatGPT for checking spelling and helping grab information for projects. The A.I. is told not to change any of the wording only to correct the spelling errors. On big projects, when tons of information is needed and they need facts or dates, A.I.  can put all the information in one place. Then they can pick and choose what they want to include.

I spoke to one student who uses multiple A.I. tools. They told me that each one has a special writing style. Grammarly, for example, is a free writing AI with a lens towards business conversations, while ChatGPT is more flexible with its writing style. We chatted about the teacher’s role in scanning for the use of A.I. At this point teachers are using shady scanning softwares that may or may not work. Half the time students who don’t use A.I. get flagged for using it. While the other half of teachers say they will be checking but probably don’t.  

My next conversation was quite interesting. This student told me that, during one of their exams, which took place in person but on the computer, the teacher made it very clear that they could use any resources. “I looked around at my neighbors screens and every person I could see had ChatGPT open during this exam, “ they said. They did not say whether it was for multiple choice questions or if the A.I. was writing full answers for them. The teacher did say any resource was allowed. I ran into a few other students who also use it for tests, quizzes and some exams. “Multiple choice questions are better,” one of them said. his reasoning was that since the A.I. had to pick between 2-4 answers it was more likely to get them correct. And he felt that he was less likely to get caught since there’s no writing involved. 

I spoke to  one student who used it to fully write a paper for one of his classes. He didn’t change any of the words just copied and pasted right into a document and turned it in. I waited patiently to hear back on the grade they got. To my surprise they got a 90 or 95 on the paper. With comments from the teacher saying “ Nice work I enjoyed reading this”. Maybe this answers the question of whether teachers do scan papers or just say they do to scare most students away. I will say that this was pretty bold not doing anything and just turning it in. Out of all the students I spoke to this was the only one that said something like this, but it makes me wonder how many other students are being just as bold as this one. 

The  last group of people I asked brought up some good points. Teachers don’t know if a student has or is using it. Most of the time they scan papers for anything suspicious.but most scanning softwares looks for copying and pasting. There are now new AIs that will write an original paper for you. The crazy part is that the AI will purposely make mistakes multiple times and misspell words to make it look real. The teachers won’t be able to call them out on it unless they have a special software or saw the student using it. And now ChatGPT has a new paid version which gives access to GPT-4 which means faster response time, better data features such as plugins and browsing features.

A.I. use is growing very quickly. Students, when given the opportunity to use it,  frequently  will. There were some students who say they haven’t used it. Whether that’s true or false I don’t know. Some people are braver than others by fully submitting their work without changing or doing anything, while others use it for tests, quizzes and exams. Very few  use it only for spell check and ideas. It blows my mind that an entire class can use it without any consequence. If that’s happening here it’s happening everywhere in every school. 

 This issue is not going away. Our education system needs to evolve and adapt either with A.I. or around it. But no matter what you do, students are still going to use it, there’s nothing you can do about it. It makes you wonder what things will be like in ten years. Is there going to be a change in our education system? How will the school ban or even detect the use of A.I.? We are already at the point where it’s a part of life, almost everything we use in this day and age uses a variation of artificial intelligence. Over half of all college students use some form of A.I. What will that mean for the future?