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Responsible Use of Generative AI in Academic Work

Guideline: Responsible Use of Generative AI in Academic Work

Guideline Name: Responsible Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) in Academic Work

Related Policy: Student Academic Honesty Policy

Prepared by:  Office of the Provost

Original Date:  August 10, 2024

Current Guideline Date:  August 10, 2024

Applicable to:  All Florida Tech Students and Faculty/Instructors

Context: 

The Florida Institute of Technology recognizes the transformative potential of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) in education and research and supports the exploration and responsible use GenAI technologies to enhance student learning. The use of GenAI within the Florida Institution of Technology must align with the university’s commitment to academic integrity, ethical standards, and the development of essential learning skills.

Guidelines for Students: 

Course Policies & Academic Integrity

  • Students must adhere to specific policies and guidelines set by the course instructor and described in the course syllabus regarding the acceptable use of generative AI tools for academic purpose, including but not limited to coursework, projects, and/or research activities.
  • Students must consult the course instructor if they are uncertain about whether a particular use of GenAI tools complies with course policies before utilizing them for coursework.
  • The use of GenAI tools in coursework, including but not limited to assignments, tests, projects, and reports, without instructor approval is considered a violation of academic integrity.

Disclosure of the Use of Generative AI tools

  • In instances where GenAI use is allowed, students must clearly disclose the use of GenAI tool(s) and their specific contribution to the coursework by providing proper citations, adhering strictly to the course syllabus, and, when in doubt, consulting with the course instructor about using GenAI for a particular assignment.

Ethical Standards and Data Privacy

  • Students are fully responsible for the ethical use of GenAI and the appropriateness, accuracy and originality of their work when incorporating AI-assisted content.
  • Students must consider the ethical implications of using GenAI tools in their coursework, including potential biases, misinformation, limitations, information security, data privacy, and intellectual property rights.
  • Students must avoid inputting sensitive information such as university-specific, confidential, or personal data into external AI platforms.

Equitable Use

  • In instances where an AI tool is required for coursework, students should discuss with their instructors if they have any concerns about equitable access to the tool.

Enhancing Learning with Generative AI

  • Students are encouraged to explore the use of AI tools to support their ability to think critically and solve problems effectively and creatively.
  • Students are encouraged to leverage AI technologies to complement or enhance their skills rather than replace their own critical thinking or intellectual growth.
  • Students should strive to understand the basis and limitations of AI-generated content rather than simply accepting it as an established fact.

Guidelines for Course Instructors: 

The Florida Institute of Technology acknowledges that a course instructor has complete autonomy in determining the pedagogical use of GenAI tools within their respective fields of teaching or research. This discretion is exercised in strict compliance with the principles of Florida Tech policy on Student Academic Honesty. An instructor who adopts GenAI as an instructional tool or assign coursework that requires the use of a GenAI tool must ensure students have equitable access to the respective tool or the assignments can be completed using a free version of the GenAI tool adopted for the course.

Suggested Syllabus Statements on Use of Generative AI

Instructors are required to incorporate a course policy statement into their course syllabi, reflecting their own perspective and specific approach to GenAI use in their courses. The statements provided below serve as samples and can be adapted/used by instructors as they deem appropriate.

Option 1: Open Use

“This course encourages the exploratory use of generative AI tools as part of the learning process. Students are permitted to use generative AI (GenAI) technologies for brainstorming, research assistance, and writing support. However, all use of GenAI must be clearly disclosed, and students are responsible for the final content they submit. GenAI should be used to enhance understanding and creativity, not replace original thought or fundamental skills such as critical thinking, problem-solving, and writing. Any exceptions to the syllabus guidelines for GenAI use or specific instructions for particular assignments will be communicated to students as necessary. Students are not permitted to use GenAI in their academic work in a way that would violate the Academic Honesty Policy. Should you have any questions, doubts, or concerns about using GenAI tools in your coursework, please consult your instructor for clarification and guidance.”

Option 2: Restricted Use

“The use of generative AI (GenAI) tools [list specific AI tool(s) if restricting it] is permitted in this course under specific conditions. Students may use GenAI for [insert specific purposes, e.g., initial research, outlining, brainstorming, proofreading, etc.]. However, the use of generative AI tools is NOT allowed for [insert prohibited uses, e.g., writing full essays, solving problem sets, code generation, etc.]. All GenAI use must be explicitly disclosed in submitted work. Failure to follow these guidelines or using GenAI in a manner that violates the Student Academic Honesty Policy will be considered a violation of academic integrity. The listed GenAI tool(s) should be used to enhance understanding and creativity, not replace original thought or fundamental skills such as critical thinking, problem-solving, and writing. Should you have any questions, doubts, or concerns about using GenAI tools in your coursework, please consult your instructor for clarification and guidance.”

Option 3: Prohibited Use

“To ensure the development of critical skills and maintain academic integrity [add other relevant reasons as deemed appropriate], the use of generative AI tools is NOT permitted for any assignments in this course. This includes, but is not limited to, [insert prohibited uses, e.g., essay writing, problem-solving, and code generation]. All work must be completed independently by the student, and failure to meet this requirement will be considered a violation of academic integrity (see Student Academic Honesty Policy). Should you have any questions about the prohibited use of GenAI tools in your coursework, please consult your instructor for clarification and guidance.”

Suggested Disclosure Statements for the Use of Generative AI in Coursework (Option 1: Open Use & Option 2: Restricted Use)

The course syllabus must clearly state whether the use of GenAI tools in coursework is allowed (restricted or unrestricted use) or not (prohibited use).

The following statements are for instructors to adapt/use to provide students with guidelines on how to indicate their use of GenAI in coursework.

General Disclosure Statement:

“I (or my team) used [type name of the specific generative AI tool(s), version #, access date] to assist with [insert specific task] in this assignment. I (or my team) reviewed, validated, and edited all AI-generated content included in the submitted work.”

Writing Support:

“I (my team) drafted this assignment with assistance from [type name of the specific generative AI tool(s), version #, access date] for grammatical corrections, sentence structure, and vocabulary suggestions. All final edits, content, arguments, and final wording are my own (or our) work.”

Code Generation Support:

“I (or my team) used [type name of the specific generative AI tool(s), version #, access date] to generate the basic framework of this code. I (or my team) have reviewed, modified, debugged, and optimized the code to ensure it functions as required for this assignment and produces accurate results.

Brainstorming Support:

“I (or my team) used [type name of the specific generative AI tool(s), version #, access date] to generate initial ideas for this assignment. The submitted (final) work is the result of my own (our) independent arguments and analysis.”

Problem-solving Support:

“I (or my team) used [type name of the specific generative AI tool(s), version #, access date] to enhance my (our) understanding of [type specific concept or method] taught in class. I (or my team) independently applied the [type specific knowledge or method] and carried out the calculations to complete the assigned work.”

Resource Assistance:

“I (or my team) used [type name of the specific generative AI tool(s), version #, access date] to help identify relevant resources. All information has been independently verified by me (or my team) for accuracy and appropriateness.”

Citation Assistance:

“I (or my team) used [type name of the specific generative AI tool(s), version #, access date] to format and/or organize references in this assignment based on the required citation format.”

References for Some Generative AI Tools:

Student Resources

Student Guide to Navigating College in the AI Era

 

Instructor Resources

Active Learning Strategies Catalog

Sample Prompts for Generating Active Learning Strategies

AI-Era Framework

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