Use of artificial intelligence takes forefront in student action

Search bar for ChatGPT

The use of artificial intelligence has emerged as one of the biggest student issues at the beginning of this school year. 

A forum was hosted on Wednesday, September 23 on the topic of AI related to academics on campus.  

The meeting arose from one the education department’s secondary education practicum courses. Four students that had taken or are currently in the class were members of the seven-person panel. 

“It’s kind of like a mini student teaching,” Lily Lawrence said. “Before that there is a portion that is like a class.” 

According to Lawrence and other members, a professor, Stephen Lucas used AI to generate readings and other material for the class.  

“He was very straightforward with us right from the get-go that this class was written entirely with ChatGPT,” she said.  

Five emails were sent to Lucas which were not responded to at the time of publication.  

Lawerence said this format made it harder to understand. 

“It was more difficult to decipher the readings to answer the questions for the quiz than it was to learn the content,” she said. 

According to Lawrence, readings provided were generated with AI and differed from readings from the assigned course textbook.  

She said that Lucas said to use AI in their classrooms. According to her assignments would have a section where students explained their usage of AI. 

Lawrence said these factors made students more focused on work completion then learning from it.  

“After doing all that work in practicum, that was of no value to me,” she said. “I find it incredibility disrespectful for us as learners to not give us your full wealth of knowledge and experience because that is at the end of the day what we are paying our tuition for.” 

Another student panelist Eli Wilhelm related to the topic of academic integrity.  

“As students we’re told not to plagiarize, not to cheat off our peers, and most recently to not use AI to do our homework for us,” he said. “Without these regulations in place the purpose of education would be undermined by academic dishonesty.”  

He said this applies to professors. 

“I argue that academic integrity needs to go both ways between the students and the professors,” Wilhelm said. “As students we’ve spent too much money and made too many sacrifices to be here just to get artificial education.” 

He also said there needs to be support for professors, so there is not a feeling of need to use AI. 

EIU Library Kristin Duffin said she was on the panel to speak on behalf of the faculty union, she was a co-author for the generative AI agreement between the union and the university.  

“Faculty retain the freedom to design and develop course material as they see most relevant and useful for the class,” she said. 

She said this was in the memorandum due to the wide range of opinions that faculty have related to AI.  

Another clause Duffin mentioned says that no union position can be reduced or eliminated due to AI usage.  

According to Provost & Vice President for Academic Affairs Holley Farley there is no university policy on how a professor can us AI for their classes. 

"It is important to note that establishing such a policy would directly contradict the Board of Trustees’ stance on Academic Freedom," she wrote. 

Speaker of the senate Megan Fox encouraged students who wanted change to speak out at senate meeting, board of trustee meetings and directly to administration. 

Fox has stated in student senate meeting that a resolution around AI would happen at some point. 

A petition that spawned from the practicum situation was presented at the end of the panel discussion. Titled “A Petition Against AI in the Classroom” It cites that there are rules for students on AI usage but not for professors.  It also calls AI an unreliable source. 

Its stated goals are to have the “final product” meaning assignments, grades and feedback are human made. That there be a EIU standard for AI use but not be a substitute for content. It also calls for the two practicum courses SED-4335 and SED 4330 to be rewritten without AI. 

According to one of the creators of the petition, senior music education major MJ Jarrell it gained 60 signatures post meeting, there is also an online version of the petition that has gained upwards of 400 signatures.