For Faculty: Generative AI (ChatGPT, etc.)
Academic Integrity
More questions than answers
More Questions Than Answers
Many instructors in higher education have plenty of questions about how generative AI will change the way we design learning experiences for students, and they way we assess learning, which includes considerations of academic integrity, chiefly plagiarism and cheating.. This section of this guide includes links to resources, examples from colleagues, related to generative AI and academic integrity.
Q: Why don't we have an generative AI academic integrity policy?
A: We do. It's the academic integrity policy. While we need to mention generative AI specifically, the policy covers non-sanctioned and unethical uses of gAI as it does for any information resource or tool.
Students may not cheat, fabricate, falsify, forge, sabotage, or plagiarize (or when it comes to other student conduct requirements: harass or threaten or cause other intentional harm). This literally covers everything students can do with gAI that is not sanctioned by instructors or assignments. So now our job is to both convince and support students through our assignments and our language and our actions that student voice and insights matter, and that mistakes in good faith are of value in the learning process.
Still, our institution does need to develop its own working policy for generative AI tools including equity focused interactions with our students concerning gAI, and for using gAI legally and ethically as a campus which includes issues in copyright, privacy, security, and safety.
One important thing we need to stress to our students is the use of genAI outputs as citable sources:
Q: Are ChatGPT outputs "sources" of information for academic work?
A: The foundation of academic/scholarly work is the ability to accurately track and credit the scholarly conversation on a topic or line of research - provenance.
It's important to note that genAI outputs, such as ChatGPT's outputs, are generated using machine learning algorithms. Remember at this time, genAI LLMs use their training and our inputs to create an output of "predicted" word strings for that topic. There is no provenance for this information. In addition, ouputs may not always be accurate or reliable; they do not cite their sources, and/or they still often hallucinate non-existent sources. Additionally, outputs can be influenced by the user inputs that include misinformation and bias.
Therefore, unless the assignment specifically allows for the use of genAI outputs as sources, they should not be used as sources for academic work if this is your intent for your students, to do the work of scholars. It will likely be necessary to instruct students on the work of scholars and the importance and value of provenance in academic work.
Policy builder tool, and examples of syllabus statements (contact me to contribute yours)
Policy Builder Tool & Examples of Syllabus Statements
Winter 2025 - 5 credit College Success course
About generative AI (including, but not limited to, ChatGPT) and Academic Integrity
- First, know that I am a faculty leader on generative AI (genAI) on this campus, and I work with it a lot in practice and in terms of academic integrity, and I present at higher education conferences on genAI.
- Second, I have some non-negotiable rules about the use of genAI. Please make sure that you understand the following extremely well, and if you do not, please ask me about it!
- No use of genAI in this class that violates TCC Academic Integrity policies is acceptable. See my academic integrity policy above.
- For work in this class (and all of your other classes) please do not turn in any work that is not 100% your own authentic work. I want your style, voice, and your ideas centered as you share what you have gained, what you wonder about, what you think.
- Work completed through the use of genAI, and not completely transparently cited, is considered work that has been plagiarized, fabricated or falsified, or completed through cheating, depending on the nature of the assignment and the use of genAI. See COL 101 Academic Integrity policy above.
- If you use genAI to help you with any COL 101 assignment or individual task, please informally cite the tool and describe its role in assisting you and why you chose to use it.
- The format to use for citation: For this question I used ChatGPT to help me ____ and ___ because ________.
- When you have any questions or confusion about acceptable and effective use of genAI tools, please ask me, or TCC Librarians, or TCC Tutors.
- Linked below is a TCC student guide to genAI that may help you learn how to use genAI appropriately, and effectively, as a student.
- Writing a gAI policy that works for your classroomDisclosure: This worksheet is courtesy from Packback.co, a commercial education support service.
Artificial Intelligence: We acknowledge the continued growth and sophistication of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Although generative AI (such as DeepMind's Alpha Code, ChatGPT, GPT-3.2, etc.) is a tool that can be used for creativity and learning, this class focuses on developing YOUR skills as a writer, reader, and critical thinker. Unless it is explicitly instructed in the written assignment guidelines to use it, the use of generative AI is prohibited.
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adapted from draft Academic Integrity policy - see box on this page
As faculty we will have different needs within our programs, courses, classes, and disciplines. We are also in a highly experimental stage of working with AI with our students.
- Better late than never: Don't be afraid to add an AI-use policy statement into your syllabus mid-quarter. Announce it, be transparent about it. Idea: Have your students help you write one. Doing this now protects and empowers your students and preserves your course learning objectives.
- General considerations: Like you would for any aspect of your syllabus: Be knowledgeable about the topic and familiarize yourself with at least one gAI tool; First, be clear with yourself about why you will allow or not allow the use of AI in your assignments or assessments, and if you will, under what specific circumstances and convey that clarity in your policy; Be transparent about your policy, and why and how you think it is important for the kind of work your students do in your courses; After you write your first AI-use policy, evaluate it for tone, clarity, fairness, equity, and inclusion. Keep in mind that our students want to know more about AI, want guidance, and that a majority of them will be using AI daily in their professions.
- Seek help: As needed please seek assistance in forming an AI-use policy in your syllabus. There are many colleagues who have been doing this work and would welcome the chance to widen the conversation.
- Request: Please send me your syllabus AI statement to include here so that your colleagues can see many different types, based on course needs and teaching philosophies. Please send to my email, which you can find on the Home page of this guide.
Voices on the topic
Voices on the Topic of Ai and Academic Integrity in Higher Education
- ChatGPT and other AI-based toolstips and suggestions for communication with students from University of Washington Center for Teaching and Learning
- You're not going to like how colleges respond to ChatGPT"A brisk discussion of the technology arm's race, including how colleges are playing into the arguably predatory plagiarism and AI detection industry." from Slate
- Talking to Students about AI and Academic Integrityfrom Cornell University, Dean of Faculty
- Gaming the System: 5 Big Problems with AI Detection Software"In the words of the ever-quotable Freire: 'If the structure does not permit dialogue the structure must be changed.'" - from EMC2 Learning
TCC's Academic Integrity Policy (draft Spring 2023)
TCC's Academic Integrity Policy
(draft Spring 2023)
A group of TCC faculty and administrators have been working on developing an Academic Integrity policy. Prior to 2023 TCC did not have a campus-wide policy, only procedure. This policy is currently in its draft form while the work group gathers feedback from campus community members. It includes an AI statement, rather than an AI policy, which we as a campus still need to compose.
- Example of a campus gAI policy, Boston University 2023This policy was developed in collaboration with BU students.
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