Since February 2023, the Provost Office has been equipping APU faculty to engage effectively and critically with the emergence of artificial intelligence (AI) tools and their potential impact on teaching and learning. Below are resources that have been developed to support faculty as they engage with their colleagues and students around these critical issues. If you have any questions or need additional consultation, please contact canvas@apu.edu
APU Academic Integrity Policy - The updated policies explicitly note that using AI tools for work submitted for credit will require instructor permission.
APU A.I. Classroom Use Policy - This document provides instructors with suggested policies for varying levels of AI classroom use to include in the syllabus.
APU Guidance on the Usage of A.I. Detection Tool - This document provides instructors with some important considerations when using AI detection tools within and outside Canvas.
APU Guidance and Strategies for Assignment Makeover in the Age of A.I. - This document provides guidance and strategies for revamping assignments to reflect students’ true learning rather than AI's capabilities.
APU Faculty Guide to ChatGPT - A basic introduction to ChatGPT for faculty
A.I. Classroom Policies by Disciplines - Example AI classroom use policies by disciplines | AI Code of Conduct by Harvard
A.I. Citations | Formats & Examples - How to cite ChatGPT in APA, MLA, and Chicago Style
AI Text Generators - Collection of articles and resources to stimulate discussion among faculty
ChatGPT Assignments to Use in Your Classroom Today - Collection of assignments that utilize ChatGPT, teaching students AI fluency.
Practical AI for Instructors and Students - A crash course on AI by Wharton professors.
SimCheck (a Turnitin product) is an integrated plagiarism tool within Canvas. It provides both an Originality Score (percentage of submitted work that is found elsewhere) and an AI Score (percentage of submitted work that is potentially written by AI). Both reports can be accessed from within the SpeedGrader view. Please note that instructors and students can view the Originality Score, but only the instructor can view the AI Score.
Outside of Canvas, there are stand-alone AI-writing detectors you can use. Please note that these free tools are often limited in how many words they can check. If you have a lot of text to check, you'll need to do it in small batches.
GPTZero - Limited to 5,000 characters per detection
ZeroGPT - Limited to 15,000 characters per detection
Caution: At the moment, AI-writing detection tools are not entirely reliable. There are many "false positives." If a piece of writing is flagged as "AI-written," further investigation is warranted. Watch the webinar on AI and Academic Integrity for a detailed discussion (see below).
AI detection tools work by recreating questionable text using AI models. If the questionable text has high variability, it's likely that it's not AI written. However, there are "remover tools" that can "scramble" or "wash clean" AI writing, making them virtually undetectable by traditional AI detection tools. Some of the most popular AI remover tools include Undetectable AI, HideMyAI, and WriteHuman. If you come across writing that sounds machine-generated but has a 0% AI score, then most likely an AI remover tool was used. There are second-generation AI writing detectors that can detect "sanitized AI writing," but it's a matter of time before new AI removers will come onto the scene.
Here are some recommended practices for how to deal with suspected AI-related academic integrity violations:
Compare the writing in question with the student's previous work. Does it match their style, tone, and level of previous writing? If there are significant differences, it’s worth further conversation with the student.
Check for inaccuracies in sources, arguments, facts, etc. AI text generators often have no concept of something being accurate or truthful, so they may often “hallucinate” and generate fictitious sources, non-sensical arguments, and/or utter falsehoods.
Meet with the student who is suspected of misusing AI. Focus the meeting on “seeking to understand,” instead of “proving who’s right.” Ask the student how the paper was written, what was the process like, and what additional tools, if any, were used. Asking these “writing process questions” will often reveal important insight about the paper's integrity. Also, clarify with your students what types of AI tools may or may not be used, such as writing assistant tools like Grammarly and Quillbot that can summarize, paraphrase, and/or suggest writing style edits.
If this issue is prolific, discuss the issue with the entire class. If you find multiple students with high AI scores and/or suspect inappropriate AI use, then it’s worth having a conversation with the entire class, directing them back to your AI classroom use policy. If you don't have one, implement one immediately (see resource).
Offer a second chance. Consider allowing students to redo the work without penalty or for a reduced grade. If it is clear that the student used AI-generated text and did no original work, give the assignment a zero or a substantial reduction in grade.
If a violation has indeed occurred, it’s essential to establish what progressive discipline might look like. For example, a first offense results in an oral warning and an automatic failure of the assignment. A second offense results in filing a violation report and an automatic failure of the assignment. A third offense results in filing another violation report and failure from the class. Please also refer to the APU’s Academic Integrity Policies for details on handling violations.
