St. Mary's University Guidance on AI/ChatGPT

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A Message from Jeff Schomburg

University Statement on AI

August 7, 2023

Dear Faculty Colleagues, 

 

Welcome back to campus and the fall semester.  I hope these summer months have provided time to recharge and make progress on your professional and personal goals.  As you are preparing for courses, I am writing about a topic that is garnering more attention on university campuses:  generative artificial intelligence (AI). 

 

Earlier this summer a group of faculty and staff informally started gathering information about AI’s relevance to our campus.  A few weeks ago and with an eye toward the start of the semester, Curtis White and I charged a larger group of faculty and staff with gathering resources, identifying emerging practices within higher education, and identifying areas where institutional guidelines may be warranted.  Members of this working group include: 

 

  • Paul Uhlig, Mathematics 
  • Jeff Schomburg, Academic Technology Services 
  • Diane Duesterhoeft, Blume Library 
  • Angeli Willson, Education 

 

AI technology is here and only growing more prevalent, but our grasp of its potential implications and applications remains incipient.  As much as the technology raises concerns and uncertainties, it is also poised to advance student learning and academic research in unpredictably exciting ways. 

 

Thus, the Provost’s Office is not issuing blanket statements or policies about AI at this point.  This approach aligns with most higher education institutions.  Further study and dialogue are warranted among our faculty, staff and students.  Drawing from the working group’s findings, I want to share some important resources and suggestions. 

 

First and foremost, remember that St. Mary’s University’s commitment to academic integrity is steadfast and the policies and procedures that uphold this remain in place.  Those include the Academic Misconduct policy, the Code of Student Conduct, the Faculty Handbook, and the Research Integrity policy. 

 

Second, Academic Technology Services has created a resource-rich webpage on AI for faculty, staff and students.  You can access it here:  https://sites.stmarytx.edu/ai/. This webpage will be updated regularly as new information and opportunities emerge. 

 

Third, the Community for Learning and Teaching will be sponsoring workshops and programming this academic year focused on AI and its implications on our work and our students’ learning.  The schedule of events is forthcoming. 

 

Fourth, I encourage all faculty and staff to familiarize themselves with AI and some of its capabilities.  Of particular importance is how some popular platforms, such as ChatGPT, might interface with your courses, course assignments and pedagogical approaches.  You will find relevant links on the ATS webpage.  I also encourage departments to discuss how AI might come into play within disciplines. 

 

Finally, I strongly recommend that you include some statement about AI in your syllabi/Canvas pages and review expectations with students during class.  You will find sample statements at the link above.  What’s important is that you set some expectations about how you and your students are to navigate this emerging technology given your expectations for the course, assignments, and grading.   

 

I want to acknowledge the complexities that surround this topic and thank you for the thoughtful attention you’ll give it. 

 

Best, 

Jason Pierce
Provost and Executive Vice President forAcademic Affairs


ST. MARY’S UNIVERSITY
The Catholic and Marianist University

Syllabus Samples

Academic Integrity and Use of Artificial Intelligence

St. Mary’s School of Law Syllabus Statement

Law students may not employ generative AI tools or services (i.e., ChatGPT, Bard, CLAUDE, LexisNexis, Westlaw) including, but not limited to, language models, essay generators, or any other type of AI-enabled content creation tools, for course assignments, examinations, or any other academic work, unless explicitly authorized in writing by the course professor.

This includes both direct usage of AI output in submitted work, and using AI tools to inform or guide the creation of student work. Unauthorized use of AI to generate coursework violates the Law School’s Academic Integrity policy. Law school course assignments and assessments are designed to evaluate your analytical thinking, knowledge of legal principles, and ability to communicate effectively in writing. While artificial intelligence (AI) tools hold promise to augment legal work, reliance on AI to complete assessments or assignments undermines their purpose as tools for candid self-assessment.

Academic integrity requires honesty about the use of AI technologies. Curiosity should drive your learning, not shortcuts. Intellectual honesty is vital to an academic community and for my fair evaluation of your work. All work submitted in this course must be your own, completed in accordance with the University’s academic regulations. You may not engage in unauthorized collaboration or make use of ChatGPT or other AI composition software.

Violation of this policy will be considered a breach of academic honesty and will be dealt with according to our existing academic integrity procedures. This applies across all coursework and examinations unless otherwise stated in writing by the professor.

No use of generative AI tools permitted
>> “This course assumes that work submitted by students – all process work, drafts, brainstorming artifacts, final works – will be generated by the students themselves, working individually or in groups as directed by class assignment instructions. This policy indicates the following constitute violations of academic honesty: a student has another person/entity do the work of any substantive portion of a graded assignment for them, which includes purchasing work from a company, hiring a person or company to complete an assignment or exam, and/or using generative AI tools (such as ChatGPT).”
>> “In this course, every element of class assignments must be fully prepared by the student.  The use of generative AI tools for any part of your work will be treated as plagiarism. If you have questions, please contact me.” 
>> “All assignments should be fully prepared by the student. Developing strong competencies in the skills associated with this course, from student-based brainstorming to project development, will prepare you for success in your degree pathway and, ultimately, a competitive career. Therefore, the use of generative AI tools to complete any aspect of assignments for this course are not permitted and will be treated as plagiarism. If you have questions about what constitutes a violation of this statement, please contact me.”

