FORT BEND COUNTY, Texas — A new school year comes with a new challenge for educators across the country: artificial intelligence tools are at students’ fingertips. There’s a real concern some students will put ChatGPT to work instead of doing it themselves.
Melissa Hubbard is the executive director of Teaching and Learning at Fort Bend ISD.
“The program we used in our summer program did catch a couple pieces of text that were submitted. They flagged it as ‘potentially AI-generated’,” said Hubbard.
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When that happens, Hubbard said teachers read the writing and consider the student’s past work before deciding if disciplinary action is necessary.
To help make the right call, FBISD has made ChatGPT available on staff computers this year.
“We needed teachers quickly to be able to use the platform and get a feel for its tone, the style of its writing, and what it can be used for,” said Chris Nilsson, Director of Technology Support Services for FBISD.
It isn’t all bad. Nilsson said there are some benefits to the technology.
“I think it’s important to acknowledge that what it takes to be a good writer is shifting. The skills needed to be a good writer are shifting. We need to prepare our kids for the world they’ll be living in for the next 70-80 years. That looks very different from the 1970s and 1980s,” he said.
Nilsson said the district is on a path to eventually allow some students to use ChatGPT in the classroom.
This year, Hubbard wants students to remember that using ChatGPT to cheat, really cheats the student out of an education.
“We will be looking for students who are not engaging in learning and producing work in an authentic way. That could be through the use of technology or good old-fashioned passing notes with the answers to a test,” said Hubbard.