UK university lecturers are being asked to rethink how they assess courses, concerned that students are already using powerful new AI tools that can produce high-quality essays with minimal human input. increase.
OpenAI’s newest chatbot, ChatGPT, founded by Elon Musk, Sam Altman and others in 2015, is only a few weeks old, but has raised concerns about the potential for hard-to-detect plagiarism and The effectiveness of the essay as a future form of assessment.
It has been described as a “game changer” that proves a challenge in college and school. GCSE and A-level courses are assessed by traditional end-of-course exams, but experts believe that students who use technology to do homework can pass AI-generated answers without acquiring the necessary knowledge and skills. I am afraid that I will become dependent on
Working groups have been set up in university departments to assess the challenges of this latest iteration of AI text generation techniques, and it is anticipated that assessment methods in specific courses will need to be updated. Experts admit to feeling both excited and anxious.
In one case, the staff of the Computer Science department at University College London recently decided to change the rating. Previously, students could choose either essay-based or skill-based assessment as part of their final coursework, but the essay option has been removed.
Meanwhile, Jeff Burton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, acknowledged that schools need to figure out how to harness the benefits of ChatGPT while preventing negative impacts.
“Like all technology, there are caveats to making sure it is used responsibly and not as a license to cheat, but nothing is insurmountable,” he said. In contrast, New York City schools have already banned the use of ChatGPT on all devices and networks due to concerns that it encourages plagiarism.
Dr. Thomas Lancaster, a computer scientist working at Imperial College London, is best known for his work on academic integrity, contract fraud and plagiarism.
“They will have to adapt sooner or later to make sure students are evaluated fairly, all compete on a level playing field, and still have the necessary skills beyond college. .
“The technology to generate text has been around for several years. The big change is that this technology is being built into a very nice interface, where you can interact as if you were talking to another human being. We can, and that’s what makes it available to so many people.”
ChatGPT can come up with a myriad of original combinations of words, which makes it more difficult to spot and prove plagiarism, Lancaster said, although work is already being done to improve detection software. I was. “This is a very tricky problem because it came up almost out of nowhere…I would be totally shocked if there wasn’t a student using GPT in his assessment yet.”
Australian universities have already shown they are moving back towards expanding the use of face-to-face exams to protect the integrity of assessments. However, Lancaster said a full return to the exam was not the answer, suggesting instead using oral presentations and viva to allow students to demonstrate their understanding of the subject matter. rice field.
ChatGPT represents a big step forward in the evolution of AI text generation, but it’s not foolproof. “It may sound very plausible, but the more details and facts you need as part of your question, the more likely the algorithm is to produce something that looks good but is completely wrong,” says Law School. Professor of Education Michael Draper said: He is an expert in academic integrity and misconduct at Swansea University.
He said the university could try to ban it, as it bans other forms of cheating like essay milling. I think we need to prepare our students for work in the outside world and embrace this kind of technology in the workplace, not ban it. ”
Michael Webb, director of technology and analytics at Jisc, which provides networking and IT services to higher education institutions, agrees. he said: It should be seen as just the next step after spell checkers and grammar checkers: technology that makes life easier for everyone.
“There is no need to go back to face-to-face exams. This is a great opportunity for the industry to explore new assessment techniques that measure learners on their critical thinking, problem-solving and reasoning skills, rather than their essay writing proficiency. “
ChatGPT essay
Question for ChatGPT: Write a college-level essay on the causes of World War I. The essay must be written from a British perspective and use British English.
A: World War I, also known as The Great War, was a global conflict that lasted from 1914 to 1918 and killed millions of people. The causes of war are complex and varied, but can be broadly divided into long-term, short-term and immediate causes.
One of the main long-term causes of warfare was competition for colonies and resources among the great powers of Europe. In the late 19th century and her early 20th century, the British Empire and other European nations sought new territories to expand their empires and exploit their resources and markets. This created tensions between the great powers over control of the same region.
Another long-term cause was the arms race between the great powers. In the years leading up to the war, countries such as Germany, France and Great Britain invested heavily in military power, including building large armies and navy. This arms race created an atmosphere of mistrust and fear among the great powers.
Short-term causes of the war included the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary in 1914 and the system of alliances that existed among major European powers. The assassination of the Archduke, carried out by members of Bosnian and Serbian nationalist groups, led to Austria and Hungary declaring war on Serbia, and other countries to become involved as a result of the alliance. .
The immediate causes of the war included the mobilization of forces by the great powers in response to the outbreak of war and the Schlieffen Plan, a military strategy developed by Germany to quickly defeat France before it turned its attention to Russia. will be
In conclusion, the causes of World War I were complex and diverse. The competition for colonies and resources among the great powers of Europe, the arms race among the great powers, the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the system of alliances, the mobilization of troops, and Schlieffen’s plan all contributed to the outbreak of the war in 1914. bottom.
