Thread by @_akpiper

My department asked me to give a brief talk about #GPT to them to help folks learn more about what's going on. Here are my #tips in distilled form.

1. Make #GPT part of the classroom. Students know about it, students are using it, bring it into the discussion. Don't pretend it doesn't exist!

2. Take GPT for a test run on your material. How does GPT do answering your questions? Test it on class discussion questions, tests, essays. Get comfortable with what it sounds like but also how your assignments fare in a GPT world.

3. Assess GPT for accuracy with your students. Students are often unaware of the hallucination problem, i.e. that GPT makes up information (including citations). Show them when it goes off the rails and when to trust it (if ever).

4. Use GPT as a tool of critical reflection. Sometimes I ask GPT questions and then we analyze the answers together. It can be productive to look at someone else's writing (even if someone else is an AI).

5. Decide on your AI writing policy. (See mine at the end of this thread.) AI can be used for brainstorming, writing, and editing. Decide how you feel about the use of AI for each of these activities.

5a. What are your trying to assess? When can the technology help students be more thoughtful and creative and when does it substitute for creativity and thinking?

6. Treat AI writing like any other form of plagiarism. AI generated text is citable discourse, i.e. students are not allowed to include it in their assignments without proper citation. It doesn't have to be complicated. If you're concerned, then just do more in class writing.

7. Remember there are a spectrum of opinions out there. Some say we should be training students to utilize AI to solve problems. Thus, they should be learning with AI in all of their assignments, including writing. twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

8. Others feel that AI pollutes the growth and development of student thinking. We need to keep it out of their hands until they've demonstrated proficiency in a given area. We don't have data yet to support either of these positions. For now keep an open mind in both directions!

9. Modularize your assignments so you can see student work at every stage. This is more work but break down writing into discrete parts so they can engage in more long term reflective and constructive thinking (i.e. the hallmark of writing). Maybe we just need to dedicate more… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

10. Share your experiences. Everyone is in the dark on this. We're all affected. Share successful and unsuccessful exercises and share when you've had concerns about the authenticity of student work. What led to it and what did you do?

11. Be sympathetic towards the ambiguity of the situation! Students face a very uncertain intellectual & disciplinary landscape when it comes to #AI (teachers too!). Give them the benefit of the doubt. You are helping them (and you) become more comfortable with this technology.

12. Here is the current #AI disclosure agreement I have students include with written assignments. First draft for sure.