One of the most commonly cited concerns with the introduction of AI into education is using AI to do writing for students. It's a well known "fact" that many students don't enjoy writing. There could be any number of reasons for this -- it could be that the kids just feel like they're not good writers, or maybe they're not motivated to write about the topic they have to write about, or it could just be a daunting task and they don't feel like doing it. Access to AI is going to be tempting to a good number of students -- some will want to bypass the writing assignment altogether and get AI to do the writing for them. This isn't new. Essay writing services and "paper mills" have been around for as long as there have been writing assignments. AI is just the newfangled way to get someone else to do an essay!
The best way to thwart using AI to do essay writing is to be up front about what AI CAN do and what students SHOULD do with it. Clear expectations and parameters are going to go along way. When you ask students to do a writing assignment, don't be afraid to bring up AI -- let the kids know what is and is not acceptable in terms of using AI for the assignment, and let them know which tools they can use if any AI use is allowed. Side note: this is important because any AI tools students use need to be age appropriate (meaning they're old enough to use the tool according to the TOS of the AI tool) AND it's either SOPPA compliant or it doesn't collect any student information or data. *The best way to know if an AI tool is okay for students to use is to check with your friendly Instructional Technology resource teacher -- she can tell you for sure either yay or nay.* Then be sure to teach your students how to use AI the way you want them to -- model it! Do a practice or sample in front of the class so they can easily see what they need to do. Finally, be sure to require the kids to include a disclosure -- if they used AI for any part of the writing process, they should share what they used AI for and which AI tool they used. And remember -- it is still completely and totally permissible and acceptable not to allow AI use in a writing assignment (or ANY assignment). Just like when we first introduced Chromebooks to the classroom, no one expected (or wanted) to use Chromebooks for everything. There are some times when a Chromebook just isn't the tool for the job. AI is exactly the same way.
If you're looking for more information on ethically using AI in writing, here's the blog post that inspired MY blog post! Share your tips for incorporating AI into writing in the comments! It's best when we can all learn together!
Well said! Establishing expectations and guidelines not only helps students to use it appropriately, it also reminds them that you are well aware of its existence and it is going to be very tough to sneak one by you!
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