Letter of the Day | Should teachers use AI tools they forbid students to use?

THE EDITOR, Madam:

Shortly after Open AI released ChatGPT to the general public on November 30, 2022, by January 2023, there were over 100 million users around the world. The search engine Bing from Microsoft was powered with Generative Pre-trained Transformer (GPT) technology, which made that search engine more attractive to users. These were clear indications that the business of education, if nothing else, would be greatly affected. From then, I have been asking educators to step up and learn more about Generative Artificial Intelligence, so that they will be able to guide their students in the ethical use of Chatbots like ChatGPT.

Unfortunately, I daresay, most educators are willing to use the Chatbots in their own preparation and research, but forbid their students to use Chatbots when doing their assignments. Some educators even use plagiarism detectors to help them to identify the use of AI in their students’ work. These detectors are not 100 per cent accurate.

It’s now the students turn to complain about their teachers’ use of artificial intelligence while forbidding them to use it in their assignments. This double standard is bound to create tension in the classroom. It is not surprising that some college students have complained about their college professors’ use of ChatGPT in grading their assignments. This is reported in an article in the New York Times, titled ‘College professors are using ChatGPT. Some students aren’t happy’

Students at all levels of the education system would not be happy to know that educators are using AI in their own work and forbidding students to use it. I call upon all educators to master the use of AI and then guide students in the ethical use of AI tools in education. This is what is required if educators are to adequately prepare students to meet the demands of a world driven by artificial intelligence enhanced by quantum computing.

WINNIE ANDERSON-BROWN