Faculty Alliance ‘Thought Leaders Forum’ focuses on artificial intelligence

The University of Alaska Faculty Alliance held a forum on March 28 and 29 to discuss the ways in which artificial intelligence is changing the educational landscape. A series of educators and administrators from across the UA system spoke about AI during several Zoom sessions, and recordings can be found at alaska.edu/governance/faculty-alliance/.

The March 29 “Track B” panel covered multiple topics, but this article focuses on the portion about the “impact of AI on academic performance” presented by UAF Department of Communication Assistant Professor Victoria McDermott.

McDermott began by explaining that the department has adopted an official AI policy. The policy allows for AI to be used “strategically” by students to help them “brainstorm and create frameworks or foundations” for their work.

The policy prohibits the use of AI for generating writing that will be turned in, such as a “speech outline,” “discussion board posts” or “reflection papers.” The policy also bans the use of AI for assignments that require peer feedback or personal reflection.

McDermott said that she recognizes “that AI is super dynamic and ever changing.” The department’s main priority with AI, she said, is “student success.” 

“That’s the kind of space that we’re coming to this conversation from, and we take the stance that AI is not going anywhere.”

McDermott said that the policy “is in regards to the ways that we expect students or allow students to use AI.” She said that the policy makes clear to students how and when to use AI, so as to better facilitate their learning.

But whether or not the policy is working is not straightforward. 

McDermott estimated that there have been roughly two cases of inappropriate AI use per class. She said that instructors have noticed students become “combative” when accused of using AI.

Determining actual use of AI is not a simple task — especially as programs such as ChatGPT become more intuitive. 

“AI is not easy to verify. There are a lot of different systems that maybe don't chat with each other,” said McDermott. 

Complicating the matter is the fact that programs like Grammarly — a generally accepted grammar corrector — are picked up in some AI-verification programs to the detriment of students who might have turned in AI-free work.

McDermott then explained that her department is trying its best to navigate the tricky ethics regarding AI. She brought up issues pertaining to discrimination, fake citations and intellectual property.

“We have a … limited understanding of how the algorithms that run AI work. And then sometimes AI makes some [unjustified] actions related to the conclusions that are made. There are privacy concerns. If you put content into AI, then whose content does it become?” McDermott said.

Regardless of these concerns, AI use is rising in the workplace, so the UAF Communication Department would like to help prepare students for this new reality. 

“Over half of the 600 businesses surveyed [in a Forbes study] already use artificial intelligence or hope to use it in the future,” said McDermott. 

“We can see that there are a lot of different ways that businesses are integrating AI.”

McDermott explained that training, such as AI literacy workshops, can be a way to introduce students to AI tools and how to translate them ethically to their education and the workplace. 

“You can actually have students kind of work through an evaluation guideline of ethics related to AI … Who owns the content, the bias, the misinformation. You can have students work through those through thinking critically [about] what AI puts out and what does that mean.”

McDermott concluded by explaining that concerns surrounding AI can be approached using “ethical reasoning” and addressing “problematic areas” to find ways to fit AI into the classroom.

Students who are interested in learning more about AI from a variety of educators are welcome to watch the Zoom recordings on the UA Faculty Alliance website. The recordings encompass a wide range of AI-related talks including “Using AI Voiceovers to Augment Instructor Presence,” “Using AI As A Partner in the Research Process” and “Utilizing AI Tools in the Classroom to Deepen Student Learning.”