Introduction
Artificial intelligence (AI) developments and usage will continue to expand swiftly across the world. In the interest of our University’s mission to prepare our students for life, work and citizenship in the twenty-first century, we must lean into evolving technologies such as AI. Our campus community is encouraged to learn about and integrate innovative AI solutions in a responsible, secure and ethical manner. By embracing AI ourselves, we can more effectively prepare our students for their futures. We expect to update this information and add additional articles to the Knowledge Base to stay current with the rapidly evolving AI technologies, address questions that arise, and incorporate new or changing regulations and best practices.
Due to the prevalent use of AI tools amongst students, all faculty are encouraged to talk with their students about their expectations around AI, and include a statement about their expectations/policies around student use of AI in coursework. Faculty are encouraged to use one of the statements below based on level of comfort. These statements are designed to be examples and may be reworded to fit your discipline and philosophy. As a reminder, faculty who are seeking additional information about AI and ChatGPT-style tools can contact SCSU Online for questions and future opportunities.
Question
What is an example statement I can add to my syllabus about artificial intelligence use?
Answer
Example syllabus statement for faculty who may be cautious of AI use
While Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a tool available to the public, within this course, you are expected to submit assignments and discussions that are your original thought. If an assignment is suspected of being AI-generated, there will be additional conversations between the faculty and student, similar to our plagiarism practices. Please refer to the Academic Integrity policies that apply to all courses within our institution
Example syllabus statement for faculty who are supportive of exploratory use of AI
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a tool available to the public. Within this course, you are expected to submit assignments and discussions that are your original thought. Within this course, you are encouraged to explore how AI may impact routine tasks within our profession. The use of AI for brainstorming, outlining, or creating support for your academic assignments is allowable in this course. Submitting AI-generated assignments as your own original thought is considered to breach our Academic Integrity practices and should not occur. Please ask me if you are unsure of where AI and Academic Integrity intersect in this course. Please refer to the Academic Integrity policies that apply to all courses within our institution.
Example syllabus statement for faculty who encourage the use of AI
The use of AI in creating learning in this course is supported. Be clear about your use of AI. Ensure that your work is truly your work. Think critically about when AI should be used vs when it is an easy out. Ask questions to your peers and me. AI may continue to impact our society in ways that we cannot imagine and part of your experience here is to grow your understanding of what could be, not what was. Also, please refer to the Academic Integrity policies that apply to all courses within our institution, and ask me for clarification on how Academic Integrity and AI intersect in this course.