Artificial intelligence has many beneficial uses, but at least one terrible downside is that it makes cheating easier for students who merely want a passing grade, not the work that improves their minds.
In today’s Martin Center article, Harrison Hutton, a recent graduate, argues that the only real solution is for professors to turn back the clock and require pen and paper.
He writes:
Software companies like Respondus claim to offer services that counteract such attempts to cheat, but do they? Functions like lockdown browsers and screen recording are designed to prevent AI-enabled cheating. Faculty and school administrators, however, must manually enable these lockdown functions and review footage. Even for test administrators who have enough follow-through and know-how to utilize these tools, little stops students from simply using a second device to evade detection.
In surveys, a significant number of students admit to using AI to cheat, and the actual number is probably higher. The already serious problem of college students graduating with degrees but without any real gain in knowledge and skill has become more so with the surge of AI cheating. Employers know that and are beginning to devalue college degrees.
Hutton argues that professors need to bring back the old days of pen and paper testing:
The bluebook places students, honest or dishonest, technologically savvy or inept, on an even playing field. Manually proctored bluebook exams would make academic integrity policies enforceable, which would restore some of the credibility these institutions have lost. Given the scale of the problem, bluebooks could also play a role in reducing runaway grade inflation, adding even more value to students’ degrees.
I’d say he’s right.