Studying AI Writing

Just as young artists learn to paint by copying masterpieces in museums, students might learn to write better by copying good writing. One researcher suggests that students ask ChatGPT to write a sample essay that meets their teacher’s assignment and grading criteria. The next step is key. If students pretend it’s their own piece and submit it, that’s cheating. They’ve also offloaded cognitive work to technology and haven’t learned anything. But the AI essay can be an effective teaching tool, in theory, if students study the arguments, organizational structure, sentence construction and vocabulary before writing a new draft in their own words. -Hechinger Report

The AI Motivational Issue

Students who use AI tools to complete assignments tend to do better on homework—but worse on tests. They’re getting the right answers, but they’re not learning. The findings suggest that simply believing information came from an LLM makes people learn less. It is like they think the system is smarter than them, so they stop trying. That’s a motivational issue, not just a cognitive one. AI doesn’t have to make us passive. But right now, that’s how people are using it. -Wall Street Journal

AI Advice for Students

AI Advice for Students

1- Think Beyond Academic Integrity

         Not just “Is this cheating or not cheating?”

         But also, “Am I taking the opportunity to learn, practice, and cultivate my skills?”

To some students, college now feels like, “How well I can use ChatGPT.” Others describe writing essays as a coordination problem: get the prompt, feed it to the bot, skim the output, add some filler, hit submit. No thinking required, just interface management. 

2-Define Your own Educational goals

Ask yourself: “Besides grades, what are my goals as a student?”

Prioritize learning and skill development

Seize opportunities to get the practice you need to become a better thinker, writer, and communicator. 

3-Prompt to Challenge your Thinking

Instead of outsourcing your thinking (“Suggest a thesis statement I can use for my essay.”). Look for ways to think critically about the subject (“Ask me tough questions to help me figure out my thesis statement.”).

Don’t just ask, “Am I outsourcing the writing to AI?” Ask, “Am I outsourcing the thinking to AI?” We must use AI to expand our mind’s capacity to engage, rather than using it to outsource our thinking.  

4- Focus on AI Literacy & Integration

Unless you want to build AI systems and become a data scientist, focus on taking outdated processes and updating them to make use of the available AI tools. Understanding the benefits and limitations of AI in light of ethics should be the goal, along with figuring out how to mesh it into your workday. 

5- Double Down on your Humanity

•  We can’t let it strip us of our humanity.

•  Optimistically, AI may be “a piece of technology that, instead of replacing humanity, amplifies it.”

•  We must retain oversight & not lose ourselves by depending on the machine.

•  Doubling down on what makes you human may be what saves you from being replaced or minimized by AI. 

6- Get Well-rounded         

Be well- rounded in liberal arts: think of your gen ed classes as now core classes. Focus specifically on growing these skills: analytic thinking, creativity, information literature, resilience, agility, leadership, self-motivation, empathy, curiosity. Their value will rise as AI takes over routine tasks.  

7- Distinguish between AI-generated content, AI-assisted content, & AI-supplemented content

Group A ❌                    Group B ✅                              Group C 🤔

AI-generated content              AI-assisted content/writing                AI-supplement content

Facilitated writing/learning    

AI-generated content ❌ is entirely produced by the AI or sections are produced by the AI, based on detailed instructions (prompts) provided by the author. Some AI is best thought of as a set of automation tools that function as closed systems that do their work without oversight—like ATMs and dishwashers. 

In academia, it is not acceptable under normal circumstances unless there are significant and clear reason why this was necessary. However, in business, it is likely to be treated as acceptable when the content is merely informational and not intended to be creative. The focus in this situation is accuracy and speed with minimal effort as opposed to authenticity. For instance, a summary of a business meeting or an email answering a particular question about the business, where it is assumed, the writer may incorporate AI-generated content.

Group B ✅ is work that is predominantly written by an individual but has been improved with the aid of AI tools. AI is part of the process. The author remains in control, and the AI merely acts as a polishing tool. As opposed to automation tools, these collaboration tools—like chain saws and word processors. In any given application, AI is going to automate or it’s going to collaborate, depending on how we design it and how someone chooses to use it.

This kind of assistance is generally accepted by most publishers as well as the Committee on Publication Ethics, without the need for formal disclosure. This includes: creating outlines, improving clarity, grammar, summarizing, brainstorming, generating transcription, condensing notes, creating study guides, practice questions, editing, and suggesting alternative approaches to a problem. 

Group C 🤔 includes changing phrasing, generating a citation list, revising sentence structure, reducing word count, etc. Writers and publishers disagree about whether using AI in this way is ethical or not.

How Students are Using AI: Here's what the Data Tell Us

• AI use by students is increasing.

• The higher the education level, the more likely that students will use AI. 

• Business, STEM, and social-science majors are more likely to use AI and are less likely to have concerns about using it than humanities majors. 

• Top uses by students: information or getting explanations (50-70 percent of respondents in the studies cited above); generating ideas or brainstorming (40-50 percent); and writing support, including checking grammar, editing, starting a paper, and drafting an essay (30-50 percent).

• 86 percent of students who use ChatGPT for assignments say their use was undetected.

• A plurality of students think AI will have both positive and negative consequences.

• A study of high-school students conducted before and after AI became mainstream found no increase in the percentage of students who cheat.

• 15-25 percent of students across several studies feel AI should not be allowed at all in education or refuse to use it themselves.

