No, I Do Not Care that my Students May Cheat with ChatGPT
A few days ago, I sat in a department meeting in which, as I imagine all English department do, we philosophized on the ethics and challenges of ChatGPT. Highlighted in this meeting, I am continually stunned by how many educators seem to be unable to imagine the world of education in the AI space. To some, the introduction of ChatGPT seemingly signals the end of academic integrity:
Suddenly, now that teachers can see the wizard behind the curtain, they finally seem to be fully aware of the range of methods students may use to circumvent working on assignments. It seems I cannot walk into the faculty lounge, walk down the hall to class, eat lunch, read an email, or just exist without someone asking me how do you feel about ChatGPT, have you found anyone cheating with ChatGPT, what are you doing to get around ChatGPT. At the risk of sounding lazy: I really do not care, I have not found any cheating, and I have not thought about work arounds.
Let’s talk about why.
I really do not care
I really do not care about ChatGPT because I really care about my student.
I do not want to diminish how cool ChatGPT: I also cannot afford a deformation suit — I am still a teacher. Having thrown my essay prompts into the interface and told it to integrate text or respond in a certain way, the results are quite amazing all things considered. That said, the question is not how do I feel about ChatGPT as a tool, the question is how do I feel about ChatGPT and the door it opens for students to cheat.
Cheating has always existed. Cheating will always exist. Though seemingly nihilistic, I simply do not care that ChatGPT exists as tool for cheating because there will always be some tool for cheating. There are a host of summary and analysis websites that clearly explain the substance of the text. Wether it is an online summary or ChatGPT, at the end of it all, they have access to the same material.
If a student wants to cheat, they are going to cheat. Student have access to the same content on ChatGPT as they do in class: guiding questions, class notes, group discussions. All ChatGPT does, in my non-technological opinion, is remove the search work. However, at the end of the day, there is no leg up if everyone has the same information. If a student is paying attention, they get all the basic information; however, what ChatGPT will not give them is their own opinion, their own ideas, their own analysis. I stress to my students I care what they think. I want to hear from them. I want them to tell me what they think. We will answer the questions, we will go over the books, but I want to know what they think and so should they. So no, I don’t care about ChatGPT, because my students know I care about their thoughts.
I have not found any cheating.
AI based cheating that is. The only times I find cheating, seemingly supporting everything I have been told in professional development and by the Dean’s Office is this:
Students cheat when they feel unsupported: they do not have enough time, they do not feel they know enough, or they feel their cheating has no real consequence.
Earlier this year, I had a student who was failing my class because he was missing an essay assignment. With grade checks coming for sports, he did not have enough time. Moreover, he rarely was engaged in class, so he did not feel he knew enough. This lack of knowledge was ever present when the student asked if I could summarize the entire book for him in order for him to complete his essay. Finally, with this cheating offense not being his first, it is safe to say he did not fear any real consequence for his actions. Maybe serving as an example, as he is no longer enrolled, I have not found many students cheating from that moment on.
However, I deeply believe students have been less inclined to cheat because I have lessened the content load and focused on explaining the why behind what we are doing and how it relates to them.
I have focused on removing “homework” and giving students 2–5 class days to work on projects, essays, and discussion preparation. I have stopped giving essay prompts after the book is done, with one specific answer. Instead I have given the space to express ideas by giving broad topics to write on. Moreover, instead of long lectures, I have started having student lead discussions on the essay prompts themselves, as we read the books, so students do not feel they know nothing when it comes time to write the essay because they have spent class periods sharing their ideas with each either.
Simply put, if you assume student will write an essay over something they can google, you are playing yourself.
I am not focused on if they can tell me the specific answer I have in mind about a book. I want to know what they think about the book. I want to see their opinions supported by the text. I do not want them to guess my opinion and then attempt to support my opinion with text. That is not fair to them because I am forcing my opinion on them and I will only grow increasingly frustrated as they do not think my point is right or get the point I am trying to force them to make.
I have not found any cheating because I am trying to equip my students with the tools to tell me what they think: not try to guess what I think and attempt to prove to me my point. If I do not think students can form their own opinions and be able to tell me why they think that, that shows a clear lack of trust that they can think.
I have not thought about workarounds.
This may not totally be true, but I do not think ChatGPT was the impetus for me to introduce infographic assignments where students compile context and let their creativity shine with the freedom to design the presentation of the information. It was not the reason I created a group podcast assignment where students analyzed a poem for the thematic elements and presented it with their own words, with their friends, with the space to make some jokes and allow their personality to shine through. It was not the reason for harkness discussions, limited homework, and annotated essay revisions. ChatGPT was not the reason I spent two weeks scouring the internet for British short stories written after 2000 so students could create guided analysis project to show their annotations, design guiding questions, and create an essay prompt.
ChatGPT did not make me choose to shelve what I think students need and really consider what they already have: all but insurmountable pressures from parents, fully maxed course loads, teachers who believe their subject is the most important, and a desire to find themselves.
No, I am not looking for workarounds. I am not thinking about ChatGPT. I have not found cheaters using it.
I am looking for ways to best help my students come to have the skills they will need to do that which they are called to do. I am focused on how I can meet my students were they are. I am creating an environment where students feel supported, that they can ask for help or an extension or just have the knowledge their teacher is working for them, not for his own self interest. Taking my focus away from this, to focus on ChatGPT does more harm to student learning than when a student forgoes a learning opportunity by using ChatGPT.
