Generative AI is changing the way we study – but some say it’s threatening academic integrity. Whether you’re using AI to get ahead or are wary of its impact – it’s important to understand the implications of AI in education. Here’s what’s behind the debate.
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00:00OpenAI CEO Sam Altman in a flashy sports car.
00:03This TikTok got a lot of positive feedback from students
00:06that use OpenAI's chat GPT to get ahead.
00:09Meanwhile, schools and universities worldwide
00:12are sounding the alarm,
00:13saying we're in an AI cheating crisis.
00:16Is AI a great way to thrive while studying
00:19or is it making us dumber?
00:20And why is it so hard for schools and universities
00:24to spot AI-generated text?
00:26Let's dive in.
00:28AI chat bots, even though they do make mistakes,
00:30can be super helpful for students.
00:33For example, as study assistants,
00:34they can break down complex topics into simpler ideas.
00:37They can summarize, give examples,
00:39and answer your questions.
00:40Bots also help with writing, brainstorming ideas,
00:44creating outlines, and even providing feedback on drafts.
00:47Many students worldwide regularly use AI tools.
00:50In the UK, 53% of undergraduates
00:53got AI to help them with assessments.
00:55The most popular tool is an AI private tutor.
00:5936% use it to explain concepts.
01:01In India, 44% of undergraduates
01:04say they have used AI for their university tasks.
01:07Even more interesting, 60% of teachers in the country
01:10are using AI too,
01:12for everything from lesson planning to student management.
01:15So, if so many people are using it,
01:18what's the problem?
01:20It's a fine line between using AI for help
01:23or for straight-up cheating and plagiarism.
01:26If you let AI complete an assignment for you,
01:28you're likely misrepresenting your own knowledge.
01:31And since AI uses existing sources,
01:34you could end up presenting someone else's ideas
01:36as your own, without crediting them.
01:38Nevertheless, your text would look new
01:40and unique to most human eyes.
01:42In a UK survey, more than one in eight students
01:45admitted to having used AI
01:47to generate text for assessments in some form.
01:49But the number of cases is likely to be much higher.
01:53For universities, this is a big problem.
01:55They bear a big responsibility.
01:57We trust doctors and lawyers
01:59because of the institutions that certify them.
02:01If people cheat their way through degrees,
02:03they could become dangerous to others
02:05because of their missing knowledge.
02:06What's more, right now AI is just remixing ideas
02:10that already exist.
02:11If we stop creating our own ideas,
02:13we stop progressing as a society.
02:15So, why don't universities use software
02:17to catch AI-generated work?
02:20Spotting AI-generated text, why it's difficult.
02:23Firstly, AI models are becoming more and more sophisticated,
02:27often so fast that detection tools
02:30can't keep up with them.
02:31Then, the current AI text detectors are not very accurate.
02:34They can flag things incorrectly,
02:36either missing AI-generated work
02:39or marking human-written work as AI.
02:41Non-native English speakers have a much higher risk
02:44of being flagged because their simpler grammar
02:46might resemble AI language.
02:48What's more, using AI detectors in languages
02:51other than English can be difficult.
02:53Arabic or Hindi, for example,
02:54have unique idiomatic expressions and syntactic rules.
02:58Given that many AI models are trained on English or Spanish,
03:01text detectors may not effectively understand
03:03or process these nuances.
03:05And last but not least, as many students might know,
03:08detectors are easy to bypass.
03:11Simple modifications, paraphrasing
03:13or introducing grammatical errors, for example,
03:16can fool detection tools.
03:17But you didn't hear that from me.
03:19Because of all this, many universities are backing off
03:22from using AI detectors for now.
03:24What are we supposed to do about it?
03:27Think about the pros and cons of using AI in your studies.
03:30Which services are fair to use?
03:33Many universities are already creating AI-positive policies.
03:37At Cambridge University, it's now okay to use AI
03:40for getting an overview of new concepts,
03:43act as a coach or help with time management.
03:45Some scholars call for exams that should be done
03:48in a way that no one can cheat using AI.
03:50And to prepare students for the working world,
03:53schools should teach generative AI,
03:55but only using limited versions.
03:58And then it's also up to us.
04:00Be honest.
04:00In which context have you used AI
04:03that you know you probably shouldn't have?
04:05Would you share that with us in the comments?
04:07Bye for now.