New artificial intelligence headache for universities
THE fight to combat students using artificial intelligence (AI) to cheat at Greater Manchester’s universities has become ‘divisive,’ as new software is introduced to curb the practice.
Currently, most universities tell students to use software developed by Turnitin to submit essays - as it has anti-plagiarism software built-in. On Tuesday (April 4), Turnitin announced a new feature called ‘AI writing detection capabilities’ (AIWDC).
The feature is designed to ‘identify the use of AI writing tools including ChatGPT,’ and claims it can do so ‘with 98 percent confidence,’ therefore allowing ‘educators to analyse and review the authenticity of academic work.’
But unis in Greater Manchester are not convinced.
The Manchester Evening News asked each of the city-region four institutions - the University of Manchester (UoM), Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU), the University of Salford, and the University of Bolton - if they would implement the new feature. UoM confirmed that it would not for the time being, while MMU and Salford said they condemn the use of AI in academic work, but did not explicitly mention the new Turnitin feature. Bolton did not respond to the MEN’s request for comment.
The headache over introducing the feature comes as one lecturer in Manchester said the issue has become ‘divisive.’ He explained: “I think the feeling from the rank and file is that universities are moving too fast on AI.
“Some people, like me, want to bring back invigilated exams that went away with Covid. With the new Turnitin software, it feels like it will create a lot of work without any outcomes. Then we will be asked to fill in forms for suspected uses of AI and then the institutions cannot do anything about it.”
The lecturer added that he had witnessed the use of AI in his classes already.
For the moment, universities are reviewing their procedures to tackle the use of AI. A University of Salford spokesperson said: “To support the implementation of a redrafted University of Salford plagiarism procedure, which will include specific reference to the inappropriate use of artificial intelligence (AI), we are reviewing technical solutions to help identify potential inappropriate use of AI in student assessments.”
And a statement from MMU said: “Safeguarding the integrity of assessments is essential to protecting the overall value of student outcomes. To maintain robust standards, our academic misconduct procedures and any new technological developments are under continual review.
“The unauthorised submission of content created by generative artificial intelligence, or other uncited third parties, already falls under our academic misconduct regulations.
A UoM spokesperson said: “After careful consideration, we have decided to opt out of making the Turnitin AIWDC tool available at this time. Opting out of the first release of this AIWDC tool now will not prevent us from enabling this function in the future but will give us time to test the technology and to fully consider the implications for our staff and students.