It's not just students seeking shortcuts with AI. Teachers are increasingly relying on AI tools for grading papers, providing feedback, and creating lesson plans, as recent reports reveal.
Opportunities and Concerns :
Recent research at Reading University has highlighted a significant issue: examiners failed to differentiate between answer scripts written by actual students and those generated by GPT-4, one of the most advanced AI programs, 94% of the time. In many cases, the AI even outperformed human students, except in abstract reasoning. This revelation raises intriguing and concerning questions about the future relationship between humans, technology, and pedagogy.
For a long time, it has been argued that neither short- nor long-form questions, which can be easily memorized, are adequate for testing students’ knowledge. The advent of AI has rendered these formats even less reliable. This brings into question whether a return to in-person exams—replaced by take-home tests in many areas since the pandemic—might better evaluate students’ practical skills and foster deeper engagement with their subjects.
However, exams are just one part of the education system now under AI's influence. Research papers, case studies, projects, and even homework can now be completed by AI programs based on the GPT-4 model, which can manage everything from content creation to citations and bibliographies. Traditional plagiarism checks fail against such AI-generated content, and educators are struggling to distinguish real work from fake.
Moreover, it's not just students turning to AI for shortcuts. Reports show that teachers are increasingly relying on AI tools to grade papers, provide feedback, develop lesson plans, and create assignments.
This growing reliance on AI in education is concerning for several reasons. The most obvious is the threat to independent thinking. AI’s model, based on reproducing existing knowledge, could stifle new knowledge creation. Additionally, AI is prone to biases, and students risk incorporating these prejudices into their work. Access is another issue: AI can exacerbate educational inequalities by giving some students an unfair advantage while limiting opportunities for underprivileged communities.
AI’s expanding role in education, like all evolving technology, is a double-edged sword. The challenge for educators and students lies in making the right choices to navigate this new landscape effectively.