• In a survey asking students why they use AI, the strongest agreement was with the statement that AI “will not judge me” followed by anonymity.

• Four out of five students think their institutions have not integrated AI sufficiently.

• 55 percent of students think overreliance on AI in teaching decreases the value received from a course.

• 89 percent are worried about AI grading.

• Students think AI is important, in other words, but not that it should replace professors.

  Read more in The Chronicle of Higher Ed

My Me-ness

“I cannot figure out what I am supposed to do with my life if these things can do anything I can do faster and with way more detail and knowledge.” The student said he felt crushed. Some heads nodded. But not all. Julia, a senior in the history department, jumped in. “The A.I. is huge. A tsunami. But it’s not me. It can’t touch my me-ness. It doesn’t know what it is to be human, to be me.” - D. Graham Burnett writing in The New Yorker

If you are Graduating from College: 20 Tips for Job-Hunting Seniors

Ask yourself: Am I keeping myself physically, psychologically, and spiritually healthy? If the answer is ‘no’ then stop looking for new ways to feel guilty and allow yourself to breathe. Give time to self-care. Don’t pile more on top of yourself when you are already sliding backward. Secondly, are there members of your family in need of support? Make that your next priority.  

If those areas are in good shape, below are some steps to consider for the best career launch when the cloud lifts and you can move forward. Take them with a grain of salt. Avoid comparing yourself to others and ask what is reasonable for you to do, given your time and situation. Think of this as a “choose your adventure” exercise. Set attainable goals for a sense of control in a moment of change.

1. Update your resume: No mistakes, and it must be easy to scan. Have you included your social media? Every employer will check your social media and Google you. You should do that yourself. You’ll find more specific resume recommendations here. 

2. Speaking of social: Give yourself a social media makeover. Look for inappropriate or unfocused tweets, posts, and Instagram stories, then reconsider your privacy settings, clearly define your audience, etc. You’ll find makeover suggestions here. Don’t forget LinkedIn (if your industry uses it).

3. Reverse engineer your career: Look up jobs that interest you and see what’s missing from your resume or needs shoring up. What can you do now, before you leave school? What equipment do you have access to right now that you won’t have access to later? Perhaps there are holes in your knowledge of software commonly used in your field. Get up to speed on professional programs like Excel, InDesign, or Premiere Pro.

4. Gather all your supporting materials now so you aren’t scrambling when a prospective employee asks for various kinds of writing samples. Do you have recommendation letters, headshots, thank you notes, etc.? 

5. Work on your elevator pitch. Create a compelling speech about your professional life that lasts no more than 15 seconds. Pick up some ideas about this personal branding exercise here. Try your pitch on others for feedback. 

6. Create a list of job sites you will visit once a week. Start with Indeed and look for lists (often in social media) produced by groups dedicated to your industry. FYI: Your first job or two is not a lifelong commitment. Your path is likely to be circuitous. Aim at moving in the right general direction rather than getting there in one big leap.

7. Create Google alerts to bring you articles from Google News related to your industry by using keywords. Stay on top of the trends and barriers it faces.  Pro tip: Set a Google alert on your name, so you’ll know when someone has posted something about you online.

8. Try some mock interviews with friends. They can grab some typical questions off of the internet to throw at you. Better yet, Zoom it because your next job interview might be a video conference. Do you come across professionally? Flattering lighting? Easy to hear? Camera at eye level?

9. Are there contests offered by professional organizations in your field for which you could submit entries? Pick two or three of these organizations to join.

10. Be ready to answer in a job interview, “What new skills are you learning between semesters or during the self-quarantine of the pandemic?” Show that you use your time wisely.  

11. Develop more life skills. If you haven’t already done so, put effort into learning to cook, doing your own laundry, etc. Try Googling, “What college students should be able to do on their own.”

12. Educate yourself on your student loans. When are you supposed to start paying it off? Do You have deferral options?

13. Cut costs and budget. Where can you stop spending? If you don’t have a budget, make one—even if it is just a projected one. Know where your money is going. How much money can you spend on job hunting?

14. Work on a nonprofit. You can help others while developing your specialized skills in just a few hours a week.  

15. Read articles about job hunting. You’ll find many on my site Goforth Job Tips. Start with the career advice articles and move on to those about resumes and interviews.  

16. You’ll find a list of hundreds of “tech tools” here. Learn a few digital tricks to set yourself apart. Play around. See what’s out there that can make your life easier. A place to start: Pick a platform (like Wix) to create a website that will house projects you’ve completed showing what you can do.

17. While building a website, buy your own domain name. Mine is www.StephenGoforth.com. It’s easy to do at places like GoDaddy.  

18. Pick up some books (online or physical) and listen to some podcasts that either distract you for a few moments and fire your imagination or else educate you about your chosen field. Pro tip: connect with someone who does hiring in your industry and ask for reading/listening recommendations.  

19. Contact professionals for advice on what you should be doing. Don’t ask for a job—ask them to have a cup of coffee with you (by video conference, of course) and then ask questions and listen. Ask your professors who they would recommend you seek out—then ask the same question each time you finish having coffee with a pro.  

20. Attend webinars offered by professional groups in your field. Joining online events is a way to add a line to your resume while learning a few things.  

Finally, don’t try to take on everything at once. Focus on what you can do today; just that one step in front of you.

Stephen Goforth