Generative AI Detection
From the file cabinet of old tests in the basement of fraternity houses to online “homework help” sites like CourseHero, students have long sought shortcuts to academic success. Generative AI tools are the latest front in this battle, allowing students to mimic higher-order thinking skills by turning in AI work as their own. Students recognize that AI tools can often provide a better output than they can, faster than they can. The short-term goal of producing work that gets a high grade is often more important to students than the long-term goal of developing their own thinking and writing skills.
Generative AI detection tools raise the hopes of faculty by claiming to be able to spot the use of AI in student work. Some claim accuracy rates as high as 99%. However, tests conducted by educators have shown that AI detection tools often result in false positives and false negatives. Even more troubling is the higher frequency of false positives among students writing in a second language, students with poor writing skills, and students on the autism spectrum. AI detection tools operate with the assumption that a student’s writing style and voice are consistent throughout their work, which is not the case for many. To avoid false positives, or to conceal actual AI use, students often utilize online “humanizing” tools to rewrite their work before turning it in.
Inside Higher Education, the Chronicle of Higher Education, and the American Association of Colleges and Universities all caution faculty against putting their faith in AI detection tools. These organizations and others instead recommend that faculty restructure their courses to reduce the temptation to use AI tools. This might mean explaining the rationale behind major assignments, incorporating more in-class activities, breaking up large assignments into multi-stage projects, or requiring students to articulate their workflow. In both undergraduate and graduate level courses, faculty may need to provide opportunities to practice higher-order thinking skills on low stakes assignments throughout the course. Colleges and departments can coordinate these efforts, but their success will depend on the involvement of faculty members.