Students are Using AI: So What Now?

A conundrum for college instructors

I want to spend time researching and sharing how AI can be a teacher, but in truth, AI is much better at being a student.  

It makes sense, then, that the first response most universities had to the release of ChatGPT was immediate guidance about academic integrity, plagiarism, and misuse. Teaching with technology is a constant balance for instructors between authenticity and policing: I have had many consultations with instructors who must always consider how an assignment could be plagiarized, a resource misused, or a quiz completed with the help of the internet. Between Chegg, Wikipedia, and now generative AI, instructors are right to be weary of how their students use technology in their courses. 

But it is not without the structures of power that students lean on technology to do their learning for them. A sophomore undergraduate student pays over $1600 for a three-credit class.  A year at MSU for a freshman is budgeted at $35,588, (that’s over half of my annual salary)! For some, it is financially detrimental to fail a class; and a lowered GPA could put scholarship eligibility at risk. No wonder that some students will use technology to get a good grade. 

I know that quantifying education in terms of dollars is only one lens to evaluate student conduct. Young people get far more out of college than a degree– experiential learning, travel opportunities, and relationships with world-class instructors: these are things that MSU especially excels in.  

So, if AI is really good at getting assignments done–at answering discussion posts and brainstorming research ideas and editing essays: can we as educators help guide students in their use? We fear that AI will make it easier to be a student, and I wonder if that is at the core of our anxiety.  

There are many on campus who are thinking about this conundrum as they prep for the upcoming fall semester. They are: 

• Exploring how AI will be used in their fields. 

• Creating lessons on using AI for their class. 

• Measuring student AI literacy. 

• Discussing the impact of AI on the environment. 

• Revamping assignments to be AI-proof. 

• Adding language about AI use into their syllabi. 

• Attending workshops and collaborating with colleagues. 

• Using AI for lesson planning and course design. 

By doing any of these activities, instructors are not just getting ready for AI—they’re getting a real sense of how their students might be using it too. And I think that’s critical to where we are right now in conversations about higher ed and generative AI use: students are using it, so let’s find out how. Maybe then we can address those larger structural barriers of what academia is facing.  

Side note: I asked Claude to review this post, and it told me to add a call to action, provide concrete suggestions, and provide a vision for the future. So, here’s a call to action to sweeten the pot: 

If any of this resonates with you, let’s chat! I’m happy to help brainstorm or find resources or help you learn a new tool. And speaking of resources, AI Commons launches this week. Featuring stories from all over campus, AI Commons is a space for educators describing their experiences and sharing their ideas. Check out the site or submit a story! 

Freyesaur out.