Published on Aug. 4, 2023
Dear Faculty.
I look forward to welcoming you back to campus in two weeks. As you are preparing to enter the classroom again, I know that many of you are thinking about AI and ChatGPT. As society embraces AI in various fields, our curriculum and instruction can evolve to give students practice with AI tools. As educators, we must discern where AI can augment learning, and where it can shortchange our learners. This pedagogical work is not always intuitive. This email is meant to provide you with the resources and supports that we have developed at MU to help you navigate this new and constantly changing terrain.
First, it is important to talk to your students about AI. Set some time aside to have an open conversation with your students on the first day of class. Ask them if they have concerns and questions. Tell them why you, as their teacher, do not want them to use generative AI for certain components of the course, and be specific. If you are incorporating AI into the course, tell them about that decision too. It is essential that you communicate your expectations clearly to students. When you spend time talking with students about where to use AI in your course and where to avoid it, you are supporting their future success.
At MU, we have resources to educate faculty about AI and to assist you in modifying and/or creating new assignments, assessments, and learning activities which do not readily lend themselves to generative AI for successful completion. I have listed these below. If there are resources that you need and that you do not see here, please reach out to me.
During the recent SEC AI Consortium meeting in July, the unanimous consensus was that AI guidelines should be high-level without specific AI tools or procedural details, given the rapid changes in technologies and federal/state policies. Similar suggestions were discussed at an APLU Chief Academic Officers meeting in July. We are actively engaged in these conversations and are situated to be nimble in our approach. We are also currently evaluating the pros and cons of an AI Indicator Tool that would help identify parts of students’ work that resulted from their use of AI tools. If we decide to make such a tool available to faculty, I will be back with an update and instructions. Until then, I ask that faculty not purchase and use tools that are on the market, as many of them have a low accuracy rate.
As always, I wish you the very best as you prepare to greet our students this fall.
Sincerely,
Latha Ramchand, PhD
Provost &
Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs
Teaching for Learning Center
Teaching in an AI World: First Steps
Thursday, Sept. 7, 2 p.m. – 3 p.m.
Register here: https://tlcmu.libcal.com/event/11054909
Educator Introduction & Practice Session: Hands-On with ChatGPT
Tuesday, Sept. 12, 10 a.m. – 11 a.m.
Register here: https://tlcmu.libcal.com/event/11054936
Teaching in the Age of ChatGPT: Nudging Students toward Integrity with Motivation and Emotion Science
Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2 p.m. – 3 p.m.
Register here: https://tlcmu.libcal.com/event/11057759
Missouri Online
Join Missouri Online’s Academic Technology and Instructional Design teams for a new course on Artificial Intelligence. Each session in the three-part series covers an AI topic with importance for instructors.Sign up now for one or more of the following:
· Types and Uses of Generative AI: Aug. 8, 10 a.m.
· Teaching and Learning in the Era of Generative AI: Aug. 17, 10 a.m.
· AI Plagiarism and Cheating: Sept. 5, 10 a.m.
AI documentation: Articles and helpful information are now available on our Teaching Tools website.
AI survey: Give us insight into how you currently use AI in your class and what resources you expect are needed.
Blog post: Read our perspective on Teaching in the time of AI on our teaching blog.
Campus Writing Program
The August WI faculty workshop will include tips to counter AI/ChatGPT for new Writing Intensive faculty.
AI in WI: Understanding the Current State of AI
Wednesday, October 4 at 11:00 am – 11:55 am
Registration link
AI in WI: Navigating Students’ Use of AI/ChatGPT to Support Critical Thinking
Wednesday, October 18 at 11:00 am – 11:55 am
AI in WI: Teaching Writing with ChatGPT
Wednesday, November 8 at 11:00 am – 11:55 am
Academic Integrity
Here is the link to the “ChatGPT, Artificial Intelligence, and Academic Integrity” page on the Office of Academic Integrity website.