The (AI) email from school finally arrived

I had been awaiting this email for some time. That I had not yet received it given two older tech-wise children was surprising tbh…

Subject: An AI investigation

Dear Mr and Mrs Hernandez,

Blah, blah… I think I’ve busted your son blatantly using ChatGPT to do his homework… blah, blah. [I paraphrase]

Upon opening the “proof” it was obviously clear that someone much more verbose and wordly-wise than my pre-teen had helped analyse sources and defined that “in conclusion…” historical Source A was more reliable than Source B.

Part of me was upset: Upset at him being too lazy to do the work. Another part was upset that he had been caught (seriously dude at least edit the words!).

But this email had been a long time coming. Kids now have unfettered access to AI superpowers for information retrieval and information summarisation. Of course they will use it. Of course they should use it!

What has not yet caught up is the rules across schools, educational systems, subjects, on HOW to use it.

Is composing your paper on the Magna Carta with AI allowed? Probably for information, but probably not for blanket-writing the 1,000 word assignment. What about for maths? Or physics? Reading comprehension?

The UK’s Joint Council for Qualifications has, I think, come up with the right framework for computer-based assignments. In short, students are allowed to use AI but they must a) document the fact that they did b) document what AI it was (and what version) c) provide the prompt asked and the answer given as an appendix (to prove the student did critical thinking and did not just cut and paste). This sets the bar quite high but at least it admits AI in the classroom is here to stay.

Other schools and universities are shifting back to handwritten assignments in exam conditions but that feels like only a temporary solve .

Four years ago I had a conversation with the Headmaster of this same son’s school and highlighted the forthcoming reality… Like Wikipedia before it, like the internet, like I assume calculators back in the day, technology will creep into the classroom just as it creeps into the workplace. The problem is education, and educational policies, move slowly. He had a chance to get ahead of it back then and think about the right policies, but did not.

As my cheeky son responded to his teacher “while I am sorry that I was not forthcoming in having used AI in my assignment, the school’s IT use policy <link> does not currently allow or not allow the use of AI for assignments”

Like I said… cheeky… but accurate.

I use some form of AI every day, multiple times a day to make me better, more efficient, more accurate in my work. Why can that not start to be taught at school?

In the meantime here are our house rules on AI: we encourage you to use it. We encourage you to check it to ensure it’s not hallucinating. Use it for inspiration on structure or facts. Use it to teach you or remind you. Do NOT use it to do the work for you. And do NOT lie about the fact that you used it.

The reality is academia is catching up…from Professors using software to check for the use of AI (and referring those caught for plagiarism).

Harvard puts the onus on each individual professor to define a policy for their course. Oxford seems a bit more sensible: “Authors should never pass off ideas or text gleaned from AI as their own, and there should be a clear acknowledgement of how AI has been used in the work. Given that the output of LLMs can be incorrect or entirely fictitious, users of these tools must recognise that they retain responsibility for the accuracy of what they write.”

If you use AI to write that brilliant admission essay for a US college and a human or a system catches you, the guidelines state it will be deemed as fraudulent and your admission can be withdrawn.

The battle on the appropriate use of AI in the classroom or academic setting is in its infancy but it was clear it was coming. As my son fessed up on getting caught to his older brother all I heard from the other room was “Bro! You got caught! You have to change the words… “ It seems this battle is going to be a long one…