Over half of students believe using ChatGPT to do assignments is cheating: Report

Nine in ten students who have tried AI tools say they've used them for personal projects, out of curiosity, or for fun

San Francisco: More than half of college students (51 per cent) believe that using AI tools like ChatGPT to complete assignments and exams counts as cheating or plagiarism, while 1 in 5 use them anyway, a new report has said.

According to a BestColleges survey of 1,000 current undergraduate and graduate students, about 43 per cent of college students say they have experience using AI tools like ChatGPT.

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Nine in ten students who have tried AI tools say they’ve used them for personal projects, out of curiosity, or for fun.

Moreover, the report said that most college students (57 per cent) say they do not intend to use or continue using AI to complete assignments or exams, however, close to a third (32 per cent) do, and 11 per cent prefer not to answer.

Among students who say they’ve used AI tools for schoolwork, half (50 per cent) use these tools for some parts but complete the majority themselves.

Further, the report mentioned that three in ten (30 per cent) use AI for the majority of their assignment, and 17 per cent use AI to complete an assignment and then turn it in with no edits.

While half of the college students believe that using AI tools is cheating, institutions are still debating whether AI should be banned from the classroom.

About 54 per cent of the college students say their instructors have not openly discussed the use of AI tools like ChatGPT, and, most college students (60 per cent) say that neither their schools nor instructors have specified how to use AI tools ethically or responsibly.

Around 40 per cent of students say that the use of AI by students defeats the purpose of education.

Many students express concern about the impact of AI on their education or future careers, but they’re more concerned about the impact of AI on society at large.

About 27 per cent of college students worry about the impact of AI on their education, and 31 per cent are worried about the impact on their career or potential career, the findings showed.

Meanwhile, about half of the students (48 per cent) are worried about the impact of AI on society in general.

However, the majority of students (63 per cent) agree that AI can’t replace human intelligence or creativity.