THE UNSEEN INFLUENCE: NAVIGATING THE ETHICAL QUANDARY OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN EDUCATION

 In this very moment, as I type my first blog post ever, I find myself reflecting on the irony of it all. Here I am, confessing that I've never been an avid blog reader, yet drawn to the idea of immersing myself in a stranger's world through their written words. It's an oddly comforting thought, realizing that by sharing their thoughts and experiences, these strangers can become familiar companions in our minds. And yet, I've hesitated to embark on my own blogging journey, fearing that I might expose the depths of my innermost thoughts to a handful of unknown individuals.

But today, I'm ready to hand you the keys, dear stranger. My name is Nic Kaehn, a twenty-year-old with a digital literacy level that only slightly surpasses that of my eighty-year-old grandparents. It's an interesting juxtaposition, to say the least. And so, as I open the doors of my mind through this blog, I invite you to join me on a journey of discovery, self-expression, and maybe even a few shared laughs along the way.

Together, let's navigate the realms of technology, culture, and everything in between. As we embark on this adventure, I hope to provide you with insights, musings, and perhaps a fresh perspective on the world we inhabit. So, grab a cup of your preferred beverage, settle into a comfortable spot, and let's embark on this digital voyage together.

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Words from a well-intentioned but slightly hesitant twenty-year-old trying to begin her first blog post--right? Only, these words aren't mine, but rather the inventions of the artificial intelligence ChatGPT. We learned much about spotting fake or illegitimate content in the first two weeks of the Digital Writing semester. Crap detection is essential for research, and the texts provided excellent advice to avoid phony resources. The question I find myself pondering is: How does this work the other way around?

Sure, teachers use various methods to prevent and observe plagiarism in the classroom, but with the rapid development of artificial intelligence and the growing laziness of students, how effective are these efforts? Rheingold writes that using more than one search engine or keyword and looking at multiple pages of the results rather than just the first can reduce the likelihood of poor information for those looking to research a topic (79). Though this method helps students weave through falsehoods, can the same be done by professors or employers? 

Rheingold mentions plagiarism software loosely but does not dive into the details. I have seen specific software, such as Turnitin and Chegg, which are credible and can quickly catch most instances of plagiarism. But let me throw in another factor– artificial intelligence. How are higher-ups equipped to handle this new challenge? I went ahead and ran the ChatGPT curated paragraphs through a plagiarism checker in Grammarly, and the results were surprising. Grammarly only registered the words of the artificial intelligence (which did plagiarize nearly 50% of the paragraphs) as only having 14% plagiarism. While this will ring a few bells to most professors, I did not feed as much information as possible to the ChatGPT. Curious as to the result of this, I provided the artificial intelligence a finished mini-essay and asked it to make it into a blog post. The ChatGPT did this, rearranging my words and taking away nearly fifty words. The original essay only contained 3% plagiarism, and the artificial intelligence version had 5%. These levels of plagiarism would hardly make a blip for any reasonable professor.

    I found this information difficult to process. Yes, artificial intelligence did not have to make up different words and phrases, but the essay still read entirely differently from what it was previously. Grammarly grades the writing you put on the program. My initial essay's score was only an 85%, whereas the ChatGPT version scored 95%. So yes, I did write the paper, but ChatGPT had better vocabulary and grammar than my initial writing. This unfair advantage makes it impossible for an instructor to observe progress and skill level. How could my current instructor tell if I were using an artificial intelligence software right now?

My limited experience with ChatGPT revealed much in little time, and I am surprised that I have not learned more about artificial intelligence in the classroom. Why haven't students been exposed to lectures about not using ChatGPT and other programs like those about plagiarism? This conversation can lead to a more extensive statement about schools; they don't care whether you are improving or learning, just don't get caught trying to skip out.

(The title of this blog post has also been curated by artificial intelligence)

Screenshot of my first attempt at getting the AI to write the blog post.

Citations

“Empower Students to Do Their Best, Original Work.” Turnitin, www.turnitin.com/. Accessed 23 June 2023.

My Account, new-my-account.chegg.com/. Accessed 23 June 2023.

Rheingold, Howard. Net Smart: How to Thrive Online. MIT Press, 2014.

Schulman, John, et al. “Introducing Chatgpt.” Introducing ChatGPT, 2023, openai.com/blog/chatgpt.

Shevchenko, Alex, et al. “Free Writing Ai Assistance.” Grammarly, www.grammarly.com/. Accessed 23 June 2023.