Schools “may wish to review” their homework policies amid fears about the use of artificial intelligence like ChatGPT, the Department for Education has warned. The department has set out its stance on generative AI in a statement published Exam boards yesterday published their own guidance on “protecting the integrity of qualifications鈥 from AI yesterday. The DfE said that when used 鈥渁ppropriately鈥 it has potential to reduce workload across the education sector and free up teachers鈥 time. But said schools 鈥渕ay wish to review homework policies, to consider the approach to homework and other forms of unsupervised study as necessary to account for the availability of generative AI鈥. It follows reports of because of AI. Schools should also 鈥渞eview and strengthen鈥 their cyber security as AI could 鈥渋ncrease the sophistication and credibility of attacks鈥. Students should be protected from harmful online content and personal, sensitive data should not be entered into AI tools, DfE said. The department warned the quality and content of any final documents – such as administrative plans – remains the 鈥減rofessional responsibilities of the person who produces it and the organisation they belong to.鈥 Education sector has ‘lagged in tech adoption’ Keegan: Teachers’ work could be ‘transformed’ by AI The DfE will now convene experts to work with the education sector and 鈥渟hare and identify best practice and opportunities to improve education and reduce workload using generative AI鈥. They say to 鈥渉arness the potential鈥 of AI, students will need to be 鈥渒nowledgeable and develop their intellectual capability鈥. 鈥淭he education system should support students, particularly young pupils, to identify and use appropriate resources to support their ongoing education. 鈥淭his includes encouraging effective use of age-appropriate resources (which in some instances may include generative AI) and preventing over-reliance on a limited number of tools or resources.鈥 Speaking at Bett Show ed tech conference this morning, education secretary Gillian Keegan said the education sector has 鈥渙ften lagged in tech adoption鈥 and is a tool 鈥渟chools haven鈥檛 yet managed to get the most out of鈥. She said that tech that doesn鈥檛 work is an 鈥渆xpensive and potentially dangerous mistake鈥 and one that 鈥渟chools cannot afford to make鈥. Keegan believes teachers鈥 work could be 鈥渢ransformed鈥 by AI but it鈥檚 not yet at the standard needed. Sector ‘moving too slow’ on AI Education experts were quizzed by MPs on using AI in education at the science and technology committee this morning. Rose Luckin, professor of learned centred design at University College London, warned that the education sector doesn鈥檛 have 鈥渢he in-depth knowledge about AI to be able to do a really good job. 鈥淭he technology鈥檚 moving at pace, it鈥檚 increasingly complex. Even the people developing it don鈥檛 always understand the implications of what it does. Daisy Christodoulou, director of education at No More Marking, said 鈥渟peed matters鈥 when responding to AI changes and that too many organsiations are 鈥渕oving very, very slowly鈥. 鈥淚 think we need to have a good, hard look at how we assess. I do think ChatGPT has huge implications for continuous assessment and coursework,鈥 she said. 鈥淚鈥檝e heard a few suggestions about different things you could do鈥ut some of the people making those suggestions don鈥檛 realise quite how powerful a tool like ChatGPT is. It is capable of producing, original, very hard to detect, relatively high-quality responses to any kind of question. We have to be looking at assessments that are in more controlled environments.鈥
30 March 2023 Not sure how you can beat something like ChatGPT (it鈥檚 astonishing what it can do and it鈥檚 only been public for several months), aside from now quarantining students in class to do their assignments? Or have somewhat of an automatised invigilator installed on student devices that can record what鈥檚 being accessed and whatnot? But even that can be bypassed. A conundrum.