Generative AI is permitted in specific contexts and with acknowledgment
>> “The emergence of generative AI tools (such as ChatGPT and DALL-E) has sparked interest among many students in our discipline. The use of these tools for brainstorming ideas, exploring possible responses to questions or problems, and creative engagement with the materials may be useful for you as you craft responses to class assignments. While there is no substitute for working directly with your instructor, the potential for generative AI tools to provide automatic feedback, assistive technology and language assistance is clearly developing. Please feel free to reach out to me well in advance of the due date of assignments for which you may be using generative AI tools and I will be happy to discuss what is acceptable.”
>> “In this course, students shall give credit to AI tools whenever used, even if only to generate ideas rather than usable text or illustrations. When using AI tools on assignments, add an appendix showing (a) the entire exchange, highlighting the most relevant sections; (b) a description of precisely which AI tools were used (e.g. ChatGPT private subscription version or DALL-E free version), (c) an explanation of how the AI tools were used (e.g. to generate ideas, turns of phrase, elements of text, long stretches of text, lines of argument, pieces of evidence, maps of the conceptual territory, illustrations of key concepts, etc.); (d) an account of why AI tools were used (e.g. to save time, to surmount writer’s block, to stimulate thinking, to handle mounting stress, to clarify prose, to translate text, to experiment for fun, etc.). Students shall not use AI tools during in-class examinations, or assignments unless explicitly permitted and instructed. Overall, AI tools should be used wisely and reflectively with an aim to deepen understanding of subject matter.
>> “It is a violation of university policy to misrepresent work that you submit or exchange with your instructor by characterizing it as your own, such as submitting responses to assignments that do not acknowledge the use of generative AI tools. Please feel free to reach out to me with any questions you may have about the use of generative AI tools before submitting any content that has been substantially informed by these tools.”
>> “In this course, we may use generative AI tools (such as ChatGPT) to examine the ways in which these kinds of tools may inform our exploration of the topics of the class. You will be informed as to when and how these tools will be used, along with guidance for attribution if/as needed. Any use of generative AI tools outside of these parameters constitutes plagiarism and will be treated as such.”
>> “Understanding how and when to use generative AI tools (such as ChatGPT, DALL-E) is quickly emerging as an important skill for future professions. To that end, you are welcome to use generative AI tools in this class as long as it aligns with the learning outcomes or goals associated with assignments. You are fully responsible for the information you submit based on a generative AI query (such that it does not violate academic honesty standards, intellectual property laws, or standards of non-public research you are conducting through coursework). Your use of generative AI tools must be properly documented and cited for any work submitted in this course.”
>> “This course assumes that work submitted for a grade by students – all process work, drafts, brainstorming artifacts, final works – will be generated by the students themselves, working individually or in groups as directed by class assignment instructions. This policy indicates the following constitute violations of academic honesty: a student has another person/entity do the work of any substantive portion of a graded assignment for them, which includes purchasing work from a company, hiring a person or company to complete an assignment or exam, and/or using generative AI tools (such as ChatGPT).”
>> “To ensure all students have an equal opportunity to succeed and to preserve the integrity of the course, students are not permitted to submit text that is generated by artificial intelligence (AI) systems such as ChatGPT, Bing Chat, Claude, Google Bard, or any other automated assistance for any classwork or assessments. This includes using AI to generate answers to assignments, exams, or projects, or using AI to complete any other course-related tasks. Using AI in this way undermines your ability to develop critical thinking, writing, or research skills that are essential for this course and your academic success. Students may use AI as part of their research and preparation for assignments, or as a text editor, but text that is submitted must be written by the student. For example, students may use AI to generate ideas, questions, or summaries that they then revise, expand, or cite properly. Students should also be aware of the potential benefits and limitations of using AI as a tool for learning and research. AI systems can provide helpful information or suggestions, but they are not always reliable or accurate. Students should critically evaluate the sources, methods, and outputs of AI systems. Violations of this policy will be treated as academic misconduct. If you have any questions about this policy or if you are unsure whether a particular use of AI is acceptable, please do not hesitate to ask for clarification.” 

Students are encouraged to use generative AI tools in coursework
>> “The use of generative AI is encouraged with certain tasks and with attribution: You can choose to use AI tools to help brainstorm assignments or projects or to revise existing work you have written. When you submit your assignment, I expect you to clearly attribute what text was generated by the AI tool (e.g., AI-generated text appears in a different colored font, quoted directly in the text, or use an in-text parenthetical citation).”
>> “Designers commonly use AI-content generation tools in their work. In this course, using AI-content generation tools is permitted and will be a normal and regular part of our creative process when it is used according to the below criteria. In this course, neglecting to follow these requirements may be considered academic dishonesty. (1) For each assignment, you are required to include a paragraph that explains what AI content- generation tool you used, the dates you used it, and the prompts you used to generate the content according to the MLA style guide. (2) During critique, it is important to describe the precedents you used and how any source content was transformed. When showing or presenting images or other content you generated using an AI-tool, cite that image or content following the MLA style guide. If you need help referencing your creative work, contact me to collaborate.”
>> “Students are invited to use AI platforms to help prepare for assignments and projects (e.g., to help with brainstorming or to see what a completed essay might look like). I also welcome you to use AI tools to help revise and edit your work (e.g., to help identify flaws in reasoning, spot confusing or underdeveloped paragraphs, or to simply fix citations). When submitting work, students must clearly identify any writing, text, or media generated by AI. This can be done in a variety of ways. In this course, parts of essays generated by AI should appear in a different colored font, and the relationship between those sections and student contributions should be discussed in cover letters that accompany the essay submission.”

Note: The above materials are adapted from UT Austin’s shared content.  We deeply thank them for their contribution. Use and reuse of content are under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

 

Strong writing and research rely on the appropriate attribution of sources. In this class, we’ll have many conversations about what counts as a source and how to draw clear lines around where your ideas begin and others’ end. This question is complicated by the ever-growing AI tools like ChatGPT  that function to generate an increased amount of an individual’s original academic work. As part of our learning about digital literacy and the appropriate attribution of sources, we’ll discuss what counts as “original” writing with the increasing presence of this network of tools, so we’ll talk about how to use those tools appropriately without over-relying on them or threatening the originality of your work.

St. Mary’s  Academic Misconduct Policy identifies the term “plagiarism” as the inclusion of someone else’s words, ideas or data work and “fabrication” as the intentional use of invented information or the falsification of research or other findings.  In this course, we’ll be mindful to avoid claiming the “work or effort” of a machine or AI, as well as another person, as our own. The baseline expectation for our class is that all of the work you submit is your own original writing. I may invite you to use other tools as part of an assignment process, but until then, you’ll be expected to use your research, writing, and critical thinking skills as the primary tools for creation.

Note: The above materials are adapted from Oregon State University’s shared content.  We deeply thank them for their contribution. Use and reuse of content are under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

 

Intellectual honesty is vital to an academic community and for my fair evaluation of your work. All work submitted in this course must be your own, completed in accordance with the University’s academic regulations. You may not engage in unauthorized collaboration or make use of ChatGPT or other AI composition software.

Students must obtain permission from me before using AI composition software (like ChatGPT) for any assignments in this course. Using these tools without my permission puts your academic integrity at risk.

Note: The above materials are adapted from Princeton University’s shared content.  We deeply thank them for their contribution. Use and reuse of content are under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

 

Support Resources

Articles Courtesy of Princeton University

EDUCAUSE Collection

Further Reading Courtesy of EDUCAUSE

Frequently Asked Questions

Default Closed First FAQ Item

View the entire catalog of Adobe Creative Cloud desktop and mobile apps at https://www.adobe.com/products/catalog.html

AI Detection
AI Generation for Writing Projects

ChatGPT

Google Bard

AI Generation for Image Projects

Adobe Firefly (Beta) | Gnerative AI-powered content creation from Adobe

DALL-E 2 by OpenAI | AI image generator if you want to experience the original

Craiyon | Completely free AI image generator

Midjourney (Beta) | AI generator for highest-quality photos

StableDiffusion (Beta) | Generative AI-powered image creation from Stability.ai

AI Generation for Audio Projects

Mubert Render | Gnerative AI-powered audio track creation from Mubert

Ways to Cite Generative AI

Note on Citation: Considering St. Mary’s Code of Student Conduct,  Academic Misconduct policy, and the Research Integrity policy, remind students that these tools cannot be used to create content that could be private (i.e., used for research purposes) or as their intellectual property. The following most commonly used style guides should be useful in crafting language for your syllabi and assignments:

 

Note: The above materials are adapted from UT Austin’s shared content.  We deeply thank them for their contribution. Use and reuse of content are under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

Ways to Keep AI Honest

Alternative Authentic Assessment Methods (Courtesy of UConn)

Videos and Webinar Recordings 

 We’ll share samples of presentations and recordings here and on the AI in Higher Ed Team

Courses for Further Exploration on AI

click to launch the Elements of AI free online course created by MinnaLearn and the University of Helsinki.

The Elements of AI is a series of free online courses created by MinnaLearn and the University of Helsinki. We want to encourage as broad a group of people as possible to learn what AI is, what can (and can’t) be done with AI, and how to start creating AI methods. The courses combine theory with practical exercises and can be completed at your own pace.

If you’d like to learn more, please contact: 

Diane Duesterfoeft
Blume Library
Reference & Instruction Librarian
210-436-3346
Email Diane

 

Learning Modules for Elements of AI, a free course offered by the by MinnaLearn and the University of Helsinki.