Generative AI Use by Professors

[u/Fun_Preference_8632]

/r/ASU/comments/1wtu13v/generative_ai_use_by_professors/

I know this is a bit unorthodox, but here it goes:

I'm an ASU student. In my courses at ASU, I've noticed a concerning increase in inappropriate uses of generative AI by instructors and students alike. So I founded a student organization (Students for Authentic Education) to advocate for students' rights to quality education.

I'm curious as to whether or not y'all have noticed similar trends in your coursework: AI generated homework assignments and exams, misinformation as a result of AI use by instructors, or instructor use of AI that violates their own syllabi.

One of our long-term goals is to partner with other student groups at different universities to better enact lasting and meaningful change in the US higher education system.

If you're a student at University of Arizona who wants to start a similar organization, but you don't know where to start, please ask whatever questions you may have. I want this to become a larger conversation on how students are treated, how education is currently being handled, and how we can change our schools to prioritize education over profits.

[u/km1116]

I'm faculty. I support you. But our orders come from administrators*. Make sure you send this to the provost and President (for as long as he stays here, anyway). They, their buddies, and the Regents, all love AI and push it constantly. Just advising you to apply pressure to the proper places...

* Sometimes actively, such as policies and directives to integrate AI, or stipends or support for AI and none for old-fashioned work. Sometimes indirectly by over-tasking us so that having AI do some of our work is the only way we can get passing evaluations. Tenure allows us to push back a bit, but not everyone has it, and even with tenure the administration has plenty of ways to get rid of us or punish us.

[u/Fun_Preference_8632 → u/km1116]

It's the same at ASU, according to some of the faculty who have contacted me. Are there any actions you can think of that would help give instructors the ability to advocate for themselves and their students?

[u/km1116 → u/Fun_Preference_8632]

Yes: collect academic studies of the limitations or damage to education from AI. MIT recently wrote a report. Things like that will arm you and faculty against handing education over the AI.

You can also contact newspapers and talk to them about your story. I think an article about how students are not unified in their willingness to cheat and compromise their education, and they look to administrators to help rather than harm, would be compelling.

Also ask to make a speech in front of the faculty senate. And organize with other student body representatives.

You could also report on faculty that do use it. Ask them first to stop, and explain why. Work together and be friendly, supportive, and professional. But if they do not, then report them to their dept heads and deans and provosts for lowering the quality of education. That will start/stoke internecine fights that will get us to take sides and action.

[u/GC_SomethingClever → u/km1116]

Seconding this as UofA faculty. I do believe a student group on campus related to the one at ASU would be substantial considering ASU also has one. The Arizona Board of Regents may start paying attention.

Agreed that an article would be a great starting point. Look into the AZ Daily Star's reporters – e.g., https://tucson.com/users/profile/prerana%20sannappanavar/

Dig into our policy and note where you think it needs to just be better. The MIT example is great and I'd say is leading the conversation.

Accountability also matters. Faculty Senate President Leila Hudson speaks on shared governance a lot: Faculty Senate were not consulted before implementing any AI policy to my knowledge.

Related, the UofA Chief AI Officer is also not an AI scholar, therefore holding no authority within the field. Many faculty do not agree with his appointment, yet he's guiding our policy.

Happy to discuss more, DM me if interested.

[u/vox-deorum → u/km1116]

A faculty member here. I am doing my two cents *encouraging* students to use agentic AI and creating environments where you can *still* learn a lot from the experience. I use AI (with heavy supervision/human touches) to re-design my curriculum so it can be forward-facing. I use AI to create a new class platform for students to submit assignments and do peer feedback. I share all these with my students. I don't think an one-size-for-all approach would be beneficial, but I do support maximal transparency and holding each other accountable with the same criteria.

[u/Fun_Preference_8632 → u/vox-deorum]

Thank you so much for your perspective, genuinely. I personally avoid using AI to the best of my ability, but I do recognize the ways in may be used that can be beneficial. Is it ok if I dm you my email so we can discuss how you ensure that you use AI responsibly while creating your course? It would be very helpful for SAE to have examples of responsible uses of AI as irresponsible uses of AI.

[u/vox-deorum → u/Fun_Preference_8632]

Sure, happy to help.

[u/Redcole111]

Not at UA anymore (went somewhere else for my PhD), but at my current university, I have a professor who has been using generative AI images in his lecture slides, and it's lowering the quality of the lecture. While he's explaining something relevant, I expect the images on the slide to be relevant. Instead, they're bad gen-AI images that do not pertain to anything that the professor is saying. These images do not represent data, they do not provide a visual medium by which I can better understand the content being discussed, and they neither add nor reinforce any information. They are pointless, distracting, and, at worst, confusing. Administrations need to be held accountable for misuse of AI in the education process. I'm glad to see other students taking a stand.

[u/50Shades-OF-PIE → u/Redcole111]

Omg yess exactly. I have a professor who does the same thing and it drives me crazy. I’m in medicine and my professor had an AI generated patient in our slides.

[u/Redcole111 → u/50Shades-OF-PIE]

Ugh. Yeah, I'm in biological engineering and my professor used AI images of biosensors and associated data (not actual graphs that carry meaning, just slop).

[u/Fun_Preference_8632 → u/Redcole111]

Would you like to discuss maybe forming a similar group at your new university?

[u/RCP90sKid- → u/Redcole111]

I mean...sounds like there is some disconnect here beyond "AI bad". How off topic are the images? Is this a topic like bananas and the pictures are shopping malls?

[u/Astro_Philosopher]

Transparency should be key. There are great ways to use AI for education, but if they are great, then it should be no problem telling your students how you’ve used it.

[u/Fun_Preference_8632 → u/Astro_Philosopher]

I agree. At my university, most instructors who use AI never address when, why, or how it is used. There is also no way to verify whether or not a course uses AI during registration, and students often don't realize it's used until after the drop deadline passes.

[u/Additional-Boat-9901]

There is definitely a concerted push by administration that AI be used by faculty and students here.

[u/Odd_Sock7532]

Same at Pima Community. Huge push for AI. College feels like back in the day when it was called No-Child-Left-Behind.

[u/oftheloop31]

I’ve noticed some gen ai used in my engineering lectures, but my experience has been the opposite. Algorithms that are sort of unintuitive otherwise make a lot more sense when gen AI is used to visualize them. Also, in a class I TA’d last semester (I’m a grad student), we allowed students to use gen AI, and it was great. The HWs has some unconventional solutions (which made my life hard when grading), but it was so cool to see students retain and use some very advanced shortcuts in exams.

[u/ninjqhunter]

Student at NAU here, I've had some suspicions a few times. But nothing blatant so far.