This panel showcase introduced faculty to the various AI-powered tools and their potential applications in the classroom. In particular, different APU faculty shared how they have leveraged AI to enrich students' learning experiences and boost their engagement. This webinar featured Brianna Pack (Nursing), Heekap Lee (Education), Janet Hanson (Education), and Sharon Titus (Nursing). Mike Truong, Director of Faculty Development, Office of the Provost, will facilitate the session.
Date: March 12, 2024, 11:00am -12:30pm PT
Panelists:
Brianna Pack (Nursing)
Heekap Lee (Education)
Janet Hanson (Education)
Sharon Titus (Nursing)
Facilitator:
Mike Truong, Director of Faculty Development, Provost Office
Resources:
AI Will Shake Up Higher Ed. Are Colleges Ready? - article from the Chronicles of Higher Ed
Dr. Mike Truong, Director of Faculty Development, and Tim Schreffler, Academic Support Center Coordinator, facilitated a semester-long faculty learning community (FLC) on leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) tools for academic productivity gains during Fall 2023 and Spring 2024. In particular, the FLC explored AI tools and techniques for improving teaching, research, and administrative tasks. All faculty, including full-time, part-time, and adjunct faculty, are encouraged to apply. You can access the recordings, presentation slides, and related resources below.
Upholding academic integrity in the face of prolific AI use can be challenging for instructors. In this workshop Drs. Karen Lang and Mike Truong will discuss how AI writing detection tools work, what cautions need to be considered, and how to approach conversations with students when investigating if there was a violation. Dr. Kandy Mink Salas, Associate Provost for Student Success, will be available to answer questions related to academic integrity violations.
Date: November 14, 2023, 2-3:30pm PT
Facilitators:
Karen Lang, Lead Instructor, Writing Program
Mike Truong, Director of Faculty Development, Provost Office
Kandy Mink Salas, Associate Provost, Student Success
Resources:
The rise of artificial intelligence (AI) text-generation tools presents new challenges for educators. How can faculty ensure assignments reflect students’ true learning rather than AI's capabilities? In this interactive workshop, Drs. Karen Lang and Mike Truong will offer guidance and strategies on how to revamp your assignments to encourage deeper learning in the age of AI.
Date: August 17, 2023, 11-12pm PT
Facilitators:
Karen Lang, Lead Instructor, Writing Program
Mike Truong, Director of Faculty Development, Provost Office
Resources:
During spring 2023, the Office of the Provost hosted a series of informal conversations with faculty and academic staff about the potential impact of artificial intelligence (A.I.), such as ChatGPT, on teaching, learning, and scholarship. Over 100 individuals participated in these conversations.
Date: February 16, 2023, 11-12pm PT
Overview: This introduction session focused on what generative artificial intelligence is, how it works, and why it's getting so much attention in education.
Facilitator: Mike Truong, Director of Faculty Development, Provost Office
Resource: Presentation Slides
Date: February 22, 2023, 11-12pm PT
Abstract: This session was part 2 of the overview of generative AI, focused on some of the challenges and opportunities of this tool with special attention to how Christian educators should approach this technology.
Facilitator: Mike Truong, Director of Faculty Development, Provost Office
Resource: Presentation Slides
Date: February 28, 2023, 1-2:30pm PT
Abstract: This session focused on the ins and outs of AI-created text, suggested some positive practices and guardrails for its uses, and examined the pitfalls together.
Facilitators:
Aurora Matzke, Director, Writing & Tutoring Centers
Catherine Hahs Brinkley, Chair and Assistant Professor, Division of Teacher Education, School of Education
Mike Truong, Director of Faculty Development, Provost Office
Resources
Annotated bibliography - Curated by Rhonda Grego
Sources to Stimulate Discussion Among Teachers - Curated by Anna Mills
Date: March 13, 2023, 1-2:30pm PT
Abstract: This session focused on the ethical handling of AI writing and motivating student-writers in an AI age.
Facilitators:
Karen Lang, Lead Instructor, Writing Program
Mike Truong, Director of Faculty Development, Provost Office
Resources:
AI Humanizing Handout - Developed by Karen Lang
Methods Amidst Our Human Responses to AI Composing - Developed by Karen Lang
Date: March 22, 2023, 10-12pm PT
Abstract: This session focused on the ethical handling of AI writing and motivating student-writers in an AI age.
Facilitators:
Jeff Tirrell, Associate Director, Office of Curricular Support and Effectiveness
Dave Harmeyer, Professor, University Libraries
Mike Truong, Director of Faculty Development, Provost Office
Resources